Economic performance

BEE rating

We have improved our BEE rating for the DTI’s CoGP from level 4 to level 3, simultaneously raising our Procurement Recognition Level from 100 to 110 percent. This coupled with the fact that we are regarded as a Value Adding Enterprise (VAE), aids our customers in that they can now claim 137.5% of their procurement spend with us for their own BEE rating purposes. This achievement mainly resulted from our added focus on improving our standing with reference to the rating elements of employment equity, skills development, socio-economic development and preferential procurement. Our new BEE status places us at the forefront of empowered companies in the printing and publishing sector in South Africa.

Training and employment equity

Total training spend (and training spend per employee) more than doubled as we continue to take more responsibility for industry training following the collapse of the Media, Advertising, Publishing, Printing and Packaging Sector Education and Training Authority. We hired the technical training officer from the printing college and have provided training facilities to run our own academy for students and employees looking to advance their technical skills in the printing industry. Training initiatives here focuses not only on technical skills, but also at up-skilling in sales and marketing skills.  

Augmenting our strong artisan apprenticeship structure we concentrated on finding relevant learnerships for both the factory and the office environment. We managed to increase these learnerships from 39 during the previous financial year, to 61 during the financial year under review, whilst it is our aim to reach the DTI’s target of 5% of employees in learnership positions. Skills development will also in the long term lead to improved employment equity in the workplace; however challenges remain of which gender equality is a marked problem area in our factory environments where jobs focus on physical labour and shift work.

During this last year we assessed 400 employees for Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) and 260 were signed up nationally to partake in this learning initiative. ABET is the foundation of all learning and is vital to be introduced as a first form of training thus providing our employees with the means to participate in higher level learning  and training initiatives offered by our group of companies. Of the 260 ABET learners,  98% were from historically disadvantaged population groups, 57% were female, 43% were male and  just under 5% of the learners were disabled. From the employees who participated in the training, 91% successfully completed their ABET level development, thus moving one step closer to their educational goals.

Preferential procurement

Using our web-based tool to help register BEE suppliers, 436 suppliers (and potential suppliers), have successfully registered on our BEE procurement database. The system is not only transforming our base of BEE suppliers, it is also assisting SMMEs with the certification required to do business in the South African marketplace. Procurement from BEE-rated suppliers rose to R650 million from R250 million two years ago and now represents more than 50% of our total procurement spent in the domestic market.

Bidvest Paperplus aligns its socio-economic development closely with its business and with the future education needs of the country. Each operation adopts a disadvantaged school in its area and supports the learners and staff with donations of scholastic stationery and books. Consequently, our CSI/SED spend has increased by 76%.

Human rights

Human rights issues such as freedom of association, child labour and forced or compulsory labour, are enshrined under South Africa’s constitution and well legislated for under various relevant Acts. Incidents of discrimination are monitored in accordance with legislation and there were no significant incidents to report.

Screening of suppliers and contractors outside of South Africa is largely covered by the quality of our business associations, and Bidvest Paperplus deals largely with well-known brands. Formalised screening of suppliers is not in place and this is noted as an area for improvement in the future.

Society

We have embarked on an awareness campaign to ensure ethical business practices. An independent consultancy circulated a questionnaire to all managers asking questions that tested their understanding of ethics and the right choices to make in typical business circumstances. This was then followed up with a management seminar where experts on business ethics debated issues such as anticompetitive behaviour and corrupt practices with staff, greatly improving the company’s awareness of how it should conduct itself in the marketplace. The audit committee plays an oversight role, recording no significant incidences of fraud, corruption or anticompetitive behaviour.

A total of 154 employees, 3.6% of the staff compliment were dismissed during last year. 91 employees were dismissed for misconduct, 50 due to operational requirement and 13 due to incapacity/ill health. CCMA cases brought against the business remain low with only eight findings against the division.

Product responsibility

Bidvest Paperplus operates exclusively in the business to business market, where its business partners are credible and its product lines stable. We have very limited exposure to product responsibility issues such as fair product labelling and the integrity of customer information.

Corporate Social Investment