ANNUAL REPORT 2004 - REWE Group

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40 tical experience is reflected in the performance abilities of our trainees. Thus, 75 per cent of them successfully completed their training courses last year with at least satisfactory marks. Retail trades are especially attractive for women, who make up a higher-than-average share of the retail workforce at nearly 60 per cent. The majority of trainees choose programmes in the German trades "Verkäufer" (shop assistant) and "Kaufmann/-frau im Einzelhandel" (retail merchant). Despite these efforts and opportunities, Rewe Group still has difficulties finding candidates for training in retail trades who are well enough qualified. Public policy-makers should not consider commerce and industry as an extension of the school system. Schools, parents, and the trainees themselves must share the responsibility for making improvements. One way for young people to find out about the opportunities and requirements at Rewe Group is the student internship. Over the past year alone, 4,022 students participated in this three-week get-acquainted course. Rewe Group also shows off its credentials as a modern employer at school events, at vocational training fairs and at university job fairs. It is no longer sufficient for people to rely only on what they once learned for the rest of their careers. Profound and extensive training provides still the best foundation, but people need to adjust to the idea of life-long learning and ongoing qualification to keep up with the accelerating pace of change. For enterprises, this means that employees can only contribute to the success of the business if their expertise is constantly promoted. Only the best-trained and most capable employees can fulfil the requirements needed to assure the competitive edge of the company and to enable it to undergo continuous reorganisation, even allowing it to find new markets. Commerce is increasingly marked by globalisation, innovative technologies, and new markets. This calls for employees who can master these changes. The programme of cooperative study between the Europäischen Fachhochschule Brühl (EUFH) and Rewe is aimed at Ger- man sixth-form school leavers who want to combine vocational training for the qualification "Kaufmann/frau im Groß- und Außenhandel" (wholesale merchant) with the internationally-oriented university programme "Handelsmanagement" (commerce management). This practice-oriented seven-semester programme of studying commercial issues concludes with the graduating degree "Diplom-Kauffrau/-mann (FH)". A trainee programme at our Rewe Austria subsidiary prepares trainees for international jobs. The working methods and practices at a foreign subsidiary are just as much a part of the programme as are the processes within the outlets, such as giving advice to customers. Human resource development at Rewe Group begins at the moment that an employee starts training. Next, the trainee and the trainers jointly develop and implement a fixed development programme and development measures aimed at clearly defined target groups and with defined objectives (e.g.: sales promotion programmes for district managers, store advisors and shop managers). Human resource development also provides direction and develops new methods of teaching and study (e-learning) while making an essential contribution to know-how transfer within the whole company (Knowledge Management). All these human resource development measures are operated by Rewe-Nachwuchsförderung e.V. (an organisation promoting junior staff). For 40 years now, this organisation has helped to promote employees with targeted offers in personal and career development and by providing effective measures to ensure that qualified experts and leaders are promoted from within Rewe Group. In addition, each employee is offered the opportunity to improve his or her specialist knowledge and skills so as to eliminate obstacles to a successful career at Rewe. The success of these efforts was clearly on display in 2004 when the trade publication "Lebensmittel Praxis" launched a competition for the "trainer of the year". Of the 18 awards given, seven went to Rewe and its trainers.
With the Rewe pension fund, Rewe supports its employees as they build up additional retirement savings. The state pension fund will not be enough to guarantee a standard of living similar to what retirees experienced before, and more and more employees now benefit from the financially supported conversion of parts of their salaries. Because senior management staff face a much greater gap between their last net salaries and their pension payments, this income disparity can be bridged with the help of the Rewe Higher Pension programme, which is offered to all managers with salaries above those requiring mandatory payment into the state pension scheme and who have also worked for the company for a minimum of three years. Occupational safety and health promotion are taken quite seriously at Rewe Group. This has resulted in a renewed decrease in occupational accidents. At 2,269 accidents in the past fiscal year, the number of accidents was again below that of the previous year (2003: 2,381). "Prevention before treatment" is the motto of the Rewe health insurance fund. The fund promotes responsible health maintenance using attractive incentives and a prize system. But the health insurance fund also acts locally: over the past year, 1,645 employees were examined for vein disorders and illnesses at 44 locations, receiving advice on further medical treatment or on participating in free walking courses. One year after the first exam, the measure was repeated to make sure the effort was successful. Rewe also continued its long tradition of social commitment: Rewe began supporting the "Dinner Tables in German" initiative as early as 1996. MiniMAL, Rewe, toom and the Rewe warehouses throughout Germany cooperate with the organiser of the Happy Family Parties to provide needy citizens with food at around 330 Dinner Table groups in this continuously growing self-help network. Rewe Group stores collected around 300,000 euros for the big "Red Nose Day" TV charity show in 2004. Nationwide, the group contributed to the charity event as a major sponsor with the participation of 3,000 Rewe, HL, and miniMAL supermarkets where the red noses were sold for two euros each to benefit the Red Nose Day children's aid project. Total proceeds went to national and international children's charities. To promote project work with disadvantaged children and young people in Bolivia, South Africa and India financially, interested school children were offered jobs in the framework of "Aktion Tagwerk" (In a Day's Work) event, where the students contributed the wages they would have earned to the charity. Part of the core business of a company in the food trade business is conscientiously handling food. Rewe Group pays particular attention here to a healthy and balanced diet. With its dietary information campaigns such as "Fit & thin", "Low-fat 30", "Five a day - fruits and vegetables", "Food, fun, imagination" and "Youth and health" in cooperation with German Federal Health Minister Ulla Schmidt, Rewe Group wants to point out the connection between a healthy diet and a general sense of well-being. These programmes help to warn against poor diet habits as early as possible at home, in school or in kindergartens with numerous projects and events including sports activities, breakfasts or cooking clubs. 41 EMPLOYEES
Page 1: ANNUAL REPORT 2004
Page 4 and 5: 4 We Have Now Completed the Necessa
Page 6 and 7: 6 The Primary Aim is to Strengthen
Page 8 and 9: 8 As to the question of whether to
Page 10 and 11: "I can go shopping all by myself. B
Page 12 and 13: 12 Rewe is Growing in and with Euro
Page 14 and 15: 14 Proportional turnover by busines
Page 16 and 17: "This is all so exquisitely prepare
Page 18 and 19: 18 transition, Rewe is increasing s
Page 20 and 21: "When I have a lot to buy, I want t
Page 22 and 23: "To prepare over a thousand meals a
Page 24 and 25: 24 WHOLESALE At 656 million euros,
Page 26 and 27: 26 Despite a Difficult Business Env
Page 28 and 29: "I don't have the time to search th
Page 30 and 31: 30 own travel specials online. For
Page 32 and 33: 32 The Growth Engine is Racing. For
Page 34 and 35: 34 In July of 2004, Rewe Group bega
Page 36 and 37: FRANCE Harnes Paris Wenn der mit sa
Page 38 and 39: "This nice store clerk not only gav
Page 42 and 43: z Rewe advertisement from 1957
Page 44 and 45: 44 1980 Rewe-Wibu is founded in Mai
Page 46 and 47: Anyone who can calculate well can o

ANNUAL REPORT 2004 - REWE Group

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