Introduction
Sustainability Report 2004
Economic and social aspects
Employees | Employment generation
The in-house recruitment program was responsible for opening 40 processes and Aracruz employees filled 97% of them.
Aracruz ended the year with 2,287 direct employees and 6,955 permanent outsourced employees (employees in companies that provide services of a permanent nature). Our own employees have been with the Company for an average of 13 years, have an average age of 37.42 years and 78% have at least a high school diploma. Overall, 89% are men and 76% are natives of Espírito Santo, Rio Grande do Sul and Bahia – states where the Company’s manufacturing facilities are located.
Offering better job opportunities to our own professionals is a firm practice, based upon an in-house recruitment procedure. In 2004, of 40 job openings at the Barra do Riacho Unit, employees already working for the Company filled 97% of them. Aracruz recruited 194 new employees from outside the Company during the year.
In 2004, the percentage of women on the Company’s payroll declined from 11.6% to 11.2%, largely because most of the newly recruited staff members were men.
Eight unions in Espírito Santo, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul represent our employees. Practically all employees (99.1%) are working under collective bargaining agreements signed with the unions that represent them. Employees are free to join labor unions under the terms of Brazilian legislation.
The Company has a Suggestions and Improvements Program in effect at the Guaíba Unit to encourage employees to contribute to the solution of problems and to the optimization of procedures and processes. In 2004, 60 ideas were submitted of which 13 were adopted. The Company made US$9,500 in awards to the contributors and estimates it saved US$0.9 million by using the improvements suggested.
| Employees | |
|---|---|
| Own employees | 2,287 |
| Aracruz Celulose | 2,012 |
| Barra do Riacho Unit | 1,549 |
| Guaíba Unit | 449 |
| International subsidiaries | 14 |
| Aracruz Produtos de Madeira | 144 |
| Portocel – Terminal Especializado de Barra do Riacho | 131 |
| Permanent outsourced workers | 6,955 |
| Barra do Riacho Unit | 5,383 |
| Guaíba Unit | 1,572 |
| Total direct employees | 9,242 |
| Labor compensation Own employees |
US$ thousands |
|---|---|
| Wages and salaries | 37,485 |
| Compulsory social taxes | 20,079 |
| Benefits | 18,253 |
| Employee profit sharing | 5,624 |
| Health assistance | 4,111 |
| Meals and basic food provisions | 2,465 |
| Transportation | 1,394 |
| Professional training | 1,028 |
| Private retirement plan | 1,872 |
| Other benefits | 1,759 |
| Total | 75,817 |
| Selected statistics | |
|---|---|
| New Hirings during the period | 194 |
| Nominal wage – average (US$) | 921 |
| Basic wage (US$) | 185 |
| Number of hours dedicated to professional training | 89,757 |
| Number of hours dedicated to professional training per employee | 39 |
| Number of employees benefiting from health plan | 7,215 |
| Number of medical consultations under the health plan | 46,598 |
| Number of occupational health examinations | 2,372 |
| Number of occupational examinations | 27,467 |
| Number of meals served | 1,249,401 |
| Turnover index – own employees (%) | 10.97 |
| Percent of employees covered by union collective bargaining agreements (%) | 99.1 |
| Lowest Salary at Aracruz vs. minimum wage in effect nationwide 8 | 1.8 |
| Percentage of women on the Company payroll (%) | 11.2 |
| Percentage of caucasians (%)* | 69.31 |
| Percentage of Afro-Brazilians and mixed race (%)* | 30.25 |
| Others (%)* | 0.44 |
| Percentage of employees with disabilities (%) | 5.0 |
*According to IBGE criteria.