With targeted personnel management and handling of our working conditions, KHS lays the foundations for the success of our company in the long term.

In this respect, our system of human resources management is specified centrally by the Group for all production sites. The requirements are defined by Salzgitter AG with the Group mandate, a data administration system for personnel issues and processes. This ensures that all of the necessary IT and data privacy standards are met. The Central Human Resources Division controls the issues that concern all production sites centrally from our headquarters in Dortmund. This is where our strategic functions are also anchored. Furthermore, HR officers are appointed at the respective plants who regularly exchange information on goals, measures and developments, thus assuring proximity to employees and user departments.

We are convinced that not only financial goals contribute to the success of the company in the long term. When drawing up agreements with our executive managers, non-financial key figures also play a role. For several years now we have thus fixed annual targets Group-wide in order to intensify the further training of our workforce and further reduce the number of accidents.

Co-determination on an equal footing

We find it particularly important to inform and involve our employees at an early stage in order to identify together potential for the further development of working conditions and the working environment. The way in which personnel are involved varies from plant to plant in order to respect the different legal requirements. In Germany, each production site has works council committees, young person’s and trainee representatives (JAV) and severely disabled person’s representatives (SBV). These belong to the joint works council, joint JAV and joint SBV respectively.

There have been no major changes to the company within the reporting period.

Special topics, such as occupational health and safety and basic and further training, are dealt with in dedicated committees. If there are larger changes to the company, we work towards a fair reconciliation of interests and social compensation plan together with the employee representative committee.

At our German production sites a number of company agreements have been negotiated with the works council to strengthen the interests of our workforce. They govern the rights, obligations and obligatory standards for personnel. These include company agreements on the following topics, among others:

Workplace health promotion

• Training
• Inclusion
• Addiction prevention
• Company suggestion scheme
• Continuous improvement process (CIP)
• Flexible working hours
• Remote work.

One important aspect of our HR strategy is the KHS code of conduct that focuses on the respectful treatment of one another, among other things. This is described in detail in the chapter on compliance management.

Adherence to the agreed regulations of both our code of conduct and our company agreements is very important to us, which is why KHS substantiates this with various audits and tests as a matter of course. These include:

• Assessments for exceeding work time limits
• Internal company revisions
• Cooperation with the employers’ liability insurance association
• Internal occupational health and safety audits
• External audits and certificates such as EcoVadis.

Fairness and esteem

Our day-to-day dealings with one another, the working conditions on site and the salaries and additional benefits we provide are seen by our employees as a mark of our esteem and a sign of fairness. If we are to commit our employees to the company in the long term, it is very important that they have a sense of purpose in their own work and receive recognition for it. The current implementation of agreements governing remote work since July 2022, for instance, regulations on leave of absence and working hours are further aspects. Long years of service to the company and a low fluctuation rate are both indicators of the level of satisfaction among our employees.

KHS personnel are employed based on collective wage agreements or individually negotiated tariffs. Salaries consist of a fixed sum and a fair performance-oriented allowance. The respective collective wage agreements of the metal and electrical industry apply, to which KHS is committed thanks to its membership of various trade associations. In addition, KHS pays portions of earnings above the pay scale, such as a higher premium for overtime. Moreover, our company car guidelines clearly regulate when employees can make use of one of the vehicles in our fleet.

Further extra benefits include our company pension schemes, such as the MetallRente and SZAG Model programs, and an occupational disability and accident insurance plan. Our employees can make their own contribution to their later financial situation through our company pension program: here, they save a percentage of their salary for their retirement that is then topped up by the company. External specialists advise here on investment options or compensation for inflation, for example.