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Own workforce – our people and work environment
Why it matters
Hydro has a responsibility to provide a safe and inclusive work
environment for all workers, including own employees, temporary
employees, agency workers and contractors. Hydro values human
life above all other considerations and will not compromise the health
and safety of those working for the company or affected by its
activities. Hydro has a responsibility to provide a safe work
environment and believes that this also promotes efficiency and
lower operating costs.
Hydro depends on a safe, healthy, competent and motivated
workforce to deliver quality and efficiency in all operations.
Safeguarding the rights, health and safety of Hydro’s workforce and
building a culture for learning and equal treatment and opportunities
will help attract and develop a talented workforce and help the
company deliver better results. Hydro’s organizational culture and
strategy for talent acquisition, learning and competence
development, leadership and succession, and diversity and inclusion
help the company deliver on its strategic priorities.
In parallel, an adverse psychosocial work environment or accidents
that affect the health and safety of Hydro’s workforce can result in
disruption of business operations, legal proceedings, fines or other
financial consequences, negative reputation and loss of trust in the
short, medium and long-term. Failure to comply with applicable
regulations for working conditions, equal treatment and/or reporting
on workforce related issues could also result in fines and negative
reputation.
Hydro has a positive impact on employees through the provision of
secure employment, training and career development, adequate
wages and social protection in an inclusive work environment.
Potential negative impacts are primarily linked to unintended
incidents of discrimination or harassment or accidents resulting in
injury, illness or fatal consequences of an employee or contractor.
As a global aluminium and renewable energy company with
operations in more than 40 countries, Hydro’s workers are exposed
to a variety of safety risks that, if not controlled, could result in
injuries or fatalities. The inherent risks of negative impacts on health
and safety are higher when performing non-routine work such as
building and construction projects, and in work related to energy,
work at height, mobile equipment, overhead cranes, confined space,
molten metal and projects. Mining and engineering-related
disciplines are typically associated with lower rates of women
participation in the workforce, which can make it challenging to meet
Hydro’s diversity targets.
Our approach
Hydro identifies and monitors its impact on own employees and
contractors according to the same standards and Code of Conduct.
Health and safety standards are aligned with ISO standards, and
incidents and high-risk events are subject to root cause reviews to
ensure learning across all operations. Employees are engaged on
health and safety issues through frequent health and safety network
meetings in business areas, and engagement on diversity and
inclusion issues is primarily done through employee reviews and the
range of initiatives sponsored by members of the corporate
management board. Incidents involving discrimination or harassment
are identified through different reporting channels and Hydro’s Alert
Line. Impacts on diversity, inclusion and belonging are identified and
monitored through our employee engagement survey.
Occupational health and safety
Hydro shall be a leading company in its industry in the area of
occupational health and safety. This will be achieved through
consistent implementation of the management system with
committed and visible leadership, and full engagement of all
employees and others who work with the company. The CEO HSE
Committee is the strategic decision making committee for all main
HSE related matters for the Hydro group. The committee is led by the
President & CEO and consists of the members of the Corporate
Management Board and the head of global HSE.
Hydro’s health and safety activities are governed by the company’s
HSE policy and the Global HSE Directive. Hydro’s ambition is to
provide safe and healthy workplaces, promote health and wellbeing,
and prevent work-related injuries and ill-health. Hydro drives safety
improvements by systematically reducing risks, training personnel,
and regularly following up by line management and safety delegates.
All injuries and high-risk incidents are investigated to find root causes
and to share lessons learned between our sites.
Hydro works continuously to avoid damage to property and loss of
production. Hydro has developed a comprehensive health and safety
management system and the company’s manufacturing sites are
certified to internationally recognized health and safety standards.
Hydro embraces digital tools where possible and has developed an
advanced incident management system, self-assessment tools, risk
management processes, e-learning training modules, etc., all easily
accessible to employees. In addition, Hydro has strengthened its
0
fatalities or life-changing injuries
women overall and
in leadership positions
score on the Inclusion Index by 2025
fatality
1)
/ life-changing injury
in consolidated operations
women overall / in leadership positions
score on the Inclusion Index
1) One contractor fatality in consolidated operations. The incident is still under investigation for work relatedness and root causes. In addition, there was one fatal accident involving a contractor at
our 50/50 joint venture, Qatalum in Qatar, which is not included in statistics for consolidated operations.