ADDITIONAL SUSTAINABILITY INFORMATION
Health, safety and HIV/Aids

Many Group companies operate heavy equipment and handle hazardous products. Bidvest is acutely aware of the health and safety risks faced by employees and contractors and places the utmost importance on a safe and healthy working environment.

Governance and compliance
Responsibility for health and safety is assigned to dedicated senior managers in all operations where safety and health are material issues. South African companies comply with the Occupational Health and Safety Act. International businesses meet relevant standards in their jurisdictions.

Monitoring and reporting challenges
Bidvest has tracked Group employee and contractor injury rates for several years. However, definitions and the understanding of the definitions can vary. Definitions have been aligned with the GRI's G3 guidelines and for this reason past figures are either inaccurate or unavailable. Good progress has been made over the last year.

Bidvest’s occupational, health and safety performance is externally verified. Government inspections are mandated by the Occupational Health and Safety Act - South Africa. A significant number of the Group's business units engage outside consultants and specialist organisations to undertake verification reviews of OHS performance and compliance. (See divisional reviews). In Australia, external organisations are contracted to undertake audits relating to specific issues, including asbestos-containing materials, dangerous goods storage, fire safety and evacuation, and building and infrastructure risk identification.

Fatalities
It is with regret that Bidvest reports the death of 11 employees while on duty, seven at Bidserv and four at Bidfreight. Full investigations of fatal incidents are conducted. Where necessary, the operations concerned make appropriate adaptations to health and safety processes. Companies invest in training to develop good safety habits and reinforce awareness of safety risks.

HIV/Aids awareness, prevention and treatment

An HIV prevalence study by an outside specialist used actuarial deduction to estimate HIV/Aids prevalence across Bidvest in South Africa at 17,3%, with significant variations between businesses.

This high incidence – typical for many southern African companies – supports the Bidvest view that HIV/Aids is a significant threat. Affected employees become debilitated, placing stress on co-workers and on carers in the home and community. Operational safety, reliability and quality are also threatened.

Bidvest has published a policy to guide businesses in the development of appropriate HIV/Aids programmes, but each company is responsible for implementing responses to address local circumstances. A number of businesses have outstanding programmes, but many still grapple with the taboos and prejudices surrounding the epidemic.

Click here to download the HIV / AIDS Policy [PDF - 190kb]