Pioneering diagnostics

Professional development and well-being at work

bioMérieux firmly believes in the potential of its human capital, upholding its responsibility towards the teams who are behind its success.

Internal mobility

Key for successful future development, internal mobility is encouraged to adapt to a changing work environment in the short term and to address the Company’s development needs from a more long-term perspective.

Nearly 50% of permanent-contract positions are filled through internal mobility.

Gender equality

The first triennial agreement concerning gender equality in the workplace was signed in 2003. It is renewed every three years, providing an opportunity for the social partners to move forward on this issue. In 2017, a new agreement was signed for three years covering the period 2018-2020.

Measures to correct pay gaps, improve gender balance within the organizations and increase the percentage of women in management positions are also taken. Professional equality is essentially evaluated on the basis of 3 indicators: diversity, compensation and promotion. For the social partners, the information provided by this data allows corrective actions to be taken.

  • At bioMérieux, the Women Ready for Leadership Diversity (WoRLD) internal network works to promote greater gender diversity within management positions. In 2017, it  WoRLD focused on raising awareness of the impact of stereotypes and the importance of professional equality.  
  • On May 30, 2017, the General Meeting of Shareholders of bioMérieux approved the appointment of 2 independent directors: Fanny Letier and Marie-Paule Kieny. The bioMérieux Board of Directors now comprises 10 directors, including 4 women.
  • In October 2018, the Montcelard Estate, near Lyon (France), hosted the third edition of the JUMP Forum in Lyon, in partnership with JUMP association. It was open to all companies in the region.

  • A professional equality index between men and women has been set up following new legislations. In 2018, bioMérieux scored 88 out of 100, well beyond the minimum required by law. In collaboration with our social partners, we are committed to continue to progress in this direction and confirm this good performance.

bioMérieux ranks 7th among French companies for gender equality

In a report published by the NGO Equileap in April 2017, bioMérieux was ranked 7th among French companies promoting gender equality and 39th among the Top 200 international companies included in this global ranking. The ranking measures companies’ progress in 4 categories:

  • Gender balance in leadership and the workforce,
  • Equal compensation and work/life balance,
  • Policies promoting gender equality,
  • Commitment to women’s empowerment within the company.

Work-life balance

Quality of life in the workplace is a major focus of bioMérieux’s human resources policy. In 2015, a Work-Life Balance program was introduced in France to improve the balance between employees’ professional and personal lives. The program was extended to cover additional countries in the EMEA region in 2016. The implementation of a teleworking policy met with remarkable success. 

In France a concierge service opened on 2 sites in November 2017.

“Best Place to Work” approach

In late 2016, the EMEA “Best Place to Work” program was launched to ensure a favorable environment to the professional development and quality of life in the workplace for bioMérieux’s employees.

Disability initiatives

Since 2008, the Company has carried out initiatives within the framework of the Company agreement concerning employees with disabilities: actions to hire, integrate and train people with disabilities, to raise awareness and train employees involved in integrating disabled workers, and support job retention by adapting workstations. This agreement was renewed in late 2017 for a period of 4 years.

Workplace health and safety

bioMérieux teams are targeting a reduction in the rate of occupational accidents by 2020 to reach a rate of 1.6 or less, which is especially low for the industrial sector internationally. The Health, Safety and Environmental policy, initially developed for production facilities, has gradually been expanded to include commercial subsidiaries as well.
Our US subsidiary launched a road safety training program in 2016 for all employees who use their vehicle for professional purposes.

 

 Initiatives in the field of health 
  • Our North American sites have access to a pilot healthcare and health education program. A medical center for employees and their families in St. Louis, Missouri, provides medical check-ups, early cancer screening and medical and nutritional advice delivered by professionals, while respecting healthcare confidentiality and privacy.
  • Preventing psychosocial risks among employees is a major focus of the Human Resources policy. The internal training program in Europe was enriched with a day-long training module targeting managers on “How to prevent exhaustion and take (better) care of your employees.”
  • In November, 2017 at the National Cancer Institute (INCa, Paris), bioMérieux signed the Cancer and Employment Charter, which lists 11 commitments to improve support for employees who are affected by cancer and to promote health.