Professional development and well-being at work

Gender equality

In France, a new “ Equality, Diversity and Inclusion” agreement came into effect on January 1, 2021 and will remain applicable until 2023. Building on the actions and measures already in place, this agreement, signed unanimously by our two trade unions, adds the fight against sexual and gender-based harassment to the Company’s priorities. With this agreement, bioMérieux also reaffirms its position in terms of training, professional performance and equal compensation.

New actions are planned, such as communication and awareness campaigns on non-discrimination and against gender-based violence. The Company also undertakes to:

• Set new targets for the representation of women at certain classification levels;
• Survey employees, particularly regarding parenthood and working time, in order to implement actions for the benefit of employees.

bioMérieux has also decided to facilitate part-time work scheduling and to improve the measures that allow better coordination of the professional and personal lives of its employees.

At the same time, we have launched the drafting of a charter aiming to promote a managerial culture, respectful of privacy.

• 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 9 directors, including 4 women.

• In France, in 2018, a professional equality index between women and men has been set up following new legislations. In 2020, bioMérieux scored 93 out of 100 compared to last year, higher than last year (+ 5 points) and well beyond the minimum required by law. This change can be explained in particular by the increase in the number of women among the 10 highest salaries. In collaboration with its social partners, bioMérieux is committed to continue to progress in this direction and to confirm this good performance. 

• bioMérieux is part of the top 2% of companies ranked in terms of gender equality in the Top 100 of Equileap's 2021 Gender Equality Global Report & Ranking! Equileap is the leading organization providing data and insights on gender equality in the corporate sector. The evaluation is based on 19 criteria including gender balance at all levels within the company, the gender pay gap, work-life balance and parental leave. 

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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.

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.