Towards equality

Outokumpu's Ethical Principles require that every individual is treated equally, discrimination is prohibited and the Group has zero tolerance regarding the use of forced and child labour. Since January 2009, we have officially supported the ten principles of the United Nations Global Compact. These are derived from The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, The International Labour Organization's (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.

Outokumpu maintains a consistent freedom of association policy, meaning that personnel in all the Group's operating locations are free to join trade unions in line with the rules and regulations that apply in local labour markets. In 2009, approximately 6586 Outokumpu employees were covered by collective agreements. There were 911 strike days in 2009 (2008: 4, 2007: 1 235 and 2006: 15).

The overall percentage of women permanently employed by Outokumpu is 17.9 (2008 18.8%) – this low proportion is typical of heavy industries. The Group's aim is to address diversity issues e.g. when renewing Outokumpu's Recruitment Policy. Three members of the Outokumpu Board of Directors are female, one of the Group Executive Committee and 53 women hold key positions in the Group.