The Rhodia-ICEM Global Agreement
In 2005, Rhodia signed a global social and environmental responsibility agreement with the international federation of chemical industry workers (ICEM). This agreement, the only one of its kind in the chemical industry, gives tangible expression to Rhodia’s determination to ensure that basic labor rights and the Group’s social standards in the areas of heath, safety and environmental protection are respected on all its sites all over the world. This agreement applies to all Rhodia employees in the 80 countries in which Rhodia pursues its activities.
Every year, an assessment is carried out on a Rhodia site chosen by ICEM to verify the correct application at a grassroots level of the commitments made by Rhodia. These assessments have already been completed in China, Brazil, the USA and South Korea, and an annual review has been presented to an extra-national body representing the employees (European Works Council).
This agreement – which was renewed in 2008 and again in February 2011 for a period of 5 years – has been reinforced on each occasion. As a result, Rhodia and ICEM, which both make employee safety one of their central priorities, have set up a new joint “Global Safety Panel” in order to widen the scope of the management/employee dialogue to include Rhodia's safety policy worldwide.