Fundamental value for our Group is the health and safety of employees, visitors, partners, trainees and local residents in all of its installations.
Occupational Health & Safety matters may be found at: http://www.helpe.gr/health-and-safety/.
Within the Group’s organizational framework for health and safety, the following have been established and are currently operational:

• A Corporate Occupational Health, Safety, Environment & Sustainable Development Division
• Division  for Health, Safety and Environment of refineries
• Division for Health, Safety and Environment at each facility
• Division  for Health, Safety and Environment of EKO, HELLENIC FUELS and EKO Kalipso subsidiaries
• Appointed safety technicians, in-house physicians communities which are located close to our industrial facilities
• Internal Service for Safety and Prevention (ESYPP), according to P.D. 95/1999, whose key objective is the information sharing between facilities about accidents and prevention and protection measures  taken  to avoid recurrence as well as the surveillance of employees’ health
• Employee Committee for Occupational Health & Safety (Ε.Υ.Α.Ε.) at each facility which is comprised of representatives of all employees elected by the employees (according to Law 3850/2010). Every employee has the right to be elected for these committees (100% participation), which meet on schedule with the facility’s management and recommend Health & Safety improvements in the workplace.

The establishment of Group-wide  policies and procedures also constitutes a continuous process — as part of the effort to strengthen the Group’s common culture and utilize the experience of the industrial facilities in the adoption of the best H & S management practices. All of the Group’s procedures and policies are posted on the company’s internal network (Intranet), whilst the most important of them are communicated through appropriate presentations to all relevant staff.

Occupational Risk Management

The Group applies a precautionary approach in the field of occupational risk management so that potential health and safety risks can be anticipated and as a result, controlled.
Specifically, any such potential risks are identified and consequently controlled according to criteria as set forth in Greek legislation (Law 3850/2010) as well as European and international codes and good practices. Written occupational risk assessment studies exist in all of the Group’s facilities, also including measures that need to be taken to eliminate or control hazards - thereby keeping them at low and acceptable levels. 

The studies themselves are developed (taking employees’ opinions and viewpoints into account) through employees filling out questionnaires concerning the nature of their work as well as the environment that they work in and are revised whenever working or environmental changes take place (in the event that changes do not arise, every five years at the most). These revisions are communicated to all staff so that each and every employee is aware of the risks that he/she may face as well as the required actions that need to be taken in order to eliminate or minimize them. During the scheduling of corrective safety actions, immediate priority is given to those considered most critical, as classified according to their ranking in the Risk Assessment Matrix.

Occupational Health

Ensuring employees’ health is an integral part of the company’s culture. Scheduled medical tests, in connection with the job type, age group and gender, are implemented. Laboratory tests include biochemical blood and urine tests as well as x-rays, eye tests, spirometric testing, hearing and cardiological tests. Employees’ health surveillance is supplemented with additional tests from the occupational physicians. Finally, statistical evaluations of clinical and laboratory tests take place annually in order to draw conclusions on the need for additional measures to improve working conditions and health protection. There was no recorded case of any occupational diseases in the Group’s industrial facilities. Generally, there are no employees who are at high risk of occupational diseases. In cases where there are significant risks (e.g. hearing loss due to noise at airports), appropriate measures for their prevention are taken.

Occupational Safety

Safety Investments

In 2015, about €4.7 m were invested for safety improvements in Group’s facilities located in Greece and abroad. These fixed investments do not include the supply of personal protective equipment, the supply and maintenance of instruments and safety equipment, the supply of firefighting materials and other consumables. The amount of 2015 safety investments as well as the approved investment program for the period 2016-2020 are presented in the tables below.

Group's 2015 safety investments per facility

Group's approved safety investment program per facility (2016-2020) 

*It refers only to the year 2016
 

Group's Achivements in Safety

With the objective of further raising employee awareness concerning accident prevention and safe operation of the facilities, implementation of the Rewarding Safety Performance Policy was continued for teams of employees who achieved pre- set working hours without lost workday injuries.

In this regard, the following safety goals were achieved in 2015:

• 2,500,000 hours without any lost workday injuries at Thessaloniki industrial facilities
• 1,000,000 hours without any lost workday injuries at the Elefsina industrial facilities
• 700,000 hours without any lost workday injuries at DIAXON