Aer Lingus 2011 Annual Report Download - page 31

Annual Report 2011 29
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT Aer Lingus Group Plc
Aer Lingus is an organisation committed to social responsibility. We
value the contribution made by our people in delivering the care,
attention and dedication required of a world class airline. Aer Lingus is
continually building on its long-standing tradition of Irish welcomes as
an airline loved by its passengers because of our great value fares,
friendly and caring service.
Our People
We recognise the importance of the contribution made by our people
in delivering continuous improvement in organisational performance
and results, and value the knowledge, skills and experience of
employees. It is this ‘great care’ that sets us apart from our competitors
and resonates with our customers throughout the world. Aer Lingus
supports learning and development of employees to ensure the safe
and efficient operation of the business and to ensure we deliver on our
promise of great care.
Recruitment
As an organisation, we are committed to developing the talents of our
people. Aer Lingus’ policy on selection and recruitment is to provide
the organisation with suitably qualified staff who have the
competencies to meet our strategic objectives. We are an equal
opportunities employer. The Group fills vacancies through the
provision of opportunities for existing staff to progress within the
organisation, combined with the recruitment of specific expertise and
skills externally. Aer Lingus operates a highly effective, low cost
recruitment model, where over 95% of external recruitment needs are
sourced through the Group’s website, www.aerlingus.com.
Learning and Development
Aer Lingus is committed to providing high-quality learning to support
the safe and efficient operation of the business with the primary focus
on mandatory training requirements, in particular air safety, aviation
security, health and safety and operational training. In addition, there
is a particular focus on customer service training to ensure that a
consistent, satisfactory customer experience is delivered. The majority
of cabin crew and pilot training is designed and delivered in-house
through dedicated facilities on-site so as to ensure a consistent
standard and quality of training. Finally, there is also an increased
emphasis being placed on developing our managers and supervisors to
ensure we continuously develop the competence of our management
capability.
Equality and Diversity
Aer Lingus is fully committed to being an equal opportunities employer
regardless of nationality or ethnic origin, race, gender, sexual
orientation, marital status, disability, age and religious or political
belief. The Group proactively ensures compliance with all relevant
equality legislation. During 2011 a total of 35 different nationalities
worked across the Group.
Flexible Working
Aer Lingus recognises that changes in personal circumstances affect
employees’ lives and work. In order to recognise the diverse needs of
employees, and to ensure fairness and consistency across the Group,
Aer Lingus has a flexible working policy. The objective of this policy is
to help staff achieve a healthier balance between their working lives
and personal responsibility without compromising business needs and
to retain valued, experienced and trained employees. The policy
includes flexible working and leave arrangements such as flexitime,
part-time work, job sharing, paternity leave, bereavement leave and
compassionate leave.
Communication and Consultation with
Employees
Aer Lingus has multiple communication channels in place to keep all
employees up-to-date on key issues and developments, including an
intranet, notice boards, webcasts, email, newsletters, road shows and
department briefings and specific websites for pilots and cabin crew.
We fully recognise the values and rights of employees under current
legislation with regard to worker participation. In addition, the group
engages extensively with worker representatives in relation to all key
developments and change initiatives within the business.
Community and Charitable Support
Aer Lingus’ strong tradition of providing support for community
initiatives and good causes continued during 2011, as the airline made
asignificant contribution across a number of areas including the
following:
UNICEF – Change for Good
In 2011, Aer Lingus passengers and crew raised $1.4 million for
UNICEF – ‘Change for Good’ programme, by placing unused
currencies into the special envelopes on flights. This brings the total
amount generated by this long running partnership between the airline
and UNICEF to over $15 million. 2012 marks the 15th anniversary of
the Aer Lingus UNICEF Ireland partnership. The money raised is used,
by UNICEF, to provide thousands of children in deprived areas of the
world with the essentials for a safe and healthy childhood. In response
to the East Africa Appeal in July 2011 Aer Lingus passengers generously
donated over $250,000 to support UNICEF’s lifesaving work in the
region.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT