Compliance

Focus on business-related aspects

In terms of Geberit’s specific business activities, there is a particular focus on the topic of antitrust legislation, with data protection, corruption, product liability, environmental and occupational health and safety as well as employee rights also relevant from a compliance perspective. Audits and training courses are carried out on a regular basis as a means of inspecting and implementing the directives within the Group, the Code of Conduct for Employees and Code of Conduct for Suppliers, and also compliance with applicable laws. Additionally, the eLearning modules on antitrust legislation and data protection are practical tools that can be used for the straightforward training of employees.

Focal point data protection

The optimisation of the data protection processes introduced in 2018 also continued in the reporting year. At the start of the year, a proprietary, individual privacy policy was introduced in recruiting in the HR department. The eLearning module on data protection for employees was extended and is now available in 13 languages. Moreover, the topic of data protection was also incorporated in the management system and in reporting on the Code of Conduct. A further 19 Geberit companies were audited on data protection, including Portugal, Spain, Italy, France and Germany. Furthermore, the Group’s central data protection organisation was also audited.

Legal advice and reporting

As part of enquiries from various Geberit markets, the Group’s legal department dealt with the permissibility of bonus and discount systems, plus marketing and sales campaigns. In this advisory role, the legal department is able to quickly clear up any uncertainties and confusion. On the whole, the enquiries demonstrate a marked sensibility among the employees in relation to compliance topics, particularly in the area of antitrust legislation.