Diversity, inclusion and Welfare

Inclusion, protection of diversity (gender, age, disability, religion, race, etc.), combating sexual harassment and bullying are issues monitored at the governance level. Indeed, Acea has a Code of Ethics, updated at the end of 2022 (see Corporate Identity) and an active Ethics and Sustainability Committee, which, among other things, has the responsibility of assisting the Board of Directors in matters of diversity, with the task of promoting the culture of valuing diversity and combating all forms of discrimination.
Acea is one the signatories of the “Utilitalia Pact – Diversity makes the Difference”, drafted by the Commission for the Management and Promotion of Utilitalia’s Diversity, and has adopted a Group procedure on the “Protection, inclusion, promotion of the diversity and well-being of workers” and signed the CEO Guide to Human Rights by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

The company promotes the application of principles of inclusion and appreciation of diversity in all HR management processes (selection, training, development, corporate welfare, etc.), including via dedicated procedures.
To this end, in 2022, the Equality & Care Annual Plan was adopted at Group level, which includes D&I and corporate welfare objectives and projects, shared with the Ethics and Sustainability Committee, and showcased on the corporate intranet in a dedicated section (see the sub-paragraph Internal Communication).
With specific reference to D&I, the Plan is essential for defining a programme of activities aimed both at Group employees, with specific initiatives, as well as external stakeholders, with projects that generate a positive impact for customers, communities and institutions. Each objective is structured into specific actions which are monitored using quantitative and qualitative indicators.
With the aim of implementing the initiatives defined in the Plan, Acea has adopted an Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy, which formalises the Group’s commitment to D&I, has appointed an Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Manager, and has established the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Committee (see info box).

In December, Acea SpA was the first listed Italian multiutility to achieve certification on gender equality (UNI/PdR 125:2022) and the figure responsible for the gender equality management system was appointed to manage said system.
To disseminate the culture of inclusion and value of diversity, in 2022 Acea informed and raised awareness among employees with initiatives open to the entire company population, including:

• the Acea Group Equality Manifesto, created thanks to contri- bution from employees and presented on World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development;
• the webinar Female Empowerment – In Conversation with Giulia Baccarin, on 8 March, during which discussions were held on how technology and artificial intelligence could help us under- stand the phenomena and promote appreciation of diversity, as well as the importance of supporting the entrepreneurial spirit of young talent in STEM, with a focus on women;
• the webinar Diverso da chi? La diversità e l’inclusione del Gruppo Acea [Different from who? Diversity and Inclusion of the Acea Group], held on World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, intended to explore the value of equality and inclusion in personal and professional settings;
• the webinar Generazioni a confronto: come gestire e crescere dal confronto generazionale in casa ed in azienda [Comparing Generations: How to Manage and Growth from Generational Exchange at Home and at Work], which offered useful insights, solutions and strategies to find opportunities for growth from intergenerational exchange and successfully assist younger gen- erations in a complicated and continuously changing context;
• the opening of a direct communication channel dedicated to Diversity & Inclusion to make space for the voices of each individual, to disseminate initiatives and information and collect requests and proposals on these issues.

During the year, Acea obtained various recognitions that attest to its commitment to diversity, inclusivity and female empowerment. In particular, the company:

• was included by the Financial Times and Statista in the special ranking of Europe’s Diversity Leaders 2023 (using 2022 fig- ures), which selects 850 European companies that demonstrate leadership in terms of diversity and inclusion;
• was included among the 2,000 businesses assessed in the study Italy’s Best Employers for Women 2023 (using 2022 figures), conducted by the Istituto Tedesco Qualità e Finanza, which, on the basis of online references, awarded the 360 best employers for women in Italy.

Lastly, Acea was also assessed as part of the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index (GEI) in 2022, for the third year in a row. This index measures gender equality in terms of five areas: female leadership and talent pipeline, wage parity and equality between the sexes, inclusive culture, sexual harassment policies and promotion activities aimed at women. The assessment was 81.58 (on a scale of 0-100), an improvement on the previous assessment (80.67) and above the averages for the sector (73.75) and the sample analysed (72.94) (see also chapter Shareholders and Investors).

In the context of corporate welfare, Acea adopts reconciliation meas- ures to support parenthood, strengthened thanks to the Diversity and Inclusion Protocol mentioned above, such as extended parental leave for family reasons for working mothers or working fathers, extended paternity leave, with the addition of two extra days of paid leave, on top of those required by law, to be taken within two months of the birth, adoption or fostering of a child; the hourly permits for the enrolment of children at nursery school, kindergarten and the first day of primary school.
Furthermore, an extension is envisaged to the number of days of remote working, according to the current provisions of the law, for pregnant working mothers with children up to the age of 3 and working fathers with children up to the age of 3, in the absence of another parent or with another working parent who does not have access to remote working, and for staff who are family caregivers. With a view to reducing the gender gap in terms of opportunities for growth, Acea took part in the “Riparto” open notice, issued by the Department for Family Policy – Presidency of the Council of Ministers, which promotes female empowerment.

Again in 2022, the company participated in the Sistema Scuola Im- presa [Business School System”] project, coordinated by the Elis consortium, helping to create the “Inspirational Talks Role Model” initiative: a programme for the promotion of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) training programmes among female middle and secondary school students. The project, in continuity with 2021, involved 15 female Acea Group profession- als who, as role models, recounted their experiences of professional success in male-dominated sectors and sent a message of encouragement to the younger generation about the possibility of realising their professional aspirations.

Acea actively promotes corporate well-being, starting with the needs of its staff, which are determined over time through surveys. The Group Welfare Plan was enhanced in 2022, identifying six fundamental pillars relating to: health, work-life balance, emotional and physical well-being, supplementary pensions, economic assistance, and family.

The income support measures include the option to convert the per- formance bonus into welfare services (flexible benefits) through the My Welfare platform, enriched with personal and family services (family services, travel, transport, health and health insurance, sup- plementary pensions, sport and leisure, etc.), as well as the imple- mentation of the category of fringe benefits, according to the pro- visions of current legislation. Furthermore, employees can use the Corporate Benefits exclusive platform, which contains a wide range of products offered at a discount.

Acea has reused part of the tax relief, enjoyed thanks to the Wel- fare Plan, for the benefit of all employees through the payment of an additional amount for those who allocate their performance bonus to supplementary pension schemes (see also the paragraph Industrial Relations) and by offering preventive health services and check-ups, carrying out campaigns to promote primary and secondary preven- tion and healthy lifestyles as well as making an economic contri- bution to the provision of services for the emotional and physical well-being of employees and their families.

To promote the initiatives of the Welfare Plan, in 2022 a significant communication campaign was carried out with information videos about the measures implemented by the company in favour of em- ployees, the administration of a survey to map emerging require- ments as well as the organisation of multiple information events.

During the year, Acea:

• organised the prevention campaign Previeni con Acea [Prevent with Acea] as part of which it activated the Bimbi Sicuri [Safe Children] course aimed at employees and dedicated to paediat- ric prevention in emergencies and organised, in collaboration with Susan Komen Italy, four days dedicated to cancer prevention for employees, during which 520 breast, dermatological and endocrinological screenings were carried out free of charge;
• participated, with a team formed of 100 colleagues, in the Race for the Cure, the largest event dedicated to women who are facing or have faced breast cancer;
• on International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, deployed the Sostegno Donna [Support for Women] channel of assistance to those who need to talk to selected pro- fessionals, also offering the possibility of undertaking specific counselling, psychological, psychotherapeutic, pedagogical and parenting support courses;
• developed Mi prendo cura di te [I take care of you], a caregiv- er service, totally free of charge, aimed at providing person- alised advice from a professional able to support people in the management of educational and/or social care needs (support services for the elderly and people with disabilities, for children, specialised services with the availability of psychologists, nurses, physiotherapists, );
• strengthened the wellness programme in collaboration with Fitprime, intended to promote physical well-being and fuel and encourage the adoption of a healthy lifestyle with sports, diet personalised by a nutritionist and street gym events, which took place during the year in the streets of the historic centre;
• introduced a bike sharing service intended to facilitate sustaina- bility mobility for work-related travel;
• actions in support of parents to encourage a better balance be- tween work and childcare, such as the summer camp for boys and girls aged 6 to 14, which aims to promote the values of sport among the younger generations, the course on career guidance, aimed at parents and children aged 16 to 19, to promote bet- ter awareness of their soft skills, and an information campaign about the company’s crèche (see the paragraph Community Life at Acea);
• deployed a permanent advice channel aimed at working mothers and fathers, through which the company interacts with them and collects information about their needs with a view to reducing the gender gap;
• activated an agreement with the “Unitelma Sapienza” online uni- versity, providing discounts for employees and their family mem- bers for bachelor’s and 1st and 2nd level master’s degrees;
• participated, alongside the Innovation Unit of Acea SpA and the association “La Carica delle 101”, in the launch of the 3Ws call 4 start-ups – Women, Welfare and Work-Life Balance, aimed at scouting innovative corporate welfare services (see also chapter Institutions and the Company).

Finally, the solidarity and food support project Solidarity Taxi con- tinued in 2022. It was promoted in the Rome area in collaboration with the ACLI of Rome with the aim of providing concrete help to the families in most need and those most affected by the pandem- ic. The project involved the donations of parcels containing food and medicine by employees, and former employees contributed by driving a van, loaned free of charge by Acea, to deliver the solidarity parcels in the municipality of Rome.

Acea has employees belonging to protected categories (disabled people, orphans, etc.) who, in compliance with the law¹³⁹, are guaranteed support services, assistance and technical support tools to facilitate the performance of the tasks entrusted to them. In 2022, 200 employees (117 men and 83 women) belonged to protected categories.
In the year under review, there were no cases of discrimination against Group employees.

139 Italian law no. 68/99.