5.2 The people of Accell Group
Accell Group provides employment to more than 3,000 people. This is important to the economic activity in the regions where Accell companies are located.
Our employees are passionate about the products they produce; the product ‘bicycle’ connects our employees and makes them proud of the company. As a result, Accell Group has a strongly operational corporate culture. Attention for a social policy and the enjoyment of our employees in their work are important parts of this corporate culture. And in line with this, it is also important to offer employees perspective for growth and development. Working in production, warehouses and offices comes with a number of health and safety risks, such as the safety of machinery and tools, lifting activities, practical testing under severe conditions, RSI and workload.
Employment
The efficiency of our operations is a major priority at Accell Group. We believe the best way to achieve this is with qualified and motivated personnel who work under positive terms and conditions. Accell Group seeks to engage its employees for the long term and aims for low staff turnover. However, the bicycle sector has seasonal production patterns, which results in a high percentage of employee turnover, due to the production companies.
Of Accell Group’s total workforce, 61% are employed under a collective labour agreement. Various Accell Group companies cooperate with organisations in the sheltered employment sector and/or a special programme for young people making their first entry into the labour market.
Enjoyment and social policy
In its role as employer, Accell Group goes beyond simply arranging processes such as recruitment and selection and remuneration. The employees are the beating heart of the company. At Accell Group, they will find an open and professional culture. Many Accell companies offer their employees a profit-sharing scheme. Employees are often active in sponsorship activities and can submit activities from their own local environment, frequently but not necessarily associated with the sport of cycling. Sponsoring these activities boosts the employees’ engagement and pride in the company and raise the awareness of our brands in the local communities. We regularly organise parties or sports events for our employees. A pleasant working environment and a company that devotes attention to reciprocal engagement boosts commitment to the company and its goals.
This year, we are launching a pilot for uniform and frequent employee surveys. In these surveys, we measure our employees’ engagement, satisfaction and enthusiasm. We can use the outcome of these surveys to change the policies where necessary. We have also appointed a director at holding level to support, expand and safeguard the employee policy of the brands.
Health and safety
Accell Group attaches enormous importance to the health and safety of its employees. All group companies comply with national regulations and legislation.
In every company, someone is responsible for health and safety. Next to ensuring compliance with regulations and legislation they encourage the health and safety culture within the companies. There are also trained emergency staff on site within all companies. Where relevant, the company has specialists in fire safety and/or hazardous substances. Absenteeism is monitored and reported on an annual basis, as are industrial accidents. Accell Group strives for 100% safety. For each industrial accident, we investigate the cause and any necessary extra measures that may need to be taken.
Reducing absenteeism
In 2015, we noted an increase in absenteeism following accidents. Analysis shows that these were partly due to carelessness or inattentiveness. This has resulted in more attention being devoted to operating instructions, particularly for new employees. In some cases, the production tools have been adjusted. An overview of accidents and measures is shared with sister companies and discussed so we can share know-how and organise preventative actions if necessary.
* The number of hours of absenteeism, expressed as a percentage of the total number of working hours
Training and Education
Accell Group’s policy is aimed at providing employees with a challenging working environment that suits their personal abilities and ambitions. Managers and team leaders are responsible for identifying training wishes and opportunities.
Our goal: realising an average of 10 training hours per employee per year. This target is anchored in the training and education budget of all Accell companies. Training is a regular component of the annual budget talks, in which the training budget is assessed on the basis of the training hours given in previous years.
In 2015, the average number of training hours per employee once again increased, to 9.6 hours. This means that Accell Group almost realised it training hours target.