Clear Commitment: Company Agreement on Tolerance and Respect in the Workplace

• Wintershall Dea takes a clear stance against agitation, exclusion and contemptuous behaviour
• Partnership-based conduct in the workplace as the basis for a positive working atmosphere

There is no place for disrespect, discrimination and extremism in the workplace: The six major employers in North Hesse are firmly convinced of that and have concluded identical company agreements with their Works Councils for their around 160,000 employees in Germany. The agreement, entitled “Partnership-Based Conduct in the Workplace”, opposes xenophobic comments, intolerant conduct and the use of corresponding symbols.

Alongside Wintershall Dea, SMA, Hübner and Volkswagen, three other companies also involved in the “Open to Diversity” initiative in Kassel, have signed the company agreements. In addition, the agreements were also concluded for the employees at B.Braun in Melsungen and heating system manufacturer Viessmann. They apply with immediate effect and serve both as a binding basis for dealing with social challenges and as a clear statement against extremism. Employees who do not comply with the agreement and disrupt peaceful industrial relations must expect disciplinary action.

“We are taking a clear stance with the agreement. Partnership-based conduct in the workplace is the basis for a positive working atmosphere and therefore an important prerequisite for commercial success. There is no place at our company for agitation, exclusion and contemptuous behaviour”, explains Petra Angstmann, Senior Vice President Human Resources at Wintershall Dea. The initiative for the company agreements came about at the end of last year at a meeting of the companies’ HR heads.

“The cowardly murder of our district president Walter Lübcke in Kassel made it clear in a shocking way what consequences fanaticism, hate and blindness can have. In view of the fact that the act was quite obviously motivated by right-wing extremism, we decided, in the shape of the company agreement, to lay a firm foundation for tolerant, honest and peaceful coexistence”, explains CEO Mario Mehren. Wintershall Dea as a company had already signed the Diversity Charter last year. “Especially in a company with so many different nations and cultures, it is important for us to set a further example for diversity, respect and tolerance with this company agreement”, says Birgit Böl, Chairwoman of the Wintershall Dea Works Council in Kassel.

The six companies from North Hesse are now drawing attention to their joint action in newspaper adverts in Kassel. The company agreement does not replace any agreement already concluded at Wintershall Dea, but rather affirms the commitment to tolerance and partnership-based conduct in the workplace in a legally binding manner. The company agreement at Wintershall Dea was initially concluded with the Works Council in Kassel and is also to be agreed with the Works Councils at the other German locations.

_{About Wintershall Dea}

_{With the merger of Wintershall Holding GmbH and DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG, two successful companies with a long tradition have formed Europe’s leading independent natural gas and oil company: Wintershall Dea. The company with German roots and headquarters in Kassel and Hamburg explores for and produces gas and oil in 13 countries worldwide in an efficient and responsible manner. With activities in Europe, Russia, Latin America and the MENA region (Middle East & North Africa), Wintershall Dea has a global upstream portfolio and, with its participation in natural gas transport, is also active in the midstream business.}

_{Wintershall Dea stands for more than 120 years of experience as an operator and project partner along the entire E&P value chain. The company employs around 4,000 people worldwide from over 60 nations. The company plans to increase its average daily production from about 590,000 barrels of oil equivalent in 2018 to about 750,000 boe/d by 2023.}