We foster employee participation, co-determination and dialogue in our company so that employees will be motivated and committed to contribute to the success of our company. The Merck Euroforum is the Merck employee representative body at the European level and also serves as the information and advisory platform for direct dialogue between employees and senior management up to the Executive Board level. Regularly discussed topics include the economic and financial situation of the Merck Group in Europe, the employment situation and substantial changes within our company. In addition, there are other forms of employee representation at the sites. In 2010, employer and employee representatives in Germany concluded a joint declaration on a “culture of performance and trust”, based on openness, transparency and shared responsibility. Our divisions have adopted independent approaches to promote dialogue. Merck Serono hosts information and dialogue forums several times a year under the headings of “Merck Serono in Focus” and “Function in Focus“. In the Chemicals business sector, the “ChemForum” is an instrument for dialogue for employees across all levels and functions. In total, nine events were held in 2009 and 2010. Especially against the backdrop of integrating the Merck Millipore employees, it becomes clear how important regular, open and timely communication is. In order to handle the integration process, we launched a systematic change management process and communication campaigns. The integration process and its progress are addressed and discussed in the newsletter “pro Integration” published every two weeks, on the intranet and in special online forums.
Since 2009, we have conducted the Group-wide Pulse employee survey annually. In this context, our employees have the opportunity to evaluate Merck as an employer and to communicate their needs to us. Concrete measures are derived from the results, discussed and implemented. The results of the second Pulse survey conducted in January 2010 fortunately showed that the majority of our employees identify with our company and are committed to helping us succeed. Altogether, 84% of all employees participated in the survey. After the 2009 survey, we resolved to become better in the areas of “Values and Ethics”, “Leadership” as well as “Performance and Development”, and we initiated corresponding improvement actions. The employees’ ratings in these fields were better in 2010 than in 2009.
