To address the material IROs related to our value chain workers, such as inadequate application of human rights principles, including failing to ensure health and safety or providing grievance channels, and reputational damage due to unequal treatment and opportunities, specific actions have been defined. These include conducting impact and risk assessments, human rights compliance checks, audits, providing training and awareness-raising activities, and actively engaging with contractors on safety topics. For the material topic S2 Workers in the Value Chain, none of our actions exceeded our key action monetary threshold of EUR 5 mn, and therefore these data requirements have not been addressed. For information on whether and how external developments have been considered regarding dependencies turning into risks, see ESRS 2 General Information.
Impact and Risk Assessments and Human Rights Compliance Checks
The processes through which OMV identifies what action is needed and appropriate in response to a particular actual or potential negative impact on value chain workers include impact and risk assessments and human rights compliance checks. These serve as ongoing preventive actions addressing identified negative impacts and risks concerning upstream value chain workers, in alignment with the Corporate Procurement Directive. Such impacts and risks include inadequate application of human rights principles, failure to ensure adequate health and safety conditions, and lack of accessible grievance channels to address discrimination and harassment.
In 2024, 20 (2023: 13) human rights compliance checks and assessments were conducted across the OMV Group. The findings of these, both positive and negative, are compiled in reports that are shared with the responsible managers. Our Group human rights experts support local management in developing action plans to address any identified issues or risks and further strengthen the integration of human rights into our business activities and relationships. Compliance checks of about 15 potential suppliers of renewable materials (renewable feedstock, GHG tickets, and renewable products such as sustainable aviation fuel) were also carried out. The purpose of these compliance checks is to find out if these suppliers have commitments, systems, and processes in place to comply with OMV’s human rights commitments.
We track the effectiveness of these actions by regularly monitoring alerts about registered suppliers. The risk assessment results help us mitigate the risk of unequal treatment and opportunities for workers, reduce the likelihood of decreased work quality from suppliers and contractors, and address negative impacts related to human rights principles. Our on-site human rights checks focus on vulnerable groups and material negative impacts, with a checklist addressing issues related to migrant and young workers. The newly introduced on-site human rights check, launched in 2024, serves as a stand-alone tool for ongoing monitoring and verifying human rights allegations. In regular update meetings, we monitor activities and provide guidance and training to overcome challenges in implementing these action plans.
This process is relevant for our current and future business activities and relationships globally, and focuses on our own workforce and those of our business partners, primarily those working as contractors on site or in the upstream value chain. It is an ongoing process applied to our activities globally and is part of our goal to conduct human rights assessments in 100% of high-risk countries by 2030, with action plans developed every five years. Understanding a supplier’s risk is an important factor in deciding whether and how we conduct business with them. Since 2019, we have been receiving daily alerts about our registered suppliers through SAP Ariba. These enable us to monitor their risks in four categories: Environmental and Social, including workers in the value chain topics, Finance, Regulatory and Legal, and Operations. These risk alerts help us track the effectiveness of this preventive risk management process. Furthermore, OMV has a screening process in place to ensure that parties sanctioned by the EU or international organizations, such as the United Nations, are not accepted as procurement partners.
Audits
Audits are preventive and monitoring measures that address the negative impacts and risks from inadequate application of human rights principles, such as failing to ensure health and safety or provide grievance channels to report discrimination and harassment. They aim to verify whether our strong human rights principles are upheld along the value chain and to prevent potential reputational damage related to unequal treatment.
Every year, OMV conducts two types of audits for selected suppliers and contractors of OMV: on-site TfS audits focusing on sustainability performance, and remote audits performed by external auditors. The audits performed by external auditors pay particular attention to financial stability, strategy, organization, supply chain, sustainability, and cybersecurity performance. They help track and assess compliance with our suppliers’ environmental and social responsibility commitments, mitigate potential issues such as the inability to apply human rights principles, ensure accessible grievance channels, prevent the loss of skilled employees and decreasing work quality, and address unequal treatment for workers in the value chain.
Both types of audits are conducted on an ongoing basis during prequalification or contract execution and aim to measure and improve supplier performance so as to meet OMV standards. It is also part of our target to extend sustainability evaluations to all suppliers covering 90% of Procurement spend by 2030. Since 2021, OMV has been a member of Together for Sustainability (TfS), a global network of 53 companies that sets the standard for environmental, social, and governance performance in chemical supply chains. The TfS program is based on the principles of the UN Global Compact and Responsible Care®. Being a TfS member helps OMV further embed sustainability in its day-to-day business operations and cascade sustainability requirements within our supply chain.
Training and Awareness Raising
Enhancing measures such as training sessions, webinars, and special events for suppliers and contractors are connected to all material impacts and opportunities and align with our internal policies, such as Contractor Safety Management and the Corporate Procurement Directive. These measures ensure that social principles promoted by OMV are applied to workers in the value chain. This includes the promotion and protection of human rights, access to skilled personnel across the value chain, a just transition for workers, and active engagement with business partners on safety. During the reporting period, OMV continued its actions to protect workers in the value chain by implementing robust ethical and safety standards and audit practices. Moving forward, OMV aims to continuously improve by enhancing grievance mechanisms, increasing training on human rights, and fostering stronger engagement with suppliers to ensure fair treatment.
When a supplier is invited to complete an EcoVadis assessment, they also gain access to an e-learning platform with a robust catalog of courses on sustainable business practices (including labor practices and human rights). Furthermore, our suppliers can also register on the TfS Academy platform, where a wide variety of courses are available on topics such as discrimination and harassment, human trafficking, modern slavery, child labor, recognizing and preventing forced labor, etc. In addition, training our own staff on human rights ensures that they are equipped to uphold and advocate for these standards throughout the value chain, thereby contributing to better working conditions and fair treatment of all workers. In 2024, a total of 26 suppliers were trained on social issues.
OMV also collaborates with its suppliers on awareness-raising activities to enhance overall sustainability performance. Providing training and raising awareness for value chain workers is crucial for our global business activities. This effort primarily focuses on business partners in our upstream value chain, especially those working as on-site contractors. This is an ongoing process and to track its effectiveness, OMV monitors suppliers’ progress through improved EcoVadis scores. This allows us to measure enhancements in their sustainability performance.
OMV dedicates resources to training and raising awareness among value chain workers. Since 2022, the Sustainable Procurement and Supplier Innovation departments have organized webinars and training sessions to increase sustainability awareness. Human rights management is integrated throughout the organization, including in Procurement, Security, HSSE, and Community Relations. We also utilize external resources for assessments, audits, and other related activities.
Contractor Safety
Improving contractor safety is included in the Contractor HSSE Management Standard, mitigates the loss of skilled employees, and prevents a decline in the quality of work from suppliers and contractors and the failure to ensure adequate health and safety conditions for workers. It also enhances active engagement with business partners on safety issues.
Safety programs aimed at consolidating and improving safety performance have been implemented with various contractors. To emphasize their importance, these programs are supported and managed by senior management as sponsors. The focus on contractor safety is part of our preventive measure that addresses the negative actual and potential material impacts identified for workers in the value chain concerning safety management. The process to manage material risks related to the value chain, particularly contractors and suppliers, is integrated into our existing HSSE (Health, Safety, Security, and Environment) risk management system. Through this established framework, OMV systematically identifies, assesses, and mitigates potential risks associated with value chain workers. Key components of this process include regular audits, stringent prequalification procedures, and continuous stakeholder engagement, ensuring that all potential risks are proactively managed and addressed.
The safety of our contractors is just as important as the safety of our own employees. For this reason, we have established processes that require contractors to work according to our standards. Our Contractor HSSE Management Process begins with issuing the scope of work, related risks, information about HSSE requirements, and the HSSE key performance indicators (KPIs). The process continues through the tender stage with the HSSE evaluation and capability audit, if needed. Once the contract terms are agreed and the contract is awarded, and before work begins at the site, we reinforce our expectations and requirements during kick-off meetings, HSSE inductions, site-specific training, and other joint meetings.
Every contractor employee is onboarded with dedicated safety training. The presence of contractors at our sites is monitored around the clock using an electronic registration system (e.g., in the refineries) or paper sign-in system (e.g., attendance sheet, permit to work, and induction sheet). During the contract period, we monitor our contractors by way of supervision, audits, inspections, joint HSSE or safety walks, service quality meetings, forums, and workshops, using the outcomes to share information and encourage improvement of our HSSE performance as a team. To increase the awareness and knowledge of contract owners, contract holders (i.e., the beneficiaries in need of external services), procurement staff, and HSSE experts regarding our Contractor HSSE Management Process, we have continued to deliver specific training explaining how HSSE requirements and tools are embedded in the source-to-contract process. OMV has introduced the HSSE Contractor Awards to recognize and incentivize contractors who demonstrate exceptional safety practices. In 2024, this initiative contributed to reducing incidents through increased safety awareness and best practices among our contractors. OMV actively participates in industry networks to share best practices in occupational health and safety and regularly learn from industry leaders, e.g., within the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP).
This process is relevant for our current business activities globally and focuses on business partners in our upstream value chain, primarily those working as contractors on site. Prioritizing contractor safety is an ongoing process applied to our activities globally, and its effectiveness is tracked through the performance of our target on contractor onboarding. In the coming years, OMV aims to continuously enhance contractor safety by providing dedicated safety training. The HSSE Contractor Awards will continue to recognize and incentivize contractors who demonstrate exceptional safety practices.
To mitigate the negative impact on contractors that may arise from inadequate application of human rights principles, such as failing to ensure adequate health and safety conditions or provide accessible grievance channels to address discrimination and harassment, OMV implemented the SpeakUp Channel in 2024. This grievance mechanism serves as a remediation measure through which value chain workers can raise their concerns. To pursue our material opportunities of promoting and protecting human rights across the supply chain through supplier engagement and the application of OMV’s social principles, we have outlined our expectations regarding work-related human rights in our Code of Conduct. These expectations include diversity and non-discrimination, as well as health, safety, and well-being. By adhering to these standards that are also part of our GPCs, our business partners are encouraged to strengthen their own commitments in these areas, thereby positively impacting the quality of work for workers in our value chain.