Occupational safety and health management

The nature of employment at a service provider means that general health and safety risks are relatively low. The framework conditions for health and safety at the workplace, which are provided by European and local laws and regulations, apply to all Swiss Life companies and form the basis of all health management and labour protection standards and guidelines.

Hazard identification, risk assessment and investigation of work-related incidents are integrated into the management system and guaranteed by the relevant regulations and processes, which in turn are based on the aforementioned legal principles. Some examples:

• A broad basic offering and annually changing focus topics relating to active health management are promoted in the Switzerland Division. The offerings are reviewed annually and developed further in cooperation with Social Care Consulting and the company doctor.
• At Swiss Life France, a committee for the management of health, safety and working conditions meets quarterly in the presence of employee representatives (employee participation). Accidents at work are analysed and subject to risk assessment. They may lead to safety measures being adjusted. An annual review and a risk prevention programme are established and are the subject of reports submitted to the elected staff representative. Health services and local representatives support employees in matters relating to health and working conditions. In addition, three mediators responsible for preventing harassment and sexist remarks have received special training.
• At the Luxembourg location of the International division, a staff delegate oversees health and safety aspects in accordance with the legal requirements and in cooperation with the designated employee representative.

To ensure employees’ safety and health, the divisions employ staff at their locations who are specialised in these areas. Moreover, managers are responsible for helping employees to comply with occupational safety measures and for protecting their health. To continuously improve the management approach and the impact of the measures taken, experts and decision-makers regularly review their effectiveness, make improvements where necessary and report on what has been achieved to the Corporate Excutive Board on an ongoing basis.