Unilever 2005 Annual Report Download - page 178

178 Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2005
Further statutory and other information
Unilever PLC
Employee involvement and communication
Unilever’s UK companies maintain formal processes to inform, consult
and involve employees and their representatives. Most of the United
Kingdom sites are accredited to the Investors in People standard. Our
sites also use tools such as Total Productive Maintenance which rely
heavily on employee involvement, contribution and commitment.
A European Works Council, embracing employee and management
representatives from 15 countries of Western Europe, has been
in existence for several years and provides a forum for discussing
issues that extend across national boundaries.
The directors’ reports of the United Kingdom group companies
contain more details about how they have communicated with their
employees during 2005.
Equal opportunities and diversity
The heads of all operating companies and units in the UK have
committed their businesses to achieving greater diversity. Every
Unilever company in the United Kingdom has an equal opportunities
policy and actively pursues equality of opportunity for all employees.
The company carries out an annual employee monitoring survey and
has also conducted an equal pay audit. The company continues to
review ways in which greater diversity can be achieved in recruitment
and selection.
The company continues to put in place policies which promote the
achievement of diversity in the business. We have policies on home
working, flexible working, maternity and paternity leave, child care
provision and career breaks, which help us to meet this objective.
Charitable and other contributions
Unilever collates the cost of its community involvement activities using
the London Benchmarking Group model. The model recommends the
separation of charitable donations, community investment,
commercial initiatives in the community and management costs
relating to the programme of activity.
During 2005 UK group companies made a total contribution of
£7.4 million, analysed as follows:
•Charitable donations: £1.5 million
•Community investment: £1.3 million
•Commercial initiatives in the community: £3.9 million
•Management costs: £0.7 million
No donation or contribution was made or expenditure incurred for
political purposes.
Supplier payment policies
Individual operating companies are responsible for agreeing the
terms and conditions under which business transactions with their
suppliers are conducted. The directors’ reports of the United Kingdom
operating companies give information about their supplier payment
policies as required by the United Kingdom Companies Act 1985.
PLC, as a holding company, does not itself make any relevant
payments in this respect.
Auditors
A resolution will be proposed at the Annual General Meeting on
9 May 2006 for the re-appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
as auditors of PLC. The present appointment will end at the
conclusion of the Annual General Meeting.
Authority to purchase own shares
At the Annual General Meeting of PLC held on 11 May 2005,
authority was given pursuant to Article 64 of the PLC Articles of
Association to make market purchases of PLC ordinary shares of 1.4p
each, to a maximum of 290 million shares. This authority will expire at
the Annual General Meeting on 9 May 2006, and a resolution will be
proposed to renew it. On 9 December 2005, Unilever PLC announced
that it had purchased 25 680 479 Unilever PLC ordinary shares under
this authority.
Details of shares purchased by an employee share trust and Unilever
group companies to satisfy options granted under PLC’s employee
share schemes are given in the report of the Remuneration
Committee on page 67 and in note 31 to the consolidated accounts
on pages 132 to 141.
Directors’ report of PLC
For the purposes of Section 234 of the Companies Act 1985, the
Directors’ Report of Unilever PLC for the year ended 31 December
2005 comprises this page and the information contained in the report
of the Directors on pages 09 to 72, the report of the Remuneration
Committee in respect of Directors’ interests in shares or debentures of
the Group on page 69, Dividends on page 187 and Principal group
companies and fixed investments on pages 167 and 168.
Corporate Centre
Unilever PLC
PO Box 68 Unilever House
Blackfriars
London EC4P 4BQ
Unilever PLC Registered Office
Port Sunlight
Wirral
Merseyside CH62 4ZD
Unilever PLC Registrars
Computershare Investor Services PLC
PO Box 82
The Pavilions
Bridgwater Road
Bristol BS99 7NH
By Order of the Board
J A A van der Bijl
S G Williams
Joint Secretaries of Unilever PLC
28 February 2006