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Labor Practices & Decent Work

G3 Indicator PotashCorp's Performance in 2008
Employment
LA1.
Total workforce by employment type, by employment contract, and by region.

At the end of 2008, PotashCorp employed 5,301 people, 35 percent of them salaried and 65 percent hourly-paid. In addition, 791 full-time contract employees worked for the company. Almost 60 percent of employees are skilled or semi-skilled craft workers or tradespeople working at our mines and chemical manufacturing facilities.

Workforce by Employment Category
  2006 2007 2008
  Employees % of Total Employees % of Total Employees % of Total
Managers 750 15.3 784 15.7 854 16.1
Professionals 490 10.1 518 10.4 558 10.5
Technicians 339 8.2 402 8.0 395 7.4
Sales workers 55 1.2 36 0.7 36 0.7
Office and clerical 250 5.1 242 4.8 266 5.0
Skilled craft workers 1,343 27.6 1,396 27.9 1,520 28.7
Semi-skilled workers 1,535 31.5 1,573 31.4 1,617 30.5
Laborers* 40 0.8 43 0.9 46 0.9
Service workers** 9 0.2 9 0.9 9 0.2
Total 4,871 100 5,003 100 5,301 100
* Laborers are employed at White Springs and in our potash division
** "Service" refers to security officers
LA2.
Total number and rate of employee turnover broken down by age group, gender and region.

Although overall company turnover numbers were down, our Trinidad plant lost 69 employees, partially due to the start-up of a urea plant by a competitor. Before this, PotashCorp had the only urea plant in the Caribbean. To attract and retain employees in Trinidad, we maintain a competitive compensation package, provide professional training, elicit employee feedback through engagement initiatives, provide an on-site wellness facility and support an employee social club.

Employee Turnover at PotashCorp (%)
  2007 2008
Average employee turnover 8.1 7.9
Average turnover rate by gender
Male employees 8.0 8.0
Female employees 8.7 6.7
Average turnover rate by country
US 9.9 7.0
Canada 6.5 7.8
Trinidad 6.6 9.1
LA3.
Minimum benefits provided to full-time employees, which are not provided to temporary or part-time employees.

Benefits to our full-time workers in the US and Canada include health care, life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance, disability coverage, pension plans, maternity/parental leave, a savings plan, short-term incentive plan and stock ownership through the company’s savings plans. Temporary employees in Canada (but not in the United States) qualify for life insurance, health care, AD&D insurance and parental leave.

Employee Benefits in the US and Canada
Type of Benefit Standard for majority of full-time employees? Provided to temporary employees?
Canada US Canada US
Health care Yes Yes Yes No
Life insurance Yes Yes Yes No
AD&D insurance Yes Yes Yes No
Disability coverage Yes Yes No No
Pension plan Yes Yes No No
Savings plan Yes Yes No No
Maternity leave Yes Yes Yes** No
Paternity leave Yes No Yes** No
Short-term incentive plan Yes Yes No No
Stock ownership Yes* Yes* No No
* Through options program (for eligible participants) and/or ability to purchase shares via the savings and 401K plans
** If they meet required hours per Labour Standards
Labor Management Relations
LA4.
Percentage of employees covered by collective bargaining agreements.

Union members comprised 38 percent of our employees in 2008. Sixty percent of union members work in Canada (potash) and 40 percent in the US (36 percent in phosphate, 4 percent in nitrogen). There are no union employees at our Trinidad plant.

Union Membership
  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Union members 1,664 1,729 1,782 1,844 1,992
Total employees 4,906 4,879 4,871 5,033 5,301
% of employees 34 35 37 37 38
LA5.
Minimum notice period(s) regarding operational changes.

In Canada, collective bargaining agreements and provincial labor legislation require one to eight weeks' minimum notice for layoffs, usually depending on the employee's length of employment. In the United States, the notice period depends on the circumstances but ranges from two weeks to sixty days. Under specific circumstances involving a significant change in the employer's operation of the business, "technological change" legislation and collective agreement language may require more extensive notice periods and negotiation between the parties. Prior to temporary layoffs, we advise employees and/or their elected representatives. However, terms and conditions for layoffs remain as previously negotiated and/or as defined by company policy.

Occupational Health and Safety
LA6.
Percentage of workforce represented in formal joint management worker health and safety committees that help monitor and advise on occupational health and safety programs.

Joint Health and Safety Committees represent the potash workforce, as required by law. The phosphate and nitrogen workforces have voluntary management-worker committees to address health and safety concerns. Committees are headquartered at each facility.

LA7.
Rates of injury, lost days, occupational diseases and absenteeism, and number of work-related fatalities.

Injury Rates
In 2008, our lost-time injury frequency rate increased by 84 percent and the recordable injury frequency rate rose by 9 percent. We missed our target of reducing the lost-time injury frequency rate by 20 percent and the recordable injury frequency rate by 15 percent. Severe injuries increased slightly over the previous year. Reducing this rate is a priority; our target is a 25 percent reduction by 2011.

Absenteeism
Absenteeism is tracked at each site. Many have a policy of meeting with employees with absentee rates above the average.

Absenteeism Rates by Site (%)*
Division 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Allan 6.1 6.9 7.2 7.0 7.6
Cory 7.1 6.0 5.7 6.1 6.0
Lanigan 4.9 5.7 6.1 5.6 5.9
New Brunswick 5.8 5.3 5.6 4.3 5.5
Patience Lake 4.1 5.2 3.0 3.9 5.5
Rocanville 3.2 2.9 4.5 5.2 4.6
Potash 5.3 5.3 5.7 5.5 5.9
           
Aurora 3.5 4.0 3.5 3.5 3.7
White Springs 2.7 4.5 3.6 3.8 3.2
Joplin 3.4 1.7 2.0 2.1 3.0
Marseilles 4.0 1.1 0.7 1.1 1.2
Weeping Water 3.8 3.7 3.1 1.1 1.1
Cincinnati 1.6 1.9 2.0 2.5 0.5
Phosphate 3.1 4.1 3.4 3.5 3.4
           
Augusta 1.6 1.9 2.4 2.0 2.5
Geismar 3.2 2.9 1.8 3.2 3.4
Lima         5.0
Trinidad 3.4 3.4 3.6 3.4 3.4
Nitrogen 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.1 3.2
           
PotashCorp 3.9% 4.4% 4.2% 4.3% 4.3%
* Absenteeism only applies to hourly employees
 

Fatalities
There was one fatality in 2008, at Lanigan.

LA8.
Education, training, counseling, prevention and risk-control programs in place for assisting workforce members, their families or community members regarding serious diseases.
Programs to Reduce Incidence of Serious Diseases *
Program US Canada Trinidad
Education and training for workers Yes Yes Yes
Education and training for worker families Yes Yes Yes, as applicable
Counseling for workers Yes Yes Yes
Counseling for worker families Yes Yes Yes, as applicable
Measures to limit exposure and transmission of disease among workers No Yes Yes
Measures to limit exposure and transmission of disease among families No No Yes, as applicable
Treatment provided to workers Yes Yes Yes through medical plan
Treatment provided to families Yes Yes Yes, as applicable
Community programs No No Yes, when necessary
* Serious diseases include diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and HIV/AIDS
LA9.
Health and safety topics covered in formal agreements with trade unions.

n/a

Training and Education
LA10.
Average hours of training per year per employee broken down by employee category.

In 2008, each PotashCorp employee received an average of 90 hours of training, 57 percent more than in 2007. Most training was done at the plant sites and increased in all categories. Training to improve employees' workplace effectiveness accounted for almost 40 percent of all training received. The top five training categories were:

  • Training to improve job skills (39 percent of training hours provided)
  • Safety training (19 percent)
  • Crisis and emergency response training (8 percent)
  • Apprenticeship training (7 percent)
  • Employee development (3 percent)
LA11.
Programs for skills management and lifelong learning that support the continued employability of employees and assist them in managing career endings.
Tuition Reimbursements
  2004 2005 2006
Country Employees
assisted
($) Employees
assisted
($) Employees
assisted
($)
Canada 33 18,463 36 16,884 24 19,548
US 48 125,637 11 39,004 21 61,826
Trinidad 75 53,727 58 42,881 73 30,521
Total 156 197,827 105 98,769 118 111,895
 
Tuition Reimbursements
  2007 2008
Country Employees
assisted
($) Employees
assisted
($)
Canada 17 20,102 39 35,995
US 19 90,904 14 26,732
Trinidad 46 20,000 20 11,566
Total 82 131,006 73 74,293
LA12.
Percentage of employees receiving regular performance and career development reviews.

100% of salaried personnel are subject to a standardized performance appraisal process. Hourly personnel may or may not be subject to an annual review process, depending on their site and union status (hourly employees at Aurora, Augusta, Geismar, Marseilles and Trinidad receive performance evaluations).

Diversity and Equal Opportunity
LA13.
Composition of Board and breakdown of employees per category according to gender, age group, minority group membership, and other indicators of diversity.

Minority Group Representation
The ethnic diversity of our workforce was relatively stable over the last five years. We had two minority board members in 2008.

Ethnicity by Employment Category in 2008 – US and Trinidad*(%)
  White Black Hispanic Asian American Indian Total
Managers 84.7 8.7 1.5 5.1 100
Professionals 55.6 18.4 1.9 24.1 100
Technicians 33.4 31.2 2.0 33.4 100
Sales 80.5 11.1 5.6 2.8 100
Clerical 74.0 15.2 4.0 6.8 100
Skilled (craft) 86.0 13.5 0.3 0.1 0.1 100
Semi-skilled (operatives) 76.0 23.1 0.5 0.4 100
Laborers/service 50.1 42.9 7.1 100
Total 73.8 17.6 1.1 7.4  0.1 100
* PotashCorp currently does not track demographics for Canadian operations

Gender Diversity in Management (%)
  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Senior management* positions held by women 38 38 38 38 38
Management positions held by women 10 13 14 13 15
* Senior management includes all managers who report to the CEO
 

The 12 members of PotashCorp's board are residents of Canada, the United States and the Dominican Republic. In 2008, three board members were women. All board members are picked for their expertise and experience in areas identified as a need for the board.

2008 Board Composition
  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
% female 25 25 25 25 25
% minority groups 8 8 8 17 17
LA14.
Ratio of average remuneration of men and women broken down by employee category.
PotashCorp does not track this information.

Human Rights Performance

G3 Indicator PotashCorp's Human Rights Performance in 2008
HR1.
Percentage and number of significant investment agreements that include human rights clauses or that underwent human rights screening.
We made no significant acquisitions in 2008.
HR2.
Percentage of major suppliers and contractors that underwent screening on human rights and actions taken.
We have identified more than 380 suppliers as key vendors, and each of these has provided a signed certificate of business principles or has a published code of conduct that is equivalent to our own.
HR3.
Total hours of employee training on policies and procedures concerning aspects of human rights relevant to operations, including the percentage of employees trained.
We distribute our Core Values and Code of Conduct to all employees and train all employees every two years. All employees completed the training for the 2007/2008 training cycle. In 2008, all employees were asked to sign a written confirmation of their compliance with the Core Values and Code of Conduct.
HR4.
Incidents of discrimination and actions taken.
There were no judicial or administrative decisions of discrimination made against us on the grounds of race, color, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin in 2008.
HR5.
Operations identified in which the right to exercise freedom of association and collective bargaining may be at risk and actions taken to support these rights.
No operations have been identified where these rights are at risk.
HR6.
Operations identified as having significant risk for incidents of child labor and measures taken to contribute to the elimination of child labour.
Employees in all jurisdictions are older than the legal minimum ages in those jurisdictions. Our youngest employee worked at Aurora and was 19 years and 6 months old at the end of 2008. None of our operations have been identified as being at significant risk for incidents of child labor and/or young workers exposed to hazardous work.

Societal Performance

G3 Indicator PotashCorp’s Performance in 2008
Community
SO1.
Programs and practices for assessing and managing the impacts of operations on communities, including entering, operating and exiting.

In 2008, PotashCorp participated in or conducted 369 public meetings.

Community leaders at Lima, Marseilles and Weeping Water completed surveys in 2008 to help us measure perceptions of our community involvement, our business practices (specifically in the areas of safety, health and environment) and our impact on local economies.

Corruption
SO2.
Number of business units analyzed for risks related to corruption.
In the past, we have hired consultants to perform high-level Fraud Vulnerability Assessments to identify vulnerabilities and to make recommendations to mitigate risk associated with fraud. The recommendations have been addressed.
SO3.
Percentage of employees trained in organization's anti-corruption policies and procedures.
During the past year, PotashCorp provided training for select employees in anti-trust regulations and behavior, addressing whistleblower claims, business ethics, information security, employment law, and responsibilities for financial reporting.
SO4.
Actions taken in response to instances of corruption.

No PotashCorp employees were dismissed or disciplined for corruption in 2008. PotashCorp has a zero tolerance policy for employee corruption.

There were no instances in 2008 where contracts with business partners were not renewed due to violations related to corruption. No legal cases regarding corrupt practices were concluded against the company or our employees in 2008. No significant fines or non-monetary sanctions were levied against PotashCorp in 2008 related to accounting fraud or corruption.

Public Policy
SO5.
Public policy positions and participation in public policy development and lobbying.

Public policy issues addressed or monitored in 2008 included:

  • Proposed Climate Change Legislation – Through industry organizations, The Fertilizer Institute and Canadian Fertilizer Institute, we tracked how legislators want to address climate change and analyzed legislation drafts to determine how our industry and commercial fertilizer use would be impacted.
  • Proposed Rules Related to the Transportation of Hazardous Materials – PotashCorp testified before the Department of Transportation (DOT) regarding new regulations for transporting hazardous materials. Final rules were issued on December 30, 2008.
SO6.
Total value of contributions to political parties or related institutions broken down by country.
For more information see the Stakeholder Engagement section of this report.
Anti-Competitive Behavior
SO7.
Total number of legal actions for anti-competitive behavior, antitrust and monopoly practices and their outcomes.
In 2008, there were no judicial or administrative findings that we have engaged in anti-competitive behavior or violated antitrust and monopoly legislation. Several law suits alleging certain antitrust violations were filed against the company in 2008. The status of these actions is disclosed in our annual 10K.
Compliance
SO8.
Monetary value of significant fines and total number of non-monetary sanctions for non-compliance.

No PotashCorp employees were dismissed or disciplined for corruption in 2008. PotashCorp has a zero tolerance policy for employee corruption.

There were no instances in 2008 where contracts with business partners were not renewed due to violations related to corruption. No legal cases regarding corrupt practices were concluded against the company or our employees in 2008. No significant fines or non-monetary sanctions were levied against PotashCorp in 2008 related to accounting fraud or corruption.

Product Responsibility Performance

G3 Indicator PotashCorp’s Performance in 2008
Customer Health and Safety
PR1.
Life cycle stages in which health and safety impacts of products are assessed for improvements.
PotashCorp has procedures in place for assessing and ensuring health and safety at most of the production and marketing stages of the product life cycle. Disposal is not an issue, since fertilizer, as a product, does not pose problems for disposal, and cannot be re-used or recycled after use.
PR2.
Number of incidents of non-compliance with regulations/codes concerning health and safety of products.
We had no instances of non-compliance, administrative or judicial sanctions, warnings or fines regarding regulations concerning the health and safety of our products.
Product Labeling
PR3.
Procedures for product information and labeling.

We are subject to feed and fertilizer labeling requirements in most jurisdictions where we make or sell products. Product labels are reviewed regularly to ensure they comply with all laws and regulations. Data specification sheets and a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) are required before new products are shipped. These documents inform customers about proper product handling and guaranteed analysis.

PR4.
Number of incidents of non-compliance with regulations/codes concerning product information and labeling.
We had no instances of non-compliance, administrative or judicial sanctions, warnings or fines regarding regulations for product information and labeling.
PR5.
Practices related to customer satisfaction, including results of surveys measuring customer satisfaction.
In our 2008 customer surveys, we outperformed our competitors in sales representative knowledge, customer service, product quality and reliability of long-term supply. Customers expressed concern about issues of supply and price. The survey was conducted in the summer of 2008 when supply was tight, demand was high and the cost of raw materials was high.
Marketing Communications
PR6.
Programs for adherence to laws, standards, and voluntary codes related to marketing communications including advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
We review all advertising for technical accuracy and legal compliance.
PR7.
Number of incidents of non-compliance with regulations concerning marketing communications including advertising, promotion, and sponsorship.
We had no instances of non-compliance, administrative or judicial sanctions, warnings or fines regarding regulations for marketing communications.
Customer Privacy
PR8.
Number of substantiated complaints regarding breaches of customer privacy and loss of customer data.
There were no instances of leaks, thefts or losses of customer data in 2008. There were no complaints received concerning breaches of customer privacy.
PR9.
Value of significant fines for non-compliance with laws and regulations concerning the use of products.
We had no instances of non-compliance, administrative or judicial sanctions, warnings or fines regarding regulations for product information and labeling.
Source: PotashCorp