Business Overview 2009 (pdf - 6.8MB) - Veolia Water

Our fundamentals / Human resources
Our people’s expertise:
our core asset
To provide solutions that
match the specific local
situation of each of its
clients, Veolia Water counts
on the ever-growing
professionalism of its
personnel. Our emphasis
is always on improving
the quality of local services,
developing the highest
skills worldwide, and
continuously prioritizing
training, safety and
diversity.
Rely on training
To be capable of delivering the performance levels expected
by clients and keep pace with the changing demands of
its businesses, Veolia Water relies on training, for which
it invested 2.38% of the payroll in 2009. Dispensed primarily
through the Campus Veolia Environnement network,
with the curricula of the individual sites adapted to local
needs, our training guarantees the same level of technical
expertise in all countries where we operate. In 2009, a new
training center dedicated to drinking water was opened
in Changzhou, China, to serve our employees in the
Asia-Pacific region. Veolia Water has also opted for work-study
programs as a way of preparing for the future.
In 2009, 605 young people were hired under these programs.
Skills to serve performance
Assessing training needs starts with human resources
planning, which is also geared to equipping employees
for career advancement and job mobility—both geographic
relocation and transfers between businesses—and to
becoming a lever for career management. Launched
in 2008, the human resources predictive management
plan is based on common standards developed in close
consultation with the business units.
The program provides a genuine skills map that enables
our operation managers to optimize their organization
and identify talented employees. Deployment of the
program at Veolia Water and its subsidiaries continued
in 2009.
Promote a culture of occupational health and
safety
In 2009, workplace safety was again a priority for us and
an integral part of our continuous improvement process.
A workplace accident management tool was introduced,
a variety of training actions in promoting safety took place,
and safety audits were systematically conducted.
For several years, we have been taking a participatory
management approach to occupational health and safety
in close contact with trade unions and personnel
representatives. Once again, our safety record improved
in 2009. With the frequency of workplace accidents falling
50% in five years, Veolia Water has become a benchmark
for safety in its fields of activity.
Labor relations
At Veolia Water, we are convinced that progress for the
entire company depends on good labor relations.
20 Veolia Water 2009