Carphone Warehouse 2008 Annual Report Download - page 36

Directors’ Report: Business Review
Corporate Responsibility continued
24The Carphone Warehouse Group PLC Annual Report 2008
“Pulse, our annual employee survey,
enables us to measure the impact
of actions taken to improve the
working environment”
Regulatory and social issues
We are committed to championing the causes that affect the safety
and wellbeing of our customers in relation to mobile phone and
internet use. As well as providing information in all of our stores on
health, crime, first phones for children and driving legislation, we are
active campaigners on key issues and work regularly with officials and
government to make a difference.
Driving
“70% of people say the update to the law on holding a mobile
phone whilst driving has had no impact on their driving habits”.
CPW research, May 2007.
This year we have worked very closely with the Department for Transport
and police forces across the country to educate customers about the
change in penalty for driving whilst holding a mobile phone. We trained
all our sales consultants on the law change and provided clear guidance
at point of sale, in our buyers’ guide (which has a monthly circulation of
two million) and on carphonewarehouse.com. It is also now company
policy that any employee caught using a mobile phone whilst driving
will be subject to disciplinary action.
Phonewise
Mobile Life 2007 research found that the number of children bullied
beyond the school gates as a result of “cyber bullying” – intimidation
via mobile phones, email and instant messaging continues to grow.
In September we joined forces with our charity partner Get Connected
to build on our campaign against this vicious form of bullying. Working
with Get Connected we compiled a Phonewise guide that among other
important issues included advice for parents and children to combat cyber
bullying. The guide is available on carphonewarehouse.com/safety and in
Direct Marketing Magazine Good Call. We aim to broaden this campaign
next year to reach even more children and young people.
Crime
“9% of all mobile phone owners say that they have had their phone
stolen.” Mobile Life, 2006.
We are absolutely committed to combating spiralling mobile phone crime
and personal theft. Andrew Harrison, UK Chief Executive, has appealed to
all network and manufacturer CEOs to join MICAF (Mobile Industry Crime
Action Forum). The Carphone Warehouse is the only mobile phone retailer
to automatically register all its customers with Immobilise, the UK national
mobile phone register.
Mobile phones and health
In 2007, the UK Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research
(MTHR) Programme published a detailed report to provide an update
on the research work it has been undertaking since its inception in
2001. The work has been funded jointly by government and industry,
and is run by an independent programme management committee to
ensure that none of the contributors can influence the outcome of the
programme. The Carphone Warehouse has been a significant contributor
to research in this area.
None of the research supported by the programme and published so
far demonstrates that biological or adverse health effects are produced by
radiofrequency exposure from mobile phones. Specifically, no association
was found between short-term mobile phone use (less than ten years)
and cancers of the brain and nervous system. Similarly, studies on
electrical hypersensitivity have not supported the theory that symptoms
experienced by sufferers result from exposure to signals from mobile
phones and base stations.
The report proposes a further programme of work to address areas of
outstanding concern, which it will report on in due course. These include
whether longer-term mobile phone usage increases the risk of developing
cancers of the brain and nervous system, and whether any effects of
exposure to mobile phone signals are greater in children.
The Carphone Warehouse continues to take a lead in communicating
health issues to its customers. We list the specific absorption rates for
every handset in our buyers’ guide and on our website, and will this year
be updating our independent and extensive health factsheet to reflect the
latest findings of MTHR and other studies.
Carbon reductions
Our ambition at CPW is to cut our carbon emissions in a way that does
not compromise our customers’ experience or our employees’ working
environment. Our energy efficiency and carbon management programme
introduced this year will deliver environmental benefits to the wider
community and financial benefits to our stakeholders. To facilitate this
we have partnered with the Government’s Carbon Trust and introduced
measures such as:
• Lift share: a scheme in which employees are encouraged to share their
vehicles and are given a guaranteed parking space. Please see
www.cpwjourneyshare.com;
• Conducting an ongoing energy and carbon awareness campaign and
promoting good practices to enable all employees, service partners
and contractors to make a contribution to energy efficiency;
• Providing awareness workshops for employees, service partners
and contractors;