Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility (*)
(*) Done in 2003
The principal goal of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility is to establish some management directives to guarantee certain ethical principles, respect for people and for the environment. The specific objectives that have been established in the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility coincide with the strategic lines defined: 1. Minimise the environmental impact 2. Guarantee transparency with the investment community 3. Ensure that employees are motivated and involved in the continuous improvement of the company 4. Maintain a close relationship with the client to guarantee client satisfaction 5. Extend the commitment to Social Responsibility to suppliers and sub-contracted companies 6. Involvement with the community and the society as a whole 7. Encourage and systematise communication channels 8. Guarantee that the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility is controlled and monitored
Each strategic line is developed through various actions, some being applied across all the companies in the group and others specific to different sectors of activity.1
1
This Plan does not include specific actions for the airports sector.
Strategic line 1: minimise environmental impact
Respect for the environment is a fundamental aspect of Social Responsibility. In fact, it is one of the three premises for sustainable development: “…economic prosperity, environmental quality and social equity. Companies aiming for sustainability need to perform not against a single, financial bottom line, but also against the triple bottom line” (Elkington, 1997). Any activity has an impact, to a greater or lesser degree, on the environment. To minimise this impact, a first step is to identify it and evaluate it, so as to then establish the necessary improvements. Both the identification and evaluation, as well as the subsequent implementation of improvements, are actions that this strategic line covers. Maintaining a register of environmental legislation that affects the activity, and ensuring that it is kept up to date and complied with is part of the process of implementing a system of environmental management for all companies in the Corporation. Specific actions are also proposed to improve environmental management in different sectors of activity. Some of these are already in place and, therefore, it is necessary to broaden or strengthen their implementation; others represent new challenges to improve environmental management.
Strategic line 1 Area of application
Minimise environmental impact Actions 1.1. 1.2. Identify and evaluate the activity’s main environmental impacts. Establish improved objectives to reduce the activity’s environmental impacts. Maintain a register of environmental legislation that affects the activity and guarantee that it is complied with and kept up to date. Systematically control water and energy consumption and the production of residues. Manage residues appropriately. Optimise energy consumption. Manage the highways’ forestry diversity. Build awareness amongst users of the forestry and scenic value. Expand the Teletac service. Expand the waste water collection service for buses and caravans. Ensure that waste waters generated by activities are correctly managed. Carry out diagnosis and audit of energy usage in different installations. Prepare a map of the impact of traffic noise on the highways. Ensure optimum levels of interior air quality. Collaborate in Car Sharing projects. Facilitate parking for bicycles. Carry out diagnosis and audit of energy usage in different installations.
General
1.3. 1.4. 1.5. 1.6. 1.7. 1.8. 1.9. 1.10.
Highways
1.11. 1.12. 1.13. 1.14. 1.15. 1.16. 1.17.
Car Parks
Telecommunications
Follow the measures established by Tradia in its environmental management system in line with ISO 14001.
Logistic services
Given the characteristics of this area of activity, focus efforts on involving the client operators in adopting management practices that respect the environment (see action 4.5.).
Strategic line 2: guarantee transparency with the investment community
This strategic line is applicable to the Corporation, given that as a publicly traded company it has a relationship with the investment community. Includes all the aspects related to corporate governance stipulated in the new law of transparency, as well as the recommendations made in the Olivencia Code and the Aldama Report, even though these are not binding. Reference is also made to dialogue, with the objective of finding the ideal channels to guarantee feedback from the investment community.
Strategic line 2 Area of application
Guarantee transparency with the investment community Actions 2.1. 2.2. 2.3. Comply with the rules on transparency and adopt the recommendations from the Olivencia Code and Aldama Report. Guarantee two-way communication with the investment community. Have a system for the evaluation, application and monitoring of opinions and demands from the investment community.
Corporation
Strategic line 3: ensure that employees are motivated and involved in the continuous improvement of the company
The objective of abertis is to provide a workplace for the professional team of almost 6,000 people – between the Corporation and its subsidiary companies – for professional and personal development. For this reason, issues covered in this point include no discrimination; continuous training; participative management; balance between work, family and leisure; health and safety in the workplace, and business ethics. The international standard SA 8000 has been taken as a reference, which adopts a system of accountable management to focus specifically on the relationship with the employee.
Strategic line 3 Area of application
Ensure that employees are motivated and involved in the continuous improvement of the company Actions 3.1. 3.2. 3.3. Increase the representation of women. Ensure employment of disabled personnel. Value the training needs of all personnel and prepare an annual training program that includes issues of Corporate Social Responsibility in the training sessions. Provide training to new employees on the commitments to Corporate Social Responsibility. Develop a system of management by objectives. Develop a system to encourage employee participation through suggestions. Adopt measures to balance work-family-leisure. Guarantee coherence, equal opportunities and no discrimination. Protect the stability of the workforce. Evaluate the level of employee satisfaction. Adopt the necessary measures (ergonomics in space, material, equipment, etc.) to guarantee a good work environment. Ensure basic health, safety and accident prevention measures are taken. Encourage good environmental practices at home amongst employees. Prepare an employee’s code of ethics. Work to comply with the requirements stipulated in the SA 8000 standard.
3.4. 3.5. 3.6. 3.7. 3.8. 3.9. 3.10. 3.11. 3.12. 3.13. 3.14. 3.15.
General
Strategic line 4: maintain a close relationship with the client to guarantee client satisfaction
Offer excellence in the quality of services to clients has been and continues to be one of the basic and essential objectives in the activity of abertis. Accordingly, one of the strategic lines in this Social Responsibility Plan specifically refers to the relationship with clients to guarantee dialogue, transparency and client satisfaction.
Maintain a close relationship guarantee client satisfaction Actions 4.1. 4.2. General 4.3. 4.4. Highways and car parks Evaluate the level of client satisfaction. Communicate all information about a product or service offered clearly and transparently. Encourage good environmental practices amongst clients. Undertake or increase collaboration in campaigns to reduce road accidents by publishing brochures or inserting messages in the different information channels that exist (web, radio service, highway message panels). with the client to
Strategic line 4 Area of application
Telecommunications
The same actions detailed above of General application.
Logistic services
4.5.
Establish environmental and social requirements of clients and monitor compliance.
Strategic line 5: extend the commitment to Social Responsibility to suppliers and subcontracted companies
If the commitment to Social Responsibility is to be effective suppliers and subcontracted companies need to be involved, as they undertake a significant part of the activity for companies in the group. For this reason the objective is assumed of extending the commitment that abertis has to Social Responsibility to the supply chain. To do this, environmental and social criteria are established for the selection of products and services that allow products and suppliers to be given priority, based on established requirements, both in the area of environmental management and in the employee relationship.
Strategic line 5 Area of application
Extend the commitment to Social Responsibility to suppliers and subcontracted companies Actions 5.1. Homologate product supplies based on established environmental and social criteria. Include requisites, based on established criteria, in the contractual agreement. Establish a system for evaluating suppliers and subcontracted companies, based on criteria established in the previous point.
General
5.2. 5.3.
Strategic line 6: involvement with the community and society as a whole
This line includes what is known as “social action”, which refers to a wide range of actions, from dialogue with the community to the investment of money or in kind (time, services), donations, sponsorship and patronage. Social action has been practised widely across different companies in the group. The drafting of the Sponsorship and Social Action Plan aims to channel all sponsorship and social action through the abertis foundation, although some sponsorship and social action by subsidiary companies will be maintained at a local level.
Strategic line 6 Area of application
Involvement with the community and society as a whole Actions 6.1. Develop a system of communication to improve dialogue with the local community. Be an active member of associations and groups with a close relationship. Prepare a Sponsorship and Social Action Plan and a Sponsorship manual.
General
6.2. 6.3.
Strategic line 7: encourage and systematise communication channels
Social Responsibility inherently implies the concept of involvement and dialogue with stakeholders2. The previous strategic lines deal specifically with the different interested parties identified by abertis (investment community, employees, clients, suppliers and sub-contracted companies, community). But dialogue with these stakeholders is considered sufficiently important to define a separate strategic line in the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility that covers all issues related to the involvement. It is important to emphasise the connotations of the word “dialogue”, which expresses two-way communication. Therefore, the final objective is to establish the channels that don’t just enable information to be provided, but also, and essentially, to receive information and obtain feedback from the different stakeholders.
Stakeholders are understood to be those groups that affect and/or are affected by the organisation and its activities. They include: owners, shareholders, employees, clients, collaborators, suppliers and sub-contracted companies, community, the media.
2
Strategic line 7 Area of application
Encourage and systematise communication channels Actions Develop a communication plan to make all interested and potentially interested parties aware of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility, so as to contribute to its implementation. 7.2. Ensure that subsidiary and associated companies have a spokesperson. 7.3. Systematise internal structure of communications. 7.4. Increase contents of information on Social Responsibility in the existing communication channels. 7.5. Create, within each company, two-way communication channels with employees. 7.6. Establish a program of social activities for employees. 7.7. Create a working group to encourage dialogue with employees. 7.8. Ensure that each company has a formally established system to collect queries and suggestions from clients, as well as mechanisms to respond, monitor and record them. 7.9. Ensure that there is a spokesperson for institutional relations in all subsidiary and associated companies. 7.10. Create incentives within subsidiary and associated companies to encourage dialogue with interested parties (employees, clients, local community). 7.1.
General
Strategic line 8: guarantee that the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility is controlled and monitored
This strategic line establishes the mechanisms of internal organisation that the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility should help to implement using a system of monitoring and control that aliments itself, guaranteeing continuous improvement. In this respect, the Unit of Social Responsibility is established as a body for coordinating and monitoring the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility; a manager-leader for each company of the group is appointed. Work is controlled and monitored regularly using the indicators selected for each of the actions, which will be used to prepare the annual sustainability reports and to monitor progress of the Plan’s implementation.
Strategic line 8 Area of application
Ensure that the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility is controlled and monitored Actions 8.1. Establish the Social Responsibility Unit to coordinate and monitor the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility, acting as interlocutor between subsidiary and associated companies and the Corporation. Appoint a leader of the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility in each of the subsidiary and associated companies. Update the data for the indicators with the frequency established in each case. Report the results of the indicators for each company to the Social Responsibility Unit, so that they can prepare the triple bottom line. Evaluate the impact of implementing the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility. Create a platform for the Strategic Plan for Corporate Social Responsibility.
8.2. General 8.3. 8.4. 8.5. 8.6.