Siemens 2012 Annual Report Download - page 199

135 D. Consolidated Financial Statements
239 E. Additional Information
130 C. Siemens AG (Discussion on basis of
German Commercial Code)
134 C. Notes and forward-looking statements
129 C. Compensation Report, Corporate Governance
statement pursuant to Section a of the
German Commercial Code, Takeover-relevant
information and explanatory report

commitment to fundamental employee rights – which already
apply worldwide and are firmly anchored in the Business Con-
duct Guidelines.
...  
  
Occupational safety and health management are key elements
of our company‘s sustainability strategy and an integral part of
our business processes. We therefore develop central projects
and processes that are then applied locally in conjunction with
programs that are individually adapted to the respective busi-
ness activity. Occupational safety and health management are
an integral part of our Business Conduct Guidelines, our inter-
nal monitoring systems, and our risk management and inter-
nal control systems. In addition, occupational safety is part of
an international framework agreement between Siemens AG,
the Central Works Council of Siemens AG, IG Metall and the
global union IndustriAll.
Promote a culture of safety – In the past, occupational safety
was often characterized by a focus on technical protective mea-
sures, an approach which achieved considerable success. We
are convinced, however, that further improvement can be
achieved only through an actively practiced occupational safety
culture and optimum working conditions – in every country and
for all Siemens employees as well as those of our contractor
partners. Both as a company and as individuals we are responsi-
ble for ensuring that the working environment at Siemens is
safe at all times and for every employee. At present, local best
practices exist which we can build on. We will achieve sustain-
ability, however, only through a global and consistent approach.
Our customers, suppliers and regulatory authorities expect
high safety standards from us. We aim to meet their expecta-
tions worldwide through our Zero Harm Culture @ Siemens
program, comprising three principles:
> zero accidents is achievable;
> we make no compromises on safety and health; and
> we look out for one another.
The program receives global support and has a local orienta-
tion. That means we start by analyzing the current status and
the safety situation locally, with the aim of learning from posi-
tive examples and optimizing processes through improvement
potential. The program will be launched globally – under the
responsibility of the Sectors – at the beginning of fiscal .
Regrettably, we report four work-related fatalities of Siemens
employees and  work-related fatalities of contractors in fiscal
. In the previous year there were three fatalities involving
Siemens employees and twelve involving contractors.
Promoting health – Siemens has established a high stan-
dard of occupational health and safety to avoid work-related
health risks and promote employees’ health with a sustain-
able approach. We help our employees assume responsibility
for their own personal behavior in health-related matters,
and support health-promoting general conditions within the
Company. We promote the physical, mental and social well-
being of our employees through a range of activities govern-
ing the five topics of healthy work environment, psychoso-
cial well-being, physical activity, healthy nutrition and medi-
cal care.
We also defined requirements for a Siemens health management
system (HMS) which provides a Siemens-wide approach to con-
trolling health management in a systematic and sustainable
manner. Company units can revert to it if they want to integrate
health in the organizational structure and working processes.
.. Compliance
   
Year ended September ,
 
Inquiries submitted to the
Ask us help desk 1,009 1,740
Incidents reported to the
Tell us help desk and the ombudsman 715 787
therein treated as plausible 612 683
Disciplinary sanctions 266 306
therein warnings 173 179
therein dismissals 73 77
therein other
20 50
1 Continuing and discontinued operations.
2 Includes loss of variable and voluntary compensation elements,
transfer and suspension.
The Siemens Business Conduct Guidelines provide the ethical
and legal framework within which we conduct our business
activities. Our compliance system aims to ensure that all our
worldwide business practices remain within this framework as
well as in compliance with applicable laws. To serve this pur-
pose, our compliance system includes three pillars: prevent,
detect and respond. We are continuously working on further
integrating compliance into our business activities, and on
strengthening our efforts in combating corruption, together
with other market participants and governmental organiza-
tions (Collective Action).
To measure perceptions related to compliance among Siemens
employees, we have continued conducting regular surveys of
the large majority of Siemens employees. Since fiscal ,