Unilever 2004 Annual Report Download - page 177

174 Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2004
Further statutory information 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 2004.
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.
A new flexible working policy was introduced in 2003, offering every
employee the opportunity to request a flexible working option.
Training workshops were run for line managers to maximise
understanding and commitment to the policy.
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 2004 UK group companies made a total contribution of
£8.2 million, analysed as follows:
Charitable donations: £1.1 million
Community investment: £1.9 million
Commercial initiatives in the community: £4.4 million
Management costs: £0.8 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
11 May 2005 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 12 May 2004,
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 11 May 2005, and a resolution will
be proposed to renew it. The company has not exercised this
authority during the year.
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 Remuneration report on page 85
and in note 30 to the consolidated accounts on pages 138 to 147.
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
2004 comprises this page and the information contained in the
Report of the Directors on pages 2 to 89, the Remuneration report in
respect of Directors’ interests in shares or debentures of the Group on
page 85, Dividends on page 181 and Principal group companies and
fixed investments on pages 165 to 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
Lloyds TSB Registrars
The Causeway
Worthing
West Sussex BN99 6DA
By Order of the Board
J A A van der Bijl
S G Williams
Joint Secretaries of Unilever PLC
1 March 2005