Nestlé is committed to being a leader in workplace safety and health.
The Nestlé Occupational Health and Safety Management System (NSMS) was revised in line with the 2007 edition of the international standard OHSAS 18001 and reissued to all Nestlé operations, reinforcing our commitment that “Safety is non-negotiable”. Our Nestlé Policy on Safety and Health at Work was also revised and reissued in 2008, further strengthening Nestlé's commitments in these key areas.
We are also working towards external certification of our factories against OHSAS 18001 and aim to have all of our factories certified by 2010. This will provide a common language around our health and safety management systems, and make it easier to demonstrate implementation of these standards to our stakeholders.
The number of workplace injuries has been reduced. In the last five years alone, the Lost Time Injury Rate has fallen by 70%.
Major focus on preventing accidents
Over the years, Nestlé has developed a strong network of local Safety, Health and Environment functions that develops and shares best practices in accident prevention across the world.
Involving employees
Employees at all levels are empowered to assume ownership of workplace safety. Behavior based safety programs are being implemented in all operational sites (including factories and distribution centers). Safety observations made by those most concerned are gathered and analyzed, and measures to eliminate or manage risks are implemented.
Tools to manage safety performance
Custom-made tools have been put in place to track workplace safety key performance indicators. Safety practitioners and managers have access to reports about their local performance and those of other sites, enabling easy internal benchmarking and identification of best practices.
Towards “Best in Class” status
Our constant goal is zero accidents. Nestlé is determined to be one of the safest companies to work for in each market and business segment where it operates. We have made important reductions in our injury rates and continue to invest in training and best practices to accelerate this trend. Our aim is to be among the leaders in our industry peer group by 2012, which implies no more than one lost time injury per million hours worked.