AVBOB Integrated Annual Report 2018

Based on the EAP, we compare favourably in most of the categories. Despite good progress made, our overall challenge is the under representation of Black employees at management and senior management level. The aim of the Group is to uplift and encourage female leadership in the workplace and to foster gender equality. Our workplace comprises 70% female employees. People living with disabilities The Group has made great strides in the accommodation and development of people living with disabilities. In addition to the learnerships and training provided to people living with disabilities, focus was also placed on disability awareness programmes. The Group’s Disability Accommodation Policy promotes the equal participation of people with disabilities and creates an inclusive culture. Employee wellness The Employee Wellness Programme (EWP) is offered by the Group to all employees. The aim of the programme is to improve the quality of life of employees by providing support and assistance to alleviate the impact of everyday work, as well as personal and family challenges. The EWP service was put in place to minimise behavioural problems that impact on the personal and work life of employees by providing the necessary coping skills. The EWP continues to offer employees a diverse selection of services which includes the following: • A professional support line service for telephonic counselling. • Face-to-face counselling when needed in an environment that suits the employee. • Trauma counselling for employees and their families inside and outside the work environment. • Life management services where life management advisors help and guide employees on issues such as divorce, maintenance, debt management, eldercare, pre-natal care, adoption, parenting and childcare. • Overall health and wellness awareness through annual wellness days. • Provision of emotional/psychological counselling services to individuals to assist them with day-to-day issues and mitigate the associated risks of employees’ stresses. • Provision of personal financial management services. For the period under review, employees showed a proportionally higher uptake of services concerning psychosocial issues, legal issues and financial management. The Group is committed to creating and maintaining a safe and healthy work environment for all employees. It monitors and manages occupational health and safety in the workplace with due consideration for all stakeholders. An array of preventative and occupational health programmes are tailored to the needs of the Group. The service providers provide a quarterly corporate health review that provides a comprehensive insight into the health of our employees. The benefits derived from the EWP for the period 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018 when compared to the previous period are as follows: • The overall engagement rate increased from 528 to 690 cases. • The most commonly utilised service was professional counselling, which constituted 51.3% of the total engagements. • The programme assisted in identifying and managing substance abuse and high-risk suicide cases. • Structured personal financial awareness and financial management sessions took place at Head Office. • An absenteeism management workshop was conducted for all supervisory and 48