Decent employment, diversity and inclusion are integral to Nestlé’s culture. They are rooted in our values and purpose, which are based on respect – for ourselves, for others, for diversity and for the future. Diversity and inclusion also strengthen and enrich companies, making them more innovative, and more attractive to customers and employees.
Announced the ambition of our global youth initiative, Nestle Needs YOUth, at the UN General Assembly
Launched Know Your Numbers, a company-wide health programme that will give us a better understanding of our employees’ health profile and the impact of health on productivity, helping us build strategic, evidence-based health initiatives.
Training in our Corporate Business Principles made available to all our employees
Our approach
We aim to provide a workplace that generates equal opportunities for everyone, and in which people are treated with dignity and respect. We are expanding our efforts to strengthen this inclusive culture, helping us leverage the unique skills, knowledge and experiences of our diverse workforce.
See our full report (pdf, 15Mb) for details of our progress against our commitments to promote decent employment and diversity.
Get healthy with Know Your Numbers
Our new company-wide initiative Know Your Numbers will give all employees an opportunity to find out more about their health and get advice and support, from stopping smoking to getting more exercise and eating healthier. It will also help us build more strategic, evidence-based health initiatives.
Celebrating Africa Youth Day
Nestlé markets across Africa showed their commitment to young people with numerous programmes and initiatives to celebrate Africa Youth Day. By 2055, the number of people under 30 in Africa is set to double. Africa Youth Day offers a reminder of this challenge but also an opportunity for companies like Nestlé to support young people to enter the world of work.
Reaching out through social media
Through Alliance for YOUth, we set an ambitious goal of reaching out on Facebook to 12 million 18 to 29-year-olds across Europe in 2017. With a consistent visual theme to our posts, and impactful content on career and training opportunities, as well as tips, features and fun, our campaign was a huge success, with 12.2 million hits on the page.
Leading Together
Nestlé has launched a series of conferences across Europe, the USA and Asia entitled ‘Leading Together’. The aim is to engage men and women of all generations to discuss ways to accelerate our diversity and inclusion journey, embedding it in our daily activities. Topics covered include negotiation, cultural and organisational bias, flexibility and leading diverse teams.
Nestlé – Making a living wage a reality around the world
At Nestlé, we are driven by our purpose and values, and place people at the heart of our company. They ensure our success and without them, nothing can be achieved. This is why we care for people first and why we put people above systems. This means not only offering a safe and engaging place in which to work, but also making sure that we pay a living wage to our employees around the world. Consequently, one of our key people-related pledges is that ‘Nestlé is committed to periodically verifying that the lowest level of salaries and benefits are not just complying with the law, but are competitive in allowing employees to cover their needs according to local standards of living…’
During the past three years, Nestlé and our external partner Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) have worked actively on a global basis to validate that we pay a living wage across the world. While definitions of living wage differ, and the amounts involved vary by location and household, BSR’s approach to determining a living wage sets a rate using a consistent methodology worldwide that best represents the actual costs of acquiring goods and services and to accrue a core level of personal savings.
During 2014–16, 111 countries around the world were assessed, with the order of priority set using key inputs such as the FTSE4Good ESG Ratings and the UN Human Development Index. By the end of 2016, we had completed our global exercise to validate that all Nestlé’s employees (whether permanent or temporary) in countries where 10 or more people are employed, are paid a living wage. Relatively few gaps were identified, and by April 2017 these had been addressed, the only exceptions being certain joint ventures and those countries where reliable measurement was not possible due to local civil conflicts or extreme economic conditions (such as hyperinflation).
To ensure this approach is embedded for the future, the Nestlé living wage exercise will be repeated at least every three years and more frequently in countries where living standards are affected by significant socio-economic or other factors. HR staff worldwide have been trained on the methodology, line managers made aware of its importance, and regular checks made on pay rates (e.g. when hiring new employees or reviewing levels in high inflation countries).
“This is a major achievement that few other companies have managed. Through strong collaboration between our Rewards and Employee Relations functions and our local HR teams, we have converted this commitment into reality. Consumers want to know that companies they buy from are fair employers and we are pleased to be able to confirm that we are a Living Wage employer globally.”
Peter Vogt, Nestlé’s Chief Human Resources Officer