3.3.3.1.3 Long-term social welfare policy

The Group’s employee benefits policy is based on three main principles: a principle of accountability, a principle of balance between competitiveness and sustainability, and a principle of appropriation by beneficiaries.

A specific social welfare scheme

In France, the vast majority of the Group’s workforce are employed by companies descended from “historic operators” (EDF, Enedis, PEI) which have electricity and gas industry or “EGI” status. This status carries an entitlement to a special pension and social security scheme. If employees with EGI status are unfit for work(sickness/maternity/disability), they benefit from an attractive level of cover and in terms of healthcare costs, in addition to the basic scheme, their special scheme includes an additional mandatory part, which also covers retired employees.Employees with EGI status and EGI pensioners have access to centralised social activities, financed by the companies in the professional branch and managed independently by the unions. In addition to these schemes, there is a benefit in kind historically based on a company decision which covers gas and electricity supplied by historic operators to employees and which is maintained for retired employees.

Significant changes over the last decade

EDF’s IPO and the application of international accounting standards required devaluation and provisioning of commitments to retired employees. The maintaining of the industry’s special pension and healthcare cost plans faced with this requirement was made possible by the overhaul of their financing: affiliation with standard mandatory plans for pensions and strengthening of affiliation between current and retired employee plans for complementary health insurance cover;

The special pension plan has also, like other public sector special pension plans,been increasingly affected by efforts to reform mandatory pension plans launched by successive governments. Except for the pension calculation method (specific rate, applied to a salary at the end of career, with a reduced base), the main parameters (retirement age, required contribution period, etc.) tend to be in line with the standard compulsory plan; a number of other less wide-ranging rules remain specific. The definition of active service, enabling earlier retirements, hasal so been revised and how it is taken into account significantly overhauled for newly-hired employees, via the creation of a Retirement Days Savings Account. In addition, the bill instituting a universal pension system, presented to the French Council of Ministers on 24 January 2020 and due to be examined by the National Assembly in February 2020, would apply to all employees affected by the reform,regardless of their pension scheme, including the EGI scheme.

For the EDF group, the government’s proposed pension reform presents three major challenges:

• social: the special pension scheme is one of the pillars of the EGI status and is a major political and symbolic issue;
• financial: the special EGI pension scheme represents an additional financial burden of several hundred million euros per year, and some €20 billion in commitments;
• transformation: particularly with regard to the fluidity of mobility within and outside the Group (as differences between pension schemes constitute one of the main barriers).
  
  

Since the beginning of the consultation process, the Company has been keeping a close eye on the consequences of this reform for all its employees, regardless of their status. Some of the issues raised have already been addressed in the report submitted by the High Commissioner for Pension Reform, in particular with regard to the introduction of transition periods adapted to the specific nature of the EGIstatus for the extension of the contribution base and for employees with difficult working conditions. Unlike other historic benefits, the level of employee health,disability and life cover appeared significantly less generous than that offered by other major groups, which led from 2008 to the introduction, in agreement with the professional branch, of complementary cover in these three areas.

An agreement on family rights was signed in 2017 at the level of the EGI branch with the trade union organisations, to modernise the social system and reflect the changes to family life that have occurred since 1946 by adapting the EGI status in a concerted manner.

Other Group employees’ social welfare

The Group’s other employees in France are covered by several collective bargaining agreements and can have fringe benefits provided by their own employer. Each employer must therefore ensure that the benefits provided are consistent with the Group policy presented above. For Group companies outside France, even if the regulatory context specific to each country must be taken into account, each entity is required to ensure that the capital paid out in the event of a death under death benefit contracts covers one year’s salary at the very least. This social protection matter is regularly discussed with the Group’s Human Resources Department.

3.3.3.1.4 Health and safety of the employees of the Group and its providers: an absolutely priority

In an environment that is undergoing rapid, far-reaching changes, the human aspect is more than ever a core component of the CAP 2030 strategic plan, itself a key factor in the Group’s performance. To tackle the industrial and commercial challenges it faces, EDF must remain a socially responsible and committed employer and a benchmark in terms of its employees’ health, professionalism and commitment, by building their skills and fostering greater workforce diversity. EDFis committed to incorporating the best personnel development practices of industrial groups in order to maintain strong employee commitment.

Health and Safety policy: Guaranteeing the best health & safety conditions at work for all

The Group’s Health and Safety policy was adopted in 2018 and is based on an undertaking signed by the Chairman and all members of the Executive Committee.It defines a common, consistent framework and all policies and action plans of the Group’s different subsidiaries must comply with the policy. This Group policy applies to all the companies controlled by the EDF group, in all the countries in which EDF operates, and concerns both its employees and its subcontractors employees working on its facilities and premises. This undertaking is accompanied by a roadmap that mobilises the Group’s entities to achieve the objectives set. TheExecutive Committee reviews health and safety figures and monitors action plansregularly.

The CAP 2030 programme’s strategic health and safety objectives were defined in 2015. The Group strives to set an example in the area of Health and Safety. Themain priority is to eradicate fatal accidents, then reduce the number of accidentsand combat absenteeism. This ambition and these priorities for the coming yearsare implemented in all the companies of the Group.

Eradicating fatal accidents connected to business-specific risks

EDF, a company with a responsible attitude to its employees and service providers

Number of fatal accidents linked to business risks(employees and service providers)

• Target: 0
• 2019: 7
• 2018: 1
• 2017: 7

Key non-financial performance indicator (see concordance table with the non-financial performance statement in section 8.5.4). The scope and methodology of this indicator are set out in section 3.4 "Indicators and methodology". This indicator refers to key stake no. 17 "Health and safety of employees and stakeholders" described in section 3.6.2 "Description of key stakes in the materiality matrix ".