Employees

Number of employees decreased

At the end of 2023, the Geberit Group employed 10,947 staff worldwide, equivalent to a decrease of 567 employees or 4.9% compared to the previous year. The decrease was primarily due to capacity adjustments in the areas of production and logistics in connection with the significant volume decline of temporary and fixed-term employees and natural fluctuation. There was also a decline due to the adjustment of the activities in Russia. In contrast, additional employees were required in several markets outside Europe due to focused sales initiatives.

Broken down by business process, staff numbers were as follows: production employed 57% of the staff members, with 28% in marketing and sales. Additionally, 9% of the employees worked in administration, and 3% in research and development. The share of apprentices was 3%.

Based on the average headcount of 11,189, net sales per employee amounted to TCHF 276 (-3.8% versus previous year).

In 2023, personnel expenses amounted to CHF 750 million. Once again, the employees were able to take part in share participation plans at attractive conditions, see Consolidated financial statements Geberit Group, Note 17 and Remuneration Report. In the reporting year, 2,895 employees took part in the employee participation plan at a discount of 35% (previous year 50%) on the share price. This corresponds to a participation rate of 27.2% (previous year 31.2%). The total costs borne by the company for the discount amounted to CHF 3.5 million. As of 31 December 2023, a total of 4,341 employees were Geberit shareholders.

Diversity and inclusion

At the end of 2023, Geberit employed 76% men and 24% women (previous year 76% and 24%). In senior management, the proportion of female employees was 11% (previous year 11%). The six-member Board of Directors has two female members.

An equal pay analysis carried out in 2021 at all Geberit companies in Switzerland confirmed that equal pay between female and male employees is upheld. The results were audited and confirmed by the certified auditors PwC.

13% of the workforce is under 30 years of age, 41% between 30 and 45, and 46% over 45. The goal is to have a good mixture of ages. Senior employees pass on their knowledge to the next generation, and in turn benefit from the new perspectives offered by the young talents.

Geberit cultivates an inclusive culture in which jobs are created for people with disabilities. The share of inclusive jobs (internal jobs plus assembly and packaging jobs consciously outsourced to external workshops) amounted to around 3.5% of all full-time jobs in the last survey in 2021, see Social responsibility. This share should be further increased in the medium term.

The position as a responsible and attractive employer is to be further reinforced. Based on a strategic review carried out on the topic of diversity and equal opportunity, a Group-wide directive is currently being drawn up that reinforces the company’s commitment towards an inclusive working environment and establishes guidelines for equal opportunity and the reconciliation of working, family and private life. The Group directive should be supplemented by local standards. Against this backdrop, further key figures on diversity and inclusive workplaces will be defined as part of personnel reporting.

High levels of employee satisfaction

An employee survey carried out in 2021 confirmed that Geberit offers very attractive working conditions and that the employees demonstrate an above-average level of both motivation and loyalty (see graphic for summary). The next global survey will be carried out in 2025. Until then, surveys will be carried out on a local basis. In order to use this instrument even more effectively, so-called pulse surveys will be launched in certain countries in 2024 with the help of a new survey platform.

Further efforts in training and education

Together with an external training provider, a leadership development programme was developed in 2022 with the goal of strengthening leadership skills and establishing a consistent management culture.

Partnerships with universities and institutes were further intensified in order to counteract the increasing skills shortage. The local companies are in contact with institutes of technology and universities regarding project-related collaborations to supervise Bachelor and Master theses and to gain students for internships. In the reporting year, 24 students were supervised at the company as part of project work or theses. Geberit is also part of international engineer networks such as UNITECH, which unites renowned European universities, corporate partners and engineering students.

As part of the Operations Development Programme, young talents from universities were again accompanied and supported on their career paths at various Geberit production sites in 2023. The goal of the programme is to ensure that the production locations and logistics sites also continue to have highly trained managers at their disposal in future, who have already gained experience at the respective site. The programme is aimed at talented external prospects with an engineering or technical background who want to head up strategic projects and take on responsibility during and following the four-year internal training.

The two internal development programmes GROW and LEAD are designed to specifically identify and promote talents in the company. In the reporting year, around 100 employees took part in these programmes. The development programmes are intended to help fill at least half of all vacant managerial positions with internal candidates. In 2023, this was achieved for 89% of all Group management vacancies (previous year 57%).

Geberit employed 274 apprentices at the end of 2023 (previous year 283). The transfer rate to a permanent employment relationship was 65% (previous year 83%). The apprentices should already be given the opportunity to get practical insights at other sites during their training. During a six-month assignment at a Geberit site abroad, they work on various projects or support day-to-day business there. Geberit is convinced that experience abroad and the transfer of know-how are an advantage for both young employees and the company alike.

With these training initiatives and the continuous development of its offering, Geberit makes an important contribution to ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education (Goal 4 of the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations).

New appraisal process fully rolled out

At the end of 2020, a new performance management process (“valYOU”) was launched for performance assessment, professional development and compensation management. In the reporting year, valYOU was also rolled out at the last remaining sites. The managers at these sites took part in one- to two-day management training sessions carried out across the Group. The core element of these sessions was the combination of theory and practice through the simulation of practical examples. With this final step, the new appraisal process has been fully rolled out and now serves as the standard for all employees at the Geberit Group.

Guiding principles for all employees

Geberit aims to act as a role model for ethically unimpeachable, environmentally friendly and socially responsible operations. The Compass – a guide for employees on the mission, values, operational principles and the success factors of Geberit – and the Code of Conduct for Employees serve as the applicable guidelines. The Compass is reviewed as part of the annual strategy process of the Group Executive Board and updated, when required. The publication of a comprehensive, new version of the Compass is planned for 2024. The Code of Conduct for Employees, which was last updated in 2015, is currently being revised and will also be relaunched in 2024.

Focus on occupational health and safety

Occupational health and safety has a very high priority within the Geberit Group. The number and severity of accidents are to be halved by 2025 based on the reference year 2015. The AFR (Accident Frequency Rate) is to be reduced to a rate of 5.5 occupational accidents (with absences of one day or more) per million working hours. The ASR (Accident Severity Rate) is to be reduced to below 90 days lost per million working hours. In the reporting year, the accident frequency decreased to a value of 7.3 (previous year 8.2), which corresponds to a reduction of 11.0%. The accident severity decreased by 24.0% to 119.7 (previous year 157.5) in the same period. There were no fatal accidents. Since 2015, the AFR has fallen by 36.0% and the ASR by 41.9%.

All production plants and the central logistics centre in Pfullendorf (DE) are certified in accordance with the occupational health and safety standard ISO 45001. The Geberit Safety System defines occupational health and safety concepts as well as processes that are applicable throughout the Group. There are safety officers at all production plants and the central logistics centre. The Group-wide Geberit Safety Team also plays an active role in developing occupational health and safety systematically throughout the entire organisation. In the reporting year, the concepts developed in 2022 for applicable Group-wide safety standards and for safety audits across plants were introduced. The aim of these concepts is to increase the safety level.

The creation of safe and clean workstations at the production plants is pursued consistently. Equipment and processes are constantly being optimised, hazardous substances replaced and dust and noise emissions reduced. Additionally, the increasing use of robots or lifting aids improves the working conditions in terms of ergonomics. As the majority of occupational accidents and time lost are still attributable to carelessness, great importance is attached to long-term training and raising employee awareness. An eLearning programme supports these efforts and helps to identify danger areas in the workplace and rectify them consistently.

It is a matter of great importance to the Geberit Group that employee health should be actively promoted. With this in mind, diverse vitality programmes are offered at 18 production and sales sites in the fields of exercise, mental fitness, nutrition and the working environment. The most comprehensive programme in this respect – “Geberit Vital” – can be accessed by around 40% of the workforce.