Safety in the workplace

SDG: 
Goal 3 - Good health and well-being
Goal 8 - Decent work and economic growth

It is our priority to provide all employees with a safe and comfortable workplace. The past year required us to respond quickly to the epidemiological situation in the country and take care of the health of our employees.

  • GRI:
  • 403-2 Hazard identification, risk assessment and incident investigation
    Hazard identification, risk assessment and incident investigation
  • 403-4 Employee participation, consultation and communication on health and safety
    Employee participation, consultation and communication on health and safety
  • 403-6 Health promotion
    Health promotion
  • 403-9 Type and number of work-related injuries
    Type and number of work-related injuries
  • ESG: S – Society Our approach to Social Responsibility
    Our approach to Social Responsibility

We continuously monitor regulations and guidelines related to occupational health and safety and adapt workplaces to the requirements of Polish and European legislation. In order to maintain dialogue with employee representatives, we organise Health and Safety Committee meetings and work closely with Social Labour Inspectors.

We posted all important and useful health and safety information for employees on the intranet. In connection with the pandemic, we set up a special COVID-19 tab where we shared practical tips.

In 2020, we conducted health and safety audits in all major units of the Business Support Centre.

  • GRI:
  • 403-6 Promocja zdrowia
    Promocja zdrowia

Ensuring security during the COVID-19 pandemic

For the sake of staff safety and to ensure that the bank remains fully operational, a natural priority last year was to very quickly adapt existing procedures and implement new workplace rules related to the emergence of the COVID-19 epidemiological threat.

We introduced a package of procedures and instructions including:

  • Emergency procedure for the occurrence or suspected case of SARS-CoV-2 virus in the workplace,
  • Instructions for disinfecting flat surfaces,
  • Instructions for wearing face masks,
  • Hand washing instructions,
  • Information on hand disinfection techniques,
  • Instructions for putting on and taking off gloves.

Comprehensive protection - employee health as a priority

In order to maintain full business continuity in 2020, we focused on the health of all employees. We made changes to our work organisation:

  • We redeployed all employees who could perform business processes remotely.

  • We implemented measures to ensure that the bank’s staff (around 60% of the total workforce) have good conditions to work efficiently and smoothly from home.

  • Due to the pandemic remote work continued until the end of 2020, and then we decided to extend it further.

  • An online recruitment process was implemented.

We have started to build a new work culture:

  • We took steps to develop rules of remote working in the bank and a hybrid work model.
  • We launched cross-functional working teams working on the detailed principles of the hybrid model. We conducted internal qualitative research and workshops and used the lessons learned.

We have taken various preventive measures and implemented new initiatives in three areas:

  • We tracked the epidemiological situation in the bank and responded to regulatory changes on an ongoing basis.
  • We coordinated activities related to reported quarantines, isolations and other situations related to COVID-19. We offered full support through the implementation of the „OurHealth” application for reporting and monitoring pandemic in the bank.
  • We implemented an application to monitor employee health and returns from abroad.
  • We actively cooperated and maintained contact with state authorities (State Sanitary Inspectorate, State Labour Inspectorate) on issues related to coronavirus.

  • Initially (from March to May 2020), we reduced the working hours of branch staff to 6 hours per day, including 5 hours for direct customer service. From 1 June, customer service hours at branches were 7 hours per day.
  • We moved high-risk employees from direct customer service to other tasks (including remote work).
  • We placed hand disinfectant dispensers in publicly accessible areas e.g. at entrance doors and lifts, and ensured that the product is refilled on a regular basis.
  • We carried out regular disinfection of offices, branches and branch ATMs.
  • We equipped our branch network with Plexiglas screens and comfortable visors to strengthen the protection of employees and customers.
  • We monitored the movement of staff in the head office buildings to avoid the risk of infection.
  • We increased the frequency of cleaning of the most frequently touched surfaces (doorknobs, doors, countertops, fittings).
  • We held crisis management team meetings in units where COVID-19 cases were confirmed among office staff.
  • We made decisions to open or close operational units in response to the current pandemic situation.

  • We offered employees who had contact at work with an infected person to be tested for COVID-19 free of charge. To this end, we partnered with the Medical Centre (579 referrals for tests in 2020).
  • We introduced online on-call services by HR experts on employee issues in epidemic conditions.
  • We gave our employees a chance to consult a psychologist (chat, telephone, webinars).
  • As part of the „Hot Spot – „Work Feels Good” campaign, we carried out activities to make employees more comfortable while performing their job duties. We provided employees with face masks and other protective equipment such as gloves, disinfectant fluids, etc.
  • We carried out a series of training sessions entitled „Back to the New Normal” to prepare people for the return to the office, explain how to travel safely to and from work and remind about the rules to follow.
  • We prepared a set of good practices for employees on safety when working remotely.
  • We offered employees preferential terms for the purchase of office chairs.
  • We made it possible to borrow monitors from work to take home.
  • We paid a one-off financial allowance to bank employees.
  • In order to minimise the risk of employees being exposed to the virus, we have provided free use of a fleet of company cars on the way to and from work, and have made parking facilities under the buildings available for employees’ private cars.

Goals for 2021

We will be monitoring the coronavirus situation and react as necessary. We will adapt the working environment on an ongoing basis to current restrictions and to changes introduced by legislation.

 

As a result of the switch to remote working, the number of work-related accidents in 2020 fell by 50% and the number of lost days fell by 74%.

  • GRI:
  • 403-9 Rodzaj i wskaźnik urazów związanych z pracą
    Rodzaj i wskaźnik urazów związanych z pracą

Accidents (incidents) at work in 2020 by gender

2020
Female Male
Total number of accidents (incidents) at work 21 7
of which fatal accidents 0 0
of which major accidents (incidents) 0 0
of which minor accidents (incidents) 21 7
Total number of persons injured in accidents: 28
Total accident incidence rate (IR, calculated as the total number of persons injured in accidents/employment × 1,000) 2.69
Accident incidence rate 2.91 2.17
Total number of days lost to work due to work accidents
(LDR, calculated as the ratio of the total number of days lost to the number of planned working hours of employees in the reporting period * 200000)
417
324 94
Accident severity rate (calculated as the number of lost days due to accidents/number of accidents) 14.89
15.38 15.43
Absence rate (AR, calculated as the total number of days of absence from work/number of days worked per year * 200000) 25%
30% 15%