Sustainability Report 2012 - Generali Versicherung AG

the environment variable in supplier assessment complieswith the objectives set out by in the EnvironmentalPolicy of the Generali Group, described in the chapterEnvironment and Climate Change.The Group gives preference to green procurementfor purchases of office equipment, especially of paper,toner and stationery. In France, this is also true for officecleaning products. Furthermore, suppliers that provideservices for the Saint Denis complex, which has HQE(Haute Qualité Environnementale) certification, arerequired to comply with the standards set out by thiscertification.In some countries local procurement is also used: forexample, company canteens are supplied with localproducts in Austria and in a few sites in Italy.The supplier selection process is carried out throughclear, certain, non-discriminatory procedures, exclusivelyusing objective, documentable and transparent criterialinked to the quality of products and services offered.Quality is also assessed in consideration of compliancewith international ethical principles on labour and humanrights, as well as considering the environmental impactof the manufacture and supply methods used.In Italy, Austria, France, Germany and the CzechRepublic, supplier accreditation is performed throughIT platforms (supplier portals). Using this procedure,suppliers can enter their company data and view andsign Generali Group documents. In this phase, suppliersare also required to fill out questionnaires to verify theircredentials. The information requested also includes thepossession of environmental and social certificationsand the existence of an environmental policy or initiativesthat focus on the environment. More generally, in orderto motivate suppliers to adopt responsible social andenvironmental conduct, in the selection process, theGroup considers the possession of certifications or theexistence of social and environmental policies to bepreferential requirements. Specifically, the introduction ofIn selecting suppliers, some companies give preference tosocial cooperatives or companies with a social purposeto support their activities in favour of disadvantagedpeople. For example, in Italy, Europ Assistance usescooperatives for cultural mediation, disposal of specialwaste and purchases of promotional gifts and stationery.In Austria, companies buy PC cleaning sets from theassociation for the blind and printing products fromcompanies that employ former convicts. Several socialcooperatives that integrate disadvantaged people,especially the disabled, into the labour market providegoods and services to Group companies in France, theCzech Republic, Spain and Switzerland.Taking account of the fact that the risk analysis has shownthat for textiles and advertising materials there is a higherrisk of the use of forced labour or child labour, due to thesource countries, where these rights are not fully guaranteed,in Austria suppliers of these products are required toprovide proof of origin and preference is given to supplierscertified according to the SA 8000 standard. This standardguarantees several aspects of company management whichare significant for CSR, such as respect of human and labourrights, protection against the exploitation of minors andhealth and safety in the workplace.Non-European countriesThe Ethical Code for suppliers of the Generali Group is the document applied to all countries where the Groupoperates.An initial analysis was conducted of non-European countries, which did not detect significant risks related tothe possibility that certain suppliers could use forced labour or child labour.However, it was found that in several countries where the Group operates, freedom of association andcollective bargaining are not permitted by law (United Arab Emirates) or are permitted with limitations (China).SUPPLIERS | 107