Sustainability Report - Antofagasta PLC

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Antofagasta plc Sustainability Report 2011
Employees and labour relations
Labour relations
Antofagasta Minerals aims to maintain constructive relationships with its
workers and the six labour unions that represent them through regular
communication and consultation. Labour representatives are involved in
decision-making that affects the workforce as early as possible. There
were no labour disputes among employees or contractors during 2011.
Collective agreements are in place at all mining operations that cover
remuneration and terms and conditions of employment. Most of
Antofagasta Minerals’ employees are unionised and any employment
benefits agreed with unions are given to non-unionised employees as well.
In 2011, there were four collective bargaining processes with unions at
the operations, which were all successful. The agreements covered
salaries, working hours, the terms of variable bonuses and employment
benefits. The mining companies discuss collective agreements with union
representatives before they are due for renewal.
Percentage of workers unionised
Los Pelambres
Esperanza
El Tesoro
Michilla
2011
57%
56%
66%
60%
2010
65%
44%
71%
62%
2009
59%
56%
68%
68%
Employees are encouraged to voice their concerns through meetings with
human resources managers at the operations. The mining companies
keep a record of concerns raised by union and non-union employees to
make sure they are investigated and addressed promptly.
Mine managers keep employees informed about the business through a
range of channels, including the intranet, newsletters, bulletin boards and
social events.
Employee satisfaction is monitored every year through a labour climate
survey and on average across the mining companies 96% of workers
responded to the survey in 2011. We are pleased that worker satisfaction
in 2011 remained stable at 80%. The survey results at each mine are
shared with operational managers, and managers of teams with lower
than average satisfaction scores are required to develop improvement
plans. Human resources managers support this process and monitor the
effectiveness of any changes made.
Talent, training and development
Training for employees enables us to keep improving the skills of our
workforce in line with the current and future needs of the business.
Providing personal development opportunities helps to motivate
employees and keep them with the company long term. Supervisors are
responsible for identifying the skills and competencies that their workers
need through annual performance meetings, and for supporting them in
fulfilling these needs. The central budget available for training and
development in 2012 has increased by around 30%.
Corporate training programmes in 2011 included training managers at
four levels (trainee, first-time manager, middle manager and senior
manager) to develop their leadership capabilities through the Antofagasta
Minerals management diploma. The programme is delivered with the
Adolfo Ibáñez University School of Business and was completed by 118
employees in 2011.
In 2011, the average number of training hours per person increased at El
Tesoro, Los Pelambres and Michilla. To ensure it had the necessary
workforce to operate, Esperanza trained a large number of new
apprentices during its construction in 2010. Its training hours decreased
significantly in 2011 with the completion of the apprentice programme.
See case study on boosting local employment, page 46.
Average hours of training per person (own employees)
Los Pelambres
Esperanza
El Tesoro
Michilla
Corporate Centre
2011
372*
179*
54*
53
36
2010
267
418
34
48
22
* Includes hours of training for mining apprenticeship programmes.
2009
264
72
29
35
19