Equal opportunities for more diversity

As an innovation company, we need employees who can think creatively and in many directions, who offer a range of experience, mindsets and viewpoints and come from different walks in life. This is because we need to work together on solutions to the challenges faced by society, of which we are all part.

Fostering equal opportunities in a workforce characterized by diversity means acknowledging the skills, potential and personality of each individual employee. No person is to be unfairly disadvantaged, favored or ostracized because of ethnic or racial origin, color, nationality, descent, religion, caste, gender, age, physical characteristics or appearance, sexual orientation, union membership, political affiliation, HIV/AIDS or marital/parental status.

At Bayer, equal opportunities most certainly involves promoting the interests of disabled employees and those affected by health issues. Bayer uses state-of-the-art integration concepts to respect these employees’ interests and ensure they are not excluded from appointments to new positions.

The equal treatment of all employees is a basic principle of human resources policy at Bayer and forms an integral part of its Values and Leadership Principles. Respecting and valuing the national and cultural diversity of the people in our company forms the basis for our daily work. We reinforce this commitment with our membership in the Diversity Charter.

A diverse employee structure is fundamental to the competitiveness of Bayer. This is particularly true for its management. Because diversity provides a better understanding of changing markets and consumer segments and opens up access to a broader pool of talent. It also reaps benefits in terms of problem-solving and innovative aptitude, which has been proven to result from broad cultural diversity within the Group. Of the members of our Group Leadership Circle, in which 35 nationalities are currently represented, around 66 percent come from the country in which they are employed.

Sexual orientation and sexual identity are integral aspects of every individual and should never be a source of discrimination or abuse. On the contrary, they are part of the diversity that characterizes us all - as people and as colleagues. At Bayer, we have therefore set ourselves the goal of tackling prejudice and distorted perceptions of homosexuality, bisexuality and transsexual and transgender people (LGBT). We want to create an environment where every individual can work to the best of their ability and is valued as a person by their colleagues. Our BLEND network is now far more than a Bayer working group of LGBT employees and their supporters. It is an international community full of ideas and visions that runs its own campaigns and projects.
More

Another major aim of Bayer’s diversity strategy is to achieve an appropriate balance between men and women, especially in managerial teams. In 2010, Bayer set itself the voluntary target of raising the proportion of women in the five highest management grades throughout the Group toward 30 percent by the end of 2015. In just five years, it has succeeded in increasing the proportion of women in this segment of management from 21 percent to some 28 percent (including Covestro). In the life sciences, which will form the whole of Bayer in the future, the proportion of women in this segment was over 30 percent at the start of 2016. The aim is to increase the ratio between women and men in management positions further to 35 percent women and 65 percent men by the end of 2020 (excluding Covestro).

Establishing the right balance between work and personal life depends on flexible working time models. Bayer offers a range of solutions to suit just about any life circumstances – from flextime arrangements and part-time hours to teleworking. The childcare facilities provided by the Group and its generous parental leave arrangement also enable employees with children to maintain good career prospects.