In March 2004, an Ethics Committee was set up by the Executive Committee to examine any issues or questions relating to ethics. This
committee includes three to five members chosen by the Company's Executive Committee.
The Committee elects a chairperson from among its members, who does not hold any special rights other than a deciding vote in the event of a tie. Members of the Committee can be employees, former employees or people from outside the Company, chosen from among candidates with good knowledge of the Group's businesses and a job position guaranteeing independence of judgment and the necessary objectivity. The Committee's decisions are made by a majority vote. Its members are subject to a strict obligation of independence and confidentiality and are not authorized to announce their personal position externally. In order to guarantee their freedom of judgment, they may not receive any instructions from the Company's Executive Management and cannot be removed. Their term of office is four years and is renewable.
The role of the Ethics Committee is to make recommendations regarding Veolia Environnement's fundamental values. It also ensures that everyone has access to the Ethics Guide. Any employee may refer any matter that concerns professional ethics to the Ethics Committee, which may also deal with such matters on its own initiative. It may undertake “ethics visits” to the Group's operating sites. The goal of this approach is particularly to assess, through individual interviews with a cross-section of employees who are as representative as possible of the operating site in question, the degree of ethical maturity of employees, their knowledge of the Group's values, the ethical problems that they may encounter and the training that they receive from their hierarchy or provide for their employees on the topic.
Any Group employee who believes there has been a failure to comply with the rules set forth in the Ethics Guide can refer the matter to the Ethics Committee. This whistle-blowing procedure can in particular be used when the employee considers that informing his or her supervising management could result in difficulties or when the employee is not satisfied by the response of the latter. Third parties, external service providers, suppliers, sub-contractors and customers of the Group can also refer any matters within its remit to the Ethics Committee. The committee is vested with the necessary authority to perform this role. On that basis, it is authorized to hear any Group employee, the auditors, and third parties. It can also request assistance from the Internal Audit Department or any other Company department or use the services of outside experts. In 2016, the Committee reported on its work during the previous year, as it does annually, to the Audit and Accounts Committee and the Executive Committee.
