Corporate Responsibility
We are committed to Corporate Responsibility (‘CR’) and regard the integration of sound CR practices (which take into account the interests of all our stakeholders be they employees, customers, shareholders or the wider community) as a long-term, sustainable approach to business and we continue to devote significant resources towards improving CR standards and practices within the Group.
Steven Glew is the Board member responsible for CR with our CR strategy being approved at Board level. He, together with the CR Steering Committee actively manage, develop and communicate our CR strategy, with this strategy providing direction and guidance on all aspects of business practice and responsibility. The members of the CR Steering Committee are drawn from a number of disciplines across the company (human resources, health and safety, operations, transport, procurement, communications and legal).
To further develop and give direction to our CR strategy, as well as to show our continuing commitment to CR, we are a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact. As such we have committed to taking action and upholding each of the principles it describes in relation to business integrity, employment, human rights and the environment.
The Board takes account of the significance of social, environmental and ethical (‘SEE’) matters to the business of the company. Currently we have identified no SEE risks that would have a material impact on our business.
Our Corporate Responsibility programme has four key elements:
Environment
The Group recognises that it has a responsibility to reduce its impact on the environment and seeks to increase the environmental sustainability of its operations and those of its suppliers. Whilst we recognise that we have an important role to play in delivering goods and mail in the UK, we are acutely aware of the impact that transport operations have on the environment and the Group is committed to reducing this impact by the introduction of cost effective solutions and changes which result in real benefits to the environment as a whole.
In the year we have developed and issued an environmental policy, which is available on our company website, www.ukmail.com
Our key long term initiatives are to reduce the carbon footprint of our buildings and vehicles, by reducing our energy and fuel consumption, and to reduce the waste we send for disposal.
Health and Safety
The Group fully embraces and endorses the legal and moral obligation to protect the health, safety and welfare of employees and others who may be affected by our operations.
Employment
Treating our staff fairly and equally, investing in them and making sure everyone can develop and contribute.
Community
Playing our part as a corporate citizen, supporting charities and community activities that affect our staff and customers.
OUR CR TARGETS
We have chosen to drive our CR programme through four long-term targets, focused on the year 2013, three years from the base year 2010.
These are as follows:
• To cut the absolute carbon emissions from both our buildings and our vehicles by 10 per cent
• To increase recycling so that at least 90 per cent of our waste is recycled
• To improve health and safety scorcecard performance to 95 per cent
• To achieve full ISO 14001 compliance
2009/10 performance
Our performance in the year and our targets are as follows:
2009/10 ACHIEVEMENTS
Environment
We have made good progress with these initiatives during the last year.
We have established mechanisms to identify and report on a monthly basis the CO2 emissions that our business creates. We have set targets to reduce these outputs and put in place specific initiatives, with specific goals, to achieve these reductions. These initiatives relate principally to fuel and energy usage together with waste disposal.
Fuel usage
With respect to fuel usage we have three key objectives:
Objective 1: to reduce the distance travelled by our vehicle fleet through effective route planning and optimisation of vehicle fill.
The use of route software enables the Company to reduce fuel usage by optimising journey distances. In conjunction with the implementation of partially automated sortation into our Birmingham hub, we have introduced new vehicle loading techniques which have reduced the number of vehicle routes. Changes to routes and optimisation of vehicle fill introduced in the year have resulted in the reduction of distances travelled by in an excess of 1 million kilometres, leading to savings in CO2 emissions of 134 tonnes for the year.
Objective 2: to reduce the fuel consumption of our vehicles through a review of the design of vehicles used and other effective means.
All our double decker trailers have sloping fronts, designed in conjunction with the Group’s trailer suppliers, which dramatically reduces the fuel consumption of the towing vehicle, thus reducing CO2 emissions by up to 25 tonnes per vehicle per year. We are trialling a new aerodynamic trailer design which, if successful, will further reduce the CO2 emissions from our vehicles.
All powered vehicles have bespoke aerodynamic air kits, which have resulted in mpg improvements of between 5% -10%. They are also regularly maintained to ensure only quality components and oils are used for peak performance. Vehicles and trailers are specified to run on road-friendly air suspension, reducing wear of components, damage to the road network and noise pollution. All new heavy goods vehicles ordered are specified with automated transmissions, which optimise fuel economy and also reduces driver fatigue.
Tyres are also audited on a regular basis to ensure repair agents maintain tyre pressures, which if not correct, can have a detrimental effect on the life of the tyre but also the vehicle’s fuel consumption, which in turn has an effect on the CO2 emissions of that vehicle. We have also trialled using ‘energy’ tyres which provide approximately 6% less rolling resistance and should lead in a reduction in the vehicle’s fuel consumption.
During the year, we have continued to monitor the mpg per vehicle and will continue to do so in the current year. Analysis of this data leads to improved mpg, and therefore reduced carbon emissions, through such actions as driver training in fuel efficient driving techniques, and vehicle maintenance to ensure optimum fuel efficiency is achieved.
We have continued to replace diesel run counterbalance forklift trucks with electric forklift trucks and there have also been improvements to the company car fleet following the move to a new fleet management company. All new company cars have CO2 emissions below 160g/km and drivers are encouraged to make fewer business journeys by replacing them with conference calls and video conferencing.
Objective 3: to continue using bio-diesel and to investigate alternatives.
All our vehicles utilise bio-diesel which reduces the CO2 emissions from our vehicles by 3% and we aim to continue the use of bio-diesel at current levels. We continue to investigate (such investigations taking account of the overall environmental impact of the use of such products) other opportunities to reduce the carbon emission from the fuel we use, such as alternative fuel and fuel optimisation products (e.g. the use of additives in fuel).
Energy usage and waste
With respect to energy usage in our buildings, we have been working with the Carbon Trust to identify actions that we can take. For example, we have deployed motion sensors to control lighting, installed simple time controls on office equipment, replaced wasteful traditional lighting with LED and low energy alternatives.
We have deployed ‘smart’ meters in 34 of our sites. These meters provide regular ‘on line’ energy usage readings throughout the day, every day. The information provided is allowing us to identify and reduce unusual energy usage, particularly during the periods when our operations are closed down.
We have also been working hard to increase the level of our recycling and in 2009 appointed a new waste management company, whose specialist focus is the recycling of waste. The increased focus on recycling has led to a further increase in the amount of waste which we now recycle to 80% and we have a target to achieve 90% by the end of 2013.
Employee involvement
We have also during the past year, launched an internal campaign to raise awareness amongst our employees of the environmental impact of their actions. This has seen employees now consciously switching off lights, powering off machines and using on- site recycling facilities. Management at local sites have also been empowered to introduce practices which will encourage a reduction in on-site energy usage and waste, and an increase in recycling. This activity has been encouraged by the introduction of an intra-site ‘eco-challenge 2009’ competition which awards the site showing the greatest reduction in energy consumption and increased use of recycling facilities.
ISO 14001
ISO 14001 is the key standard for Environmental Management Systems. It sets rigorous demands for environmental management and is externally audited on a regular basis.
We are pleased to report that we have achieved this standard in three of our key sites. We are now progressing a plan to achieve full accreditation across all our corporate sites by March 2013.
We have adopted a strict code of conduct with our suppliers which defines our minimum standards of business activity and shapes the way we work with our suppliers for mutual gain.
Product innovation
We are also driving product innovation which reduce the environmental impact of our operation. In November 2008, we launched ‘imail’. ‘imail’ is a next day or two day mail delivery service which allows customers of any size to electronically transmit mail items to our national network of sort centres. The mail item is printed and enveloped in the sort centre closest to the delivery address and then transferred to Royal Mail for final delivery. This product offering reduces the carbon footprint of a letter by some 80% by reducing the transport requirements that have previously been a necessary part of operating a national delivery solution.
Working with our suppliers
We have developed a new approach to improving the environmental standards of our suppliers and now require them to provide details of their environmental practices and whether they have any environmental accreditation.
Health and safety
Robust policies are deployed to ensure training, risk assessment, safe systems of work and accident investigation procedures are carried out throughout the Company. Policies are updated on an ongoing basis to ensure they reflect the changing environment in which we operate. Health and safety is discussed at Group Board meetings utilising the monthly health and safety report, which outlines proactive and reactive measures for discussion and debate. A full Safety Health and Environment (SHE) audit is carried out on a regular basis each year at all operating locations. We are pleased to report that the average score achieved in the year has increased to 87.1%. This has been achieved through safety being integrated into the way we work, improved staff awareness and new working methods.
The introduction of a partial automatic driven Birmingham hub will be a major benefit in this area as it reduces on site vehicle movements which can be a major cause of health and safety risks.
A health and safety intranet site contains readily available information for managers on specific procedures and policies such as safety policies and procedures, emergency response, safe systems, risk assessments, accident investigations, limited quantities of dangerous goods allowed and communications to promote health and safety and to prevent accidents from occurring in the work place.
Employment and staff welfare
The Group is committed to providing equal opportunities for all our employees regardless of race, gender, age, disability or religious background. Steven Glew is the Board member responsible for Human Resources.
Our Human Resource policies are clearly defined and communicated both via our website and the staff handbook which is distributed to all employees.
The Group holds an Investors In People accreditation and has continued to make significant progress in Human Resource management over the last year in its aim to become an ‘Employer of Choice’. The Employee Consultative Group has been strengthened to provide a robust platform for all employees to make a significant contribution to bringing about change in the workplace and to provide a forum for the exchange of information, opinions and feedback. Our reward schemes have also been reviewed resulting in improved incentives and competitive benefits and the introduction of a performance based bonus scheme. A number of voluntary benefits have also been introduced resulting in a wider choice for employees. Employee turnover has continued to fall, having now reduced every year for the last 5 years by a total of 20%. The Group continues to coach and train managers in a wide variety of skill areas including, performance management, communication skills, leadership, employment law and supervisory skills and has continued to provide operational training courses for front line staff such as manual handling, customer care, health and safety and IT skills. The ‘Best Welcome’ induction programme has also continued to be rolled out to new employees, providing an overview of the business, key operational matters and those matters which we value most (such as honesty, responsibility and a can-do attitude).
In the year we launched an Occupational Health scheme in conjunction with a major healthcare provider. The scheme provides support to employees who have long term sickness with the aim of aiding their recovery. This scheme will further support the company’s approach to health and wellbeing with a number of initiatives being developed to support this including access to online health checks for all employees, ‘Ride a Bike to Work’ salary sacrifice scheme and health assessments for Night Workers.
The Group continues to support working parents by offering flexible working arrangements and Childcare Vouchers. NVQ Training has also been implemented resulting in a number of employees gaining a nationally recognised qualification. To support our staff welfare programme, the Group provides, through a third party, a 24 hour confidential help line that provides counselling and advice on a wide range of subjects. Further welfare initiatives have been put in place with the introduction of an Attendance Management Policy. The Group continues to ensure all the requirements of current and future employment and health and safety legislation are met and managers are kept up to date with changes in legislation through quarterly seminars.
We have improved the operational focus of our training programmes and as a result a total of 2,700 employees attended training in the year, an increase of over 100% on the previous year. In 2009 the company achieved a 95% satisfaction score from delegates for all training attended. The choice of training offered by the company is wide with a portfolio of over 50 courses available including courses which are accredited to the Institute of Leadership and Management.
In March 2010, the company introduced an Employee Suggestion programme (‘ESP’). The ESP is a programme that provides employees with an opportunity to be rewarded for innovative and creative ideas for improving UK Mail. The type of suggestions submitted included those which result in greater economy, efficiency, improved service, improved working conditions, improved morale or waste reduction. The company hosted a ‘National Ideas Day’ in March 2010 and two suggestions were selected and will go on to be implemented. Winners were awarded with a prize for their business unit.
Community
The Group has developed and issued a community involvement policy which is available on our company website, www.ukmail.com. Guy Buswell is the Board member responsible for community issues.
We firmly believe in community investment and encourage ‘community mindedness’ across the company.
We recently signed a national agreement with Job Centre Plus pursuant to which we have committed to work with Job Centre Plus to help potential recruits move from welfare to sustained employment. We believe this will help the local communities in which we operate. We have recruited a number of people from Work Trial Programmes.
Charitable support
Cancer Research UK is the chosen charity partner for UK Mail Group, its employees and its franchisees. The Group donates one penny to Charity for every parcel consignment carried for customers who pay their accounts by direct debit and, in the last year, this raised £62,000.
UK Mail staff across the whole company also rose to the challenge during the last year and raised over £13,000 for Cancer Research UK and other nominated charities with a wide variety of events, including sponsored walks, raffles, charity auctions, cycle rides and parachuting.
The Group also operates a ‘payroll giving scheme’ allowing all employees the opportunity to contribute to their preferred charity through tax efficient salary deductions.
