Employee well-being

Employee well-being is incorporated into every aspect of IBM's business plans, strategies and activities, from the design of products and manufacturing tools to chemical management; to facility design, construction and operation; to ongoing training and awareness. Workplace conditions and well-being program compliance are regularly reviewed, with assessments performed both by line management and by a dedicated global team of more than 200 qualified IBM safety professionals, industrial hygienists, and occupational health nurses and physicians. Managers in all types of environments use innovative self assessment tools that are designed for their particular environment and work location.

Continually developing the skills of this global team is a high priority for IBM. Skills development activities include funding for external technical education and training to attain and maintain proficiency and certification in specialty fields, with many team members holding professional certifications and licenses. Many also share their knowledge by teaching externally and presenting in their fields of specialty. Central to skill development is an annual GWBS&HB international "Learning Laboratory" which allows many members of the team to come together in one place to learn, teach and collaborate on projects that will be undertaken throughout the year. Educational development activities also include online and other forms of distance learning and internal classes taught by members of the team covering diverse subjects such as understanding health benefits, avian flu contingency planning and communication skills.

The establishment of a workplace that enables physical and psychological fitness is driven by IBM's Well-Being Management System (WBMS)—the company's holistic approach to managing the health and safety of employees wherever they work. This integrated approach to employee well-being ranges from the more traditional aspects of occupational health and safety—such as industrial hygiene, safety, medical issues and ergonomics—to innovative and proactive wellness initiatives, including a broad array of health promotion options and disease prevention benefits for employees.

Launched in 1999, the WBMS promotes proactive planning, implementation, operational controls and measurement of performance, with an overall goal of continual improvement of well-being programs. The management system has been implemented worldwide across IBM's business units—including manufacturing, research and development, and in the services and sales organizations.

Each year, a targeting process considers new global objectives and links them with local well-being activities. Examples of areas of special emphasis include managing global crisis and health threats, travel health, and HIV/AIDS; each with its own specific objectives and targets. The HIV/AIDS initiative will help drive additional improvement in HIV/AIDS prevention, education and access to health services.

IBM's WBMS has received third-party certification and recognition in several countries, ranging from certification of our WBMS in Singapore by an external organization, to AS/NZS 4804:2001 certification in IBM Australia/New Zealand, to Colombian Safety Council certification (based on BSI 8800) in Colombia. In addition, several of IBM's U.S. facilities have been approved by their state or national OSHA organizations to be Voluntary Protection Program Star sites, recognizing that our employee well-being programs exceed OSHA requirements and serve as models for other companies.

As IBM has transitioned from a company with a large manufacturing work force to a company with a larger number of employees in services jobs, our Global Practices provide additional focus on enhancing safety at newly acquired, client and at-home work locations, as well as on driving and travel safety. A combination of requirements, recommendations, best practices and information resources, these Global Practices help promote the well-being of employees, regardless of where or when they work.

Every IBM employee has access to qualified physicians, nurses and other well-being professionals with whom they can interact directly and confidentially on issues of workplace well-being.

IBM's consideration of well-being does not stop at its own employees. We require our supply chain partners not only to comply with applicable regulatory and legal requirements but also to conform to sound health and safety management principles that include identifying potential risks, implementing programs to control those risks, monitoring conditions and ensuring executive level leadership. Suppliers must provide their employees with a safe and healthy workplace and must have and implement effective programs that encompass life safety, incident investigation, chemical safety, ergonomics, etc., and provide the same standard of health and safety in any housing that is provided for employees.

In some cases, as a result of divestiture, what was once internal IBM is now a supplier relationship. One of IBM's recent significant divestitures, the 2005 sale of our PC business to Lenovo, demonstrates IBM's commitment to the success of the new Lenovo Corporation as well as our interest in supplier health and safety. IBM is assisting and supporting Lenovo in maintaining a competitive, compliant health and safety culture during a transitional period. This assistance is intended to help Lenovo to meet or exceed global supplier responsibilities.