Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group

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Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
Better
COMMIT TED
TO A

Tomorrow                             2 0 2 0 S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y R E P O R T

         WO O LWO R T H S G R O U P L I M I T E D
              A B N 8 8 0 0 0 0 1 4 67 5
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
We

                                 SECTION 1                                                SECTION 2
  CONTENTS
                                 Performance Highlights                                   People
Unless otherwise stated,         Introduction                                   1         Promoting gender equality                      12
the report covers all our
                                 CEO and Chairman’s message                     2         Embracing our diversity                        14
operations in Australia
and New Zealand for the          Living our Group purpose during                          Supporting Aboriginal and Torres
2020 financial year –            turbulent times                               4          Strait Islander employment                     16
1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020
                                 Our 2020 commitments                          6          Caring for the safety and wellbeing
(F20). Only workforce data
(excluding safety) is included   Our Journey                                   8          of our teams and customers                     20
for our global sourcing                                                                   Creating opportunities for all                 22
offices in China, Bangladesh
and Thailand.
Photos within the report may                     This is an interactive PDF designed to enhance your experience. The best way to view
have been taken before social                    this report is with Adobe Reader. Click on the links on the contents pages or use the
distancing restrictions were                     home button in the footer to navigate the report.
in place.
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
1

  This extraordinary year has highlighted the importance of
continuing to work together to create better outcomes, greater
         resilience and health for all life on this planet.

   Through these difficult times, we have continued to drive
  sustainable practices through our business to support the:
                      Safety and wellbeing
       of our team, customers, partners and communities
                    Diverse and inclusive culture
                     to recruit and retain talent
                  Reduction of emissions and waste
                 to shrink our environmental footprint
                       Responsible sourcing
            of our products to reduce environmental risk
                      and uphold human rights
                Relationships with our partners
    to identify opportunities to serve our customers better.

We remain committed,
 through good times
and challenging times,
to a better tomorrow.

SECTION 3                                   SECTION 4
Planet                                      Prosperity
Reducing our food waste             26      Working with our business
                                            partners                         44
Moving to a circular economy        28
                                            Responsible sourcing             46
Sourcing environmentally
sustainable commodities            30       Making an impact in our
                                            communities                      62
Animal welfare                      32
                                            S.T.A.N.D                        64
Responding to climate change        34
                                            Creating shared value
                                            with our customers               68
                                            Supporting our customers
                                            to eat healthily                 70
                                            Responsible service of alcohol   72
                                            Responsible gaming               73
                                            Towards 2025                     74
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
2

    CHAIRMAN’S
    CEO AND CHAIRMAN’S
               REPORT MESSAGE

    Committed to
    helping one another
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
3

                                                                                                                               SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                               WOOLWORTHS GROUP
                              This has been an extraordinary year, marred by a number of
     Voice of Team            natural disasters that none of us could have foreseen or imagined.
   engagement score           Our farming industry continued to endure crippling drought

         80                   conditions. The White Island disaster in New Zealand took 21 lives.
                              Australia faced a horrific bushfire season that impacted many
                                                                                                                                    1
    Remained steady           of our communities.

                                                                                                                               HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                               PERFORMANCE
       from F19
                              Then in late February of 2020 we began to        inclusive workplace culture which values all
                              experience the significant challenges that       forms of diversity.
                              the coronavirus pandemic would bring to
Total recordable injury                                                        Sustainability is important to our customers,

                                                                                                                                  2
                              Australia, New Zealand and other countries
frequency rate (TRIFR)                                                         and is now an intrinsic part of our business.
                              in our supply chain. We did not anticipate
                                                                               We are continuing to lift our ambitions

     11.94
                              the degree and speed with which we would
                                                                               to drive the transformative change that is

                                                                                                                                     PEOPLE
                              need to recalibrate our business and the way
                                                                               needed. We have been working hard on
                              that we interact with each other. Yet the true
                                                                               our new sustainability plan, which sets out
     19% from F19             measure of the strength of a business is how
                                                                               our new goals that will guide our efforts
                              it responds to such challenges.
                                                                               in the coming years. We will collaborate

    Our community
                              The ramifications of the crisis brought out
                              the best in our teams. They adapted, worked
                                                                               and partner to influence and drive change
                                                                               beyond our walls, in our communities,              3
      contribution            innovatively and supported each other to         supply chain and industry. We can no longer

                                                                                                                                     PLANET
as % of EBIT on a rolling     step up to their role as essential services      be satisfied with simply limiting detrimental
     average basis            personnel to provide our communities with        impacts. We are actively looking for ways to
                              essential everyday needs.                        create positive change and make the world a

   1.05%                      Our purpose guides every decision we
                              make and it has never been more important
                                                                               better place for tomorrow.
                                                                               This year we have seen the way that our
                                                                                                                                 4
                              than during this period of unprecedented         teams can lift to overcome a crisis, and what

                                                                                                                                     PROSPERITY
                              challenge. We prioritised investment in the      we can achieve together, at speed, when
                              safety of our teams and customers. In order      necessity calls. We will seek to apply these
                              to meet surging demand, we welcomed              lessons to how we play our part in tackling
                              20,000 new team members, many of whom            the sustainability issues that are impacting
                              had been stood down by lockdown-affected         our planet.
                              organisations. We cared for our most
                              vulnerable customers by providing dedicated
                              shopping hours and priority delivery             We are proud to share with you our 2020
                              services. We know that our customers and         Woolworths Group Sustainability Report.
                              team members choose to shop with, and
                              work for, a company that is purpose driven.

  Woolworths Group is a       A NEW HORIZON OF SUSTAINABILITY
  signatory to the United     FOR WOOLWORTHS
  Nations Global Compact      We have been working hard on our
  (UNGC). UNGC                sustainability agenda at Woolworths for
  signatories embrace         many years. We are proud of the progress         Brad Banducci           Gordon Cairns
  a set of core values in     that we have made, and this year we              CEO                     CHAIRMAN
  the areas of human          concluded our work against our 2020
  rights, labour standards,
                              sustainability commitments. Since their
  the environment and
                              launch in early 2017, we have reduced
  anti‑corruption. In this
  report, we share our
                              our greenhouse gas emissions by 24%,
  performance against the     improved the sustainability credentials of
  UNGC core values.           our Own Brand products, and built a more
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
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                  Living our Group purpose
                    during turbulent times

                                                      nces together fo                                             Our Ways-of-Working
         Our Purpose                            xperie                ra                                                How we work
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                                                                                                            Our Values
                                                       I li ste n a n d l e a r n                               Who we are

    As a diverse group              In a year marked by a succession of crises,
                                    it has never been more important for us to
                                                                                                       living expenses, food, animal feed
                                                                                                       and psychological assistance in rural
    of retail businesses            live our Purpose and our Core Values.                              communities impacted by adversity. This
    across Australia and            F20 has been a challenging year for all,
                                                                                                       included using our logistics capability to
                                                                                                       transport over 37,000 tonnes of donated
    New Zealand, we are             highlighting the importance of sustainable
                                                                                                       hay to over 3,200 farmers.
                                    business, and the role we have in
    united by our Purpose           contributing to:                                                   In the lead up to Christmas, our busiest
    – to create better              • our customers’ and team members’ lives                           time of the year, a number of our team also
                                                                                                       served as volunteers in rural fire brigades
    experiences together            • our suppliers’ ability to weather                                across Australia. In support of them, and in
    for a better tomorrow.            critical events                                                  the spirit of doing the right thing by them
                                    • the lives of vulnerable workers in our                           and the communities we serve, we did
                                      global supply chain                                              what we could to help. Including providing
                                                                                                       extra paid leave for our volunteer team
                                    • our communities
                                                                                                       members to offering emergency services
                                    • the broader economy and                                          personnel in-store discounts.
                                    • the environment which sustains us.                               Our bushfire response also included
                                                                                                       pledging $250,000 to animal welfare
                                                                                                       organisations nationally and distributing
                                    Climate change: from                                               over 20 tonnes of fresh food to endangered
                                    drought to bushfires                                               wildlife through emergency airdrops.
                                                                                                       We have also expanded our long term
                                    During this year devastating drought                               support for natural disaster-impacted
                                    and bushfires endangered the lives,                                communities with a new fundraising
                                    food security and psychological health                             initiative. Twenty cents from the sale of
                                    of our farming communities. With our                               a 24x600ml pack of Woolworths Spring
                                    partners The Salvation Army, Rural Aid,                            Water, or a Woolworths Spring Water
                                    Lifeline and Foodbank, our program                                 10 Litre pack, will now go towards our
                                    S.T.A.N.D (Support Through Australian                              S.T.A.N.D program.
                                    Natural Disasters) has helped to fund
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
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                                                                                                                                             SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                             WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Doing the right thing                               • Protecting our team members and
                                                      customers by adopting stringent
through COVID-19                                      health and safety protocols to
                                                      mitigate infection risks. This includes
Times of crisis only increase risks to                complying with changing regulatory
vulnerable people, something we were                  requirements and taking a leadership
                                                      role in recommending masks be worn
                                                                                                         Community
extremely conscious of during our
response to the coronavirus pandemic.
                                                      at all of our Australian sites. While this
                                                      has required significant investment,
                                                                                                          support
Our support initiatives include:                      safeguarding the health and safety of
• Collaborating with Government,                      our team, customers and communities
  regulators, our competitors and
  industry to ensure an adequate and
                                                      continues to be paramount.
                                                    • Thanking and rewarding our store
                                                                                                                $8M+
                                                                                                        in financial, food, transport

                                                                                                                                                  1
  safe supply of food and essentials for              team members by giving them over $50
  all customers. Building urgent supply               million in company shares and gift cards          and labour costs to support
  solutions to meet the specific needs                                                                       hunger relief charity
                                                    • Supporting the economy by increasing                  partners Oz Harvest,

                                                                                                                                             HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                             PERFORMANCE
  of different groups of vulnerable
                                                      employment from impacted businesses                 Foodbank and FareShare
  customers, including the elderly,
                                                      such as the Qantas Group and deploying
  the disabled, remote and First
                                                      our ALH team members, to meet higher
  Nations customers:
                                                      demand in other areas of the business
  − With the support of Australia Post                and support safety initiatives.                         20,000
    and DHL Supply Chain, we created
    the ‘Basics Box’ (comprising of meals,
    snacks and essentials). Over 23,000             Speaking up when
                                                                                                        plexiscreens installed across
                                                                                                        Woolworths Group stores to
                                                                                                                                                2

                                                                                                                                                   PEOPLE
                                                                                                        support team and customer
    Basics Boxes have been delivered
  − Prioritising our home delivery service
                                                    it matters                                                health and safety

    to provide dedicated assistance to the          We acknowledge the Black Lives Matter
                                                    movement that has seen a groundswell
                                                                                                               3,200+
    elderly, people living with disability
    and those in mandatory isolation.               of support in the United States and
    Over 350,000 Woolworths and
    Countdown customers have benefited
                                                    globally, and recognise the connection
                                                    and relevance it has to the serious issues
                                                                                                             farmers supported
                                                                                                              with donated hay
                                                                                                                                                3
                                                    affecting our First Nations peoples. This

                                                                                                                                                   PLANET
    from Priority Assistance to date.
                                                    movement reinforces the importance
• Instituting dedicated shopping                    of the work we are doing to support our
  hours for the elderly and disabled                First Nations customers, team members,
  followed by dedicated community                   suppliers and communities. Including
  hours for emergency services and                  our backing of the Uluru Statement from
  healthcare workers.                               the Heart, and in our Reconciliation
                                                    Action Plan.                                                                               4
                                                                                                        Australian

                                                                                                                                                   PROSPERITY
                                                                                                        Leisure and
                                                                                                        Hospitality
    David Mynard, Supply chain finance
                                                                                                        Group (ALH)
    With over 30 years of experience as a
    volunteer firefighter, David Mynard, Supply
                                                    exhausted all other resources and need a quick
                                                    turnaround or solution. He’s highly supportive,
                                                                                                        supporting
    Chain Finance Lead, has attended countless      willing to try any task, and jumps in to help out   FareShare
    incidents and community action days.            when he is really needed,” Donna said. “It’s
    During one of Australia’s worst bushfire        part of his caring and selfless nature, which he
                                                                                                        When lockdown measures
    seasons, he continues to showcase his           showcases in both firefighting and the office.
                                                                                                        saw ALH venues closed
    dedication and extreme bravery in helping       He just thrives in helping people and it comes
                                                                                                        and the Government asked
    others out on the front line, fighting fires    from a genuine place.”                              FareShare to ramp up meal
    in terrible conditions in locations such as                                                         preparation from 40K to
    Bilipin, because for him, helping others just                                                       100K per week, Woolworths
    comes naturally.                                                                                    donated meat and vegetables
    “It’s all about giving back, contributing to                                                        and paid for ALH chefs to
    my community and providing a better place                                                           work in FareShare’s Victorian
    to live,” David said.                                                                               and Queensland kitchens.
                                                                                                        FareShare’s COO Kellie
    Donna Saarikko, Finance Manager, says that                                                          Watson noted “It has given us
    David is somewhat of a firefighter in the                                                           the ability to be agile, pivot and
    office too. “David is our go-to when we have                                                        achieve enormous production
                                                                                                        increases. I’d like to thank you
                                                                                                        again for your support to improve
                                                                                                        the lives of tens of thousands of
    We would also like to acknowledge the passing of Andrew O’Dwyer, a much respected team
                                                                                                        Australians doing it tough.”
    member whose commitment to volunteering touched the lives of many in the community.
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
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    Our 2020
    OUR  2020
    commitments and progress
    Launched in February
    2017, our 2020
    Sustainability Strategy                   People – Strength in diversity
    brought renewed                           We value diversity across Woolworths Group. Our customers should see in our people
                                              a reflection of themselves and their communities. In this strategy we embrace targets that
    focus and energy to                       support diversity and, hand in hand with this aim, inclusion and respect.
    Woolworths Group’s
    engagement with                           Promoting gender equity                          Building our diversity
    customers, communities,
    supply chains and team
    members, as well as our
    responsibility to minimise
                                                1                       2                       3                        4
                                 COMMITMENT

                                                At least 40% of         No salary wage gap      100% of those            Continue the focus
    the environmental impact                    executive and           between male and        responsible for          on encouraging
    of our operations.                          senior manager
                                                positions to be
                                                                        female employees
                                                                        of equivalent
                                                                                                hiring new team
                                                                                                members to
                                                                                                                         cultural diversity,
                                                                                                                         with a commitment
                                                held by women.          positions on a          have completed           that our team will
    In the last three years,                                            per‑hour rate           unconscious              reflect the
                                                                        at all levels of        bias training.           communities
    we have made significant                                            the company.                                     we serve.
    progress and have
    achieved many of our                        Focus on improving      Create better pay       Focus on building        Focus on building
    commitments. We have                        the internal            equivalency             an inclusive             an inclusive
                                 NEXT STEPS

                                                appointment             between roles           environment for          environment for
    scored our progress in                      process and             with similar            all of our team          all of our team
                                                ensuring enough
    the context of our three                    women are on the
                                                                        responsibilities.       members.                 members.

    pillars of People, Planet                   short lists.

    and Prosperity. Our
    new 2025 Sustainability
    Strategy will be released
    in the coming months
                                                                                                                       Offering
    which will guide our                      Supporting Aboriginal and                        Creating a safe         opportunities
    efforts into the future.                  Torres Strait Islander employment                environment             for all

    Key:                                        5                       6                       7                        8
                                                Proportion of           Proportion of           We are committed         Achieve Gold Tier
                                 COMMITMENT

           Achieved                             Indigenous team         Indigenous              to maintaining a         employer status
                                                members to              Graduates to            workplace that           at the AWEI for
           Materially                           equal Federal           equal Federal           safeguards the           LGBTQ+ inclusion.
           progressed                           Government              Government              health and
                                                Employment              Employment              wellbeing of our
           Progressed                           Parity contract.        Parity contract.        team members,
                                                                                                customers
                                                                                                and visitors.

                                                Focus on                Focus on                Focus on creating a      Working to achieve
                                                providing career        providing career        COVIDSafe and            Platinum Tier
                                 NEXT STEPS

                                                development             development             COVIDCare                employer status.
                                                opportunities for       opportunities for       environment.
                                                our Indigenous          our Indigenous
                                                team members.           team members.
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
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                                                                                                                                                              SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                                              WOOLWORTHS GROUP
             Planet – For a healthier environment                                                                                                                  1
             We recognise Woolworths Group’s environmental impact across our value chain and will work with our suppliers, service providers
             and operations to innovate for a healthy planet. We will support the move to a circular economy, source environmentally sustainable

                                                                                                                                                              HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                                              PERFORMANCE
             commodities and respond to climate change.
                                                           Sourcing environmentally
             Moving to a circular economy                  sustainable commodities                         Responding to climate change

               9                      10                      11                     12                     13                       14                          2

                                                                                                                                                                    PEOPLE
COMMITMENT

               Towards zero           Improve the             Source key raw         Achieve net zero       Reduce                   Innovate with
               food waste going       recyclability of        materials and          supply chain           Woolworths Group         natural refrigerants
               to landfill.           our own brand           commodities            deforestation          carbon emissions         and reduce
                                      packaging and           sustainably to         for ‘high‑impact’      to 10% below 2015        refrigerant leakage
                                      contribute to the       an independent         commodities in         levels by 2020.          in our stores by

                                                                                                                                                                 3
                                      circular economy.       standard by 2020.      our own brand          Revised: See             15% of CO2e below
                                                                                     products.              page 34.                 2015 levels.

                                                                                                                                                                    PLANET
               Consistently           Continue to             Focus on sourcing      Expand our focus to    Continue to              Continue to
               improve our            systematically          seafood from           other commodities.     implement                implement
NEXT STEPS

               processes to           remove single           sustainable                                   innovative initiatives   innovative initiatives
               reduce food waste      use plastic from        sources.                                      to decrease our          to decrease our
               going to landfill.     our products.                                                         energy footprint.        energy footprint.

                                                                                                                                                                4

                                                                                                                                                                    PROSPERITY
             Prosperity – Founded on trusted relationships
             We will focus on positive relationships with suppliers, give back to the communities in which we operate, and rebuild trust with our
             customers and investors.
                                                           Giving back to the communities                  Creating shared value with
             Working with our business partners            in which we operate                             our customers

               15                     16                      17                     18                     19                       20
COMMITMENT

               We will achieve        We will develop         We will invest the     We will publicly       We will achieve          We will help
               a top quartile         a revised               equivalent of 1% of    report social          leading customer         our customers
               ranking in how we      Responsible             EBIT in community      impact to quantify     satisfaction scores.     to consume all
               engage fairly and      Sourcing Program.       partnerships           the positive                                    of our products
               equitably with                                 and programs.          changes we                                      in a healthy,
               our suppliers.                                                        are creating.                                   sustainable way.

               Build on current       Continue to embed       Continue to support    Continue to support    Create customer          Inspire (and
NEXT STEPS

               momentum to build      and improve             our communities        our communities        advocates for            nudge) our
               supplier advocates     our responsible         especially in this     especially in this     our business.            customers
               for our business.      sourcing program.       time of COVID.         time of COVID.                                  to be healthy
                                                                                                                                     and sustainable.
Better Tomorrow2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - TO A - Woolworths Group
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    OUR JOURNEY
     Sustainability                               No salary wage gap
     commitments                                  Salary wage gap between male and female
                                                  employees of equivalent positions reduced
     In February 2017 we launched
                                                  to less than 1% (statistically insignificant).
     our 2020 strategy, setting out
     our sustainability journey.                  ACHIEVED

     Bias training                                LGBTQ+ inclusion
     Unconscious bias training pilot              Awarded Gold Tier employer status in Australian
     program completed.                           Workplace Equality Index (AWEI) for LGBTQ+
     Our journey: Training is now embedded        inclusion for three consecutive years since 2018.
     for all future leaders.                      ACHIEVED
     ACHIEVED

     PEOPLE

     PLANET

     PROSPERITY

     Energy management                            Plastic bags waste
     Commenced work on establishing               Woolworths Group stores no longer offer single
     the Energy Management Centre                 use lightweight plastic shopping bags.
     of Excellence.                               Our Journey: We now offer a range of alternatives like
     Our journey: We now use the data to          the paper bag and the reusable “Bag for Good” where
     identify and prevent issues in our assets.   any money made from the sale goes to Junior Landcare.

     1% EBIT contribution                         Responsible sourcing
     1% of EBIT was donated to                    Reviewed and launched our new Responsible
     community causes across Australia            Sourcing Program.
     and New Zealand                              Our journey: We have embedded this program and
     Our journey: We have donated 1% of EBIT      continue to improve our processes to uphold human
     every year.                                  rights in our supply chain. In F20, we have released
                                                  our first Modern Slavery Statement.
     ACHIEVED

    2017                                          2018
9

                                                                                                            SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                            WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Supporting mental wellbeing                            Resourcing the Future
Launched ‘I am here’ program dedicated                 We have recruited over 2,800 Aboriginal and
to supporting mental wellbeing.                        Torres Strait Islander team members, and have met
Our journey: In F20, over 27,000 team members
completed the program and we launched the
“I am here Ambassadors” program.
                                                       Government Employment contract conditions.
                                                       ACHIEVED                                                  1

                                                                                                            HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                            PERFORMANCE
Reconciliation                                         Refugee Employment Program
Launched our revised Reconciliation                    Providing employment opportunities to over 100
Action Plan.
Our journey: See our progress on page 16.
                                                       refugees to help with successful resettlement.
                                                                                                               2

                                                                                                                  PEOPLE
                                                                                                               3

                                                                                                                  PLANET
Climate risk workshops                                 Reduced carbon emissions
Held Group wide climate risk assessment
workshops to understand our key risks.
Our journey: In F20, we have taken learnings from
                                                       Achieved both carbon emission targets for 2020,
                                                       and progressing against our new target.                4
                                                       ACHIEVED

                                                                                                                  PROSPERITY
here to develop scenario analysis for our Australian
Food business.

                                                       Sustainable sourcing of
                                                       key commodities
Reset our emission targets
                                                       We have made significant progress to source
Having achieved our emissions targets early,           our key commodities and raw materials from
we revised our targets in line with limiting           responsible supply chains.
global warming to 1.5oC.

                                                       Circular economy
Healthiest own                                         Improve the recyclability of own brand product
                                                       packaging and reduce food waste going to landfill.
brand products
Woolworths own brand products named
the healthiest in Australia by independent             Strong relationships with
researchers.
Our journey: We continue to make healthier
                                                       customers and suppliers
easier for our customers and 100% of eligible          We do the right thing for our customers
products in Australia have a Health Star Rating.       and partners and have improved our customer
                                                       and supplier satisfaction scores.

2019                                                   2020
10

 PEOPLE
     STRENGTH IN DIVERSITY
     Our purpose, ways of working and core values are embodied
     in the targets and commitments in our People pillar. Together,
     with over 215,000 team members across the Woolworths Group,
     we are focused on maintaining an inclusive and supportive culture
     that values diversity in all its forms. Our commitment to a diverse
     and vibrant workforce gives us the strength, skills and ability to
     support, sustain and foster better experiences for our teams,
     customers and communities.
11

                                                                                                          SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                          WOOLWORTHS GROUP

Board diversity   Voice of Team engagement   Total recordable injury                          Proud
                             score           frequency rate (TRIFR)                        @ Woolworths

56% female               80                    11.94                                2,500+    members

44%  male
                     remained steady
                        from F19               19% from F19                              14% from F19

                                                               Notting Hill Pick and Collect team
12

     Promoting                                                                                        IMPACT

                                                                                                      Commitment
                                                                                                                                1

     gender                                                                                           Status

                                                                                                      Commitment
                                                                                                                          PROGRESSED

                                                                                                                                2

     equality                                                                                         Status

                                                                                                      Sustainable
                                                                                                      Development Goal
                                                                                                                            ACHIEVED

     Woolworths Group is committed to maintaining an inclusive
     and supportive culture and workplace. We constantly strive
     to give all our team members equal access to the benefits,
     resources and opportunities to build their skills that working
     with us can provide. Our people are our strength – from our
     frontline team to those behind the scenes.                                                            Executive and senior
                                                                                                            manager positions
                                                                                                             held by women

                                                                                                               35%
                                                                                                               1% from F19

     Supporting our team through                                       Some of our other initiatives to support our team members
                                                                       this year included:
     different life stages                                             Our Return to Work group
                                                                       Team members from our “Return to Work” Group shared
     Woolworths Group has a strong representation of women             their personal stories of embarking on, and returning from,
     across our business, both in support and operational roles.       parental leave at a special event, which also provided hints
     Over 50% of our workforce identifies as female and more           and tips on how to survive the first 12 months, and beyond, as
     than half our board is compromised of female directors.           a new parent. It was an opportunity for those who attended
                                                                       to connect, ask questions and meet people at a similar life
     While we have not achieved our commitment of having at least
                                                                       stage. The event was designed to support networking and the
     40% of executive and senior management positions in our
                                                                       sharing of stories and experiences, and to ensure that team
     business be held by women, we have improved significantly
                                                                       members understand the support we can offer them.
     from F17 when we had 29% representation. Representation of
     women at senior levels of the organisation is currently at 35%,   Our Staying Connected events
     and through our Gender Equity and Inclusion strategy and in       Our “Staying Connected” events occur twice a year. They provide
     our next sustainability strategy, we are committed to improving   team members that are on extended leave (for reasons including
     this figure and addressing the common challenges faced by our     parental leave or a career break) with business updates as well
     female workforce, including the need to work flexibly, issues     as updates on topics such as team benefits and our vacation care
     surrounding pay parity and systemic or unconscious bias.          program operated in conjunction with the Guardian Early Learning
                                                                       Group. These events are an opportunity for team members to stay
     As a key priority within our broader business strategy, we aim
                                                                       connected to our business, assisting with the transition back into
     to provide equitable access to opportunities for people of all
                                                                       the workplace when they feel ready to return.
     genders. We are committed to creating an environment that
     recognises and values all team members equally. We value          Woolworths Family Network
     and support flexibility across the Woolworths Group, in all       Family is central to our purpose, our values and our ways of
     locations including stores, distribution centres and support      working. At Woolworths Group, we are committed to making
     offices and commit to support team members in every part          things better for families, including supporting our team members
     of our business to explore how flexibility can enable them        while they are growing their own family. The Woolworths Family
     to lead better lives and to better meet our customer and          Network provides important peer support for individuals within
     business needs.                                                   the Woolworths Group through listening sessions, networking
                                                                       lunches and other educational and information events.
13

                                                                                                                                       SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                       WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Gender Equity                                                                          Gender
Network launch                                                                         equality
On 10 March, in honour of
                                                                                       at Countdown
International Women’s Day, we
                                                                                       Throughout New Zealand, the
launched our new Gender Equity                                                         inequities between men and
Network, which comprises a                                                             women when it comes to pay, and
passionate group of team members                                                       opportunities for career progression
from across the Woolworths Group                                                       are well known, with the impacts
who care deeply about, and believe                                                     being most keenly felt by Māori
strongly in, equity in the workplace.                                                  and Pacific women.

The Network is a peer‑led group to                                                     This year, the number of executive

                                                                                                                                            1
help instigate change, break down                                                      and senior positions held by women
gender stereotypes and gender                                                          in Countdown is 37%. While we are
                                                                                       disappointed to have not met this
bias and create a gender‑equitable

                                                                                                                                       HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                       PERFORMANCE
                                                                                       commitment target, this number
workplace for all our team members.                                                    has increased by almost 6% overall
Going forward, the group will educate                                                  since F17. Although we have not
team members that equality is not                                                      met the commitment this year, we
just a women’s issue, but a business                                                   will continue to work to support all
issue, and one that is critical to                                                     women to progress their careers
our transformation.                                                                    at Countdown.
                                                                                                                                          2

                                                                                                                                             PEOPLE
                                                                                                                                          3

                                                                                                                                             PLANET
WooliesX – Women in STEM                                            Pay Parity                                                           4

                                                                                                                                             PROSPERITY
WooliesX, our                                                       We strongly believe in equal pay for equal work. Our Pay
technology business                                                 Parity Review methodology and ongoing review processes
combining our digital,                                              compare salaries of like‑for‑like roles of our team members
e‑commerce, data and                                                across the Woolworths Group, at all levels. This continuing
customer divisions, is                                              analytical work helps identify gender pay gaps between our
keen to foster women,                                               male and female team members by grouping our positions
including women from                                                and career streams, while accounting for team member
diverse backgrounds,                                                movements that may result in fluctuations. Our last review
in science, technology,                                             resulted in a statistically insignificant less than 1% gap which
engineering and                                                     we will aim to maintain.
mathematics (STEM)
roles within its business.
Zarah Dominguez,
Senior Android
Developer at WooliesX,
who was raised in a
rural community in the
Philippines, helped to
                                                                    Salary payments
create the Woolworths’
online shopping app,                                                During F20, it was found that there were salaried team
now used by over 1 million people.                                  members that had not been paid in full compliance with the
                                                                    Woolworths Group obligations under the General Retail
“It happens a lot that I’m the only woman in the team, so it is     Industry Award and Hospitality Industry General Award.
important to find and use your support network. To have others to   Woolworths Group is committed to fully rectifying the payment
bounce ideas off is really helpful!”                                shortfalls and an extensive plan is in place to check that team
                                                                    members’ pay is correct and fully compliant moving forward.
14

     Embracing                                                                                     IMPACT

                                                                                                   Commitment
                                                                                                                             3

     our diversity                                                                                 Status

                                                                                                   Commitment
                                                                                                                         ACHIEVED

                                                                                                                             4
                                                                                                   Status               PROGRESSED
     Woolworths Group believes in the power of people.
     Our continuing commitment to maintaining and                                                  Sustainable
     growing a strong, diverse, engaged and inclusive                                              Development Goal

     workforce mirrors our commitment to the diverse
     customers and communities we serve and the
     challenges they face.

     Inclusive leadership                       Over the last three years, all relevant
                                                leaders and managers across Australia,
                                                                                           Refugee Employment
     training                                   Asia and New Zealand have completed        Program
                                                the inclusive leadership training, which
     Since 2018, the Woolworths Group           is now being built into leadership         Since F18, we have worked in
     has run inclusive leadership and           development programs across the            partnership with Community Corporate,
     unconscious bias training across           business. In our next sustainability       an award‑winning diversity and
     various key areas of its business. The     strategy, we will explore more             inclusion firm, to provide employment
     training seeks to assist team leaders      opportunities to build an inclusive        opportunities for displaced refugees
     and managers, who are in a position        culture as we want every level of          from over 16 different cultural
     to make hiring and promotion decisions,    leadership in our business to develop      backgrounds, including Syria,
     to develop and practice constructive       and maintain more engaged, productive      Democratic Republic of Congo,
     and inclusive behaviours in the            and innovative teams, whose diversity      Afghanistan, Bhutan and Iraq. The
     workplace. The training:                   is recognised and celebrated.              program seeks to provide hope and
     • Provides an overview of unconscious                                                 opportunity to its participants, assisting
       bias and how it impacts and limits the                                              them with successful resettlement in
       diversity of our workforce                                                          Australia. The program benefits the
                                                                                           Woolworths Group as it helps us to
     • Demonstrates the importance                                                         better reflect the cultural diversity of the
       of role‑modelling inclusive and                                                     communities that we serve. Since the
       constructive leadership behaviours,                                                 program’s inception, over 151 refugees
       values and processes in hiring                                                      have commenced employment with us
       decisions and people management                                                     and, in 2020 alone, we had 66 refugees
     • Helps our leaders and managers                                                      join our team across the country, at
       develop strategies and actions                                                      our Metro, Supermarket stores and
       to better leverage diversity in                                                     Customer Fulfillment Centres.
       their teams.
15

                                                                                                                                      SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                      WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Supporting and upskilling our people
At Woolworths Group, we invest in our people. Our team members, at every level, are provided with continued
learning, development and upskilling opportunities to help them achieve their personal and professional goals. This
not only supports them at whatever stage of their lives and careers they are at, but helps them better support our
customers, and our future growth.
The Food Academy provides training for our team members working in store, and manage programs such as the
Capabilities Pathways and Store Leadership programs. These are delivered through a combination of online learning,
facilitated workshops and coaching to help develop the technical expertise and leadership skills required.
To develop support office team members, we partnered with Performance Frontiers to deliver programs to support
leaders and teams in transformation and establish a common language and approach across the organisation.
Leaders and managers were targeted and programs delivered included:
• GROW: focussing on supporting teams with growth mindset and personal buoyancy to live our purpose and
  values in a changing environment.                                                                                                        1

                                                                                                                                      HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                      PERFORMANCE
• CONNECT: focussing on supporting managers to develop stronger team first and customer first connections.
• ADAPT: focussing on supporting leaders to partner effectively across the ecosystem for us to be
  stronger together.
• COVID‑19 had an impact on the delivery of existing programs and created demand for an immediate response to
  managers leading and supporting their teams virtually during this time. A quick series of nine (45‑minute) virtually
  facilitated sessions were developed and launched within the first three weeks. 150 sessions ran over two months with
  350 leaders from support offices across Australia, New Zealand and Asia attending one or more sessions.
                                                                                                                                         2

                                                                                                                                            PEOPLE
                                                                                                                                         3

                                                                                                                                            PLANET
Refugee Employment Program: Karim Mansour                                                                                               4

                                                                                                                                            PROSPERITY
                                          Karim Mansour is one of many shining          Leader in a relief role in the Fresh
                                          examples of the amazing team members          Food – Produce section at Kings Cross
                                          to come through the Woolworths                Metro Supermarket.
                                          Refugee Employment Program. He
                                                                                        Now, in 2020, Karim has again
                                          provides a great insight into the career
                                                                                        been promoted to the role of “Fresh
                                          progression opportunities that occur as
                                                                                        convenience Team Leader” at a new
                                          a result of the program and is a perfect
                                                                                        Metro store in Rosebery. He is working
                                          example of how refugees contribute
                                                                                        full‑time and is impressing his
                                          to building Australia’s economic and
                                                                                        workmates and manager with his hard
                                          social prosperity.
                                                                                        work and dedication. “I feel very proud of
                                          Before moving to Australia in 2017, Karim     Karim, he has been open to advice and keen
                                          lived in Syria with his brother and parents   to learn. He actively sought out mentorship
                                          where he was studying law at university.      from me to advance his career and he put in
                                          Upon arrival, he began learning English       the hard work – so having the first ongoing
                                          at TAFE and applied for many roles,           promotion from the Refugee Employment
                                          “I’ve applied for more than 100 jobs since    Program into a Team Leader role is
                                          arriving in Australia and have had no luck,   something we are all very excited about
                                          not even an interview” said Karim.            at Metro” said former store manager,
                                                                                        Panetelis Archontides.
                                          Before the Woolworths Refugee
                                          Employment Program, Karim had no              Karim is extremely grateful for this
                                          previous paid employment in Australia.        opportunity to create a sustainable life
                                          That all changed in 2017, when Karim          in Australia, through security of work.
                                          successfully applied for the program          He says “Thank you Woolworths for caring
                                          and within five months was promoted           for the refugees and giving me a chance to
                                          from team member to Acting Team               work and get experience in Australia”.
16

     Supporting                                                                                                    IMPACT

                                                                                                                   Commitment
                                                                                                                                                                                                     5

     Aboriginal and                                                                                                Status                                                              ACHIEVED

                                                                                                                                                                                                    6
     Torres Strait
                                                                                                                   Commitment

                                                                                                                   Status                                                              ACHIEVED

     Islander
                                                                                                                   Sustainable
                                                                                                                   Development Goal

     employment
     We continue to play our part in building understanding and respect between our Aboriginal and
     Torres Strait Islander peoples and non‑Indigenous Australia. With increased awareness of the
     challenges facing our First Nations People, our initiatives in this area have become more important.

     Reconciliation                                  During the year, we undertook a range
                                                     of initiatives including:
                                                                                                 Torres Strait Islander supplier diversity
                                                                                                 within our organisation. This year, we
     Action Plan                                     • Further developing our RAP                appointed a supplier diversity manager
                                                       Working Group (RWG), which                who has implemented improved
     Since the launch of our second                    actively monitors our RAP and its         processes to track Aboriginal and Torres
     Innovate‑level Reconciliation Action Plan         implementation, and tracks our            Strait Islander supplier spend. As a
     (RAP) on 5 July 2019, we have made                progress against our commitments          result, we have seen a 1,100% increase
     significant progress on our commitment            through reporting. Currently, our         in spend with First Nations suppliers to
     to take concrete actions to build strong          RWG has three Aboriginal and Torres       the Woolworths Group. One example
     and lasting relationships, respect and            Strait Islander representatives and 20    of the impact of this has been during the
     understanding between Aboriginal                  non‑Indigenous representatives, and       COVID‑19 pandemic. We approached
     and Torres Strait Islander peoples and            we are establishing a team member
     non‑Indigenous Australia. Our vision for          network to have First Nations
     reconciliation is a better future in which        representation on various RAP
     all Australians have an equal voice and           squads throughout the business
     access to opportunities for prosperity.
                                                     • Launched the quarterly“Having a

     Our progress
                                                       Yarn” newsletter to reach out to all
                                                       our team members to share more
                                                                                                                       Having a yarn
     Strong governance in this area has been           about the First Nations culture              Kaya! (Hello),
                                                                                                    This is our very first newsletter and it’s for everyone
                                                                                                    who works and lives across our beautiful lands.
     a major part of our progress this year. We      • Continuing to work with local
                                                                                                    Quarterly, we’re going to reach out
                                                                                                    to all our team members, share
                                                                                                                                          There is a role for everyone in
                                                                                                                                          reconciliation so take a look at

     participated in the annual RAP Impact
                                                                                                    culture and have a yarn. It’s an      some suggestions of how you can

                                                       Aboriginal land councils in
                                                                                                    opportunity to stay connected and     make a difference.
                                                                                                    be reminded of what we can be
                                                                                                                                          This is our first go at a newsletter,
                                                                                                    doing to care for this land and its

     Measurement Questionnaire overseen by
                                                                                                                                          so feel free to send feedback and
                                                                                                    people.

                                                       implementing our Resourcing the
                                                                                                                                          ideas about what you’d like to see      Cheers,
                                                                                                    In this edition, you can get your     more or less of.                        Clint Johnson and Courtney Palmer

     Reconciliation Australia to get baseline data
                                                                                                    head around this thing called                                                 Clint Johnson:
                                                                                                                                          If you are a First Nations team

                                                       Future Employment Program in
                                                                                                    reconciliation. You may hear a lot                                            Text or call: 0404 829 093
                                                                                                                                          member, join the First Nations team     Email: cjohnson1@woolworths.com.au
                                                                                                    about it but may not have taken the
                                                                                                                                          member network and contribute to        Courtney Palmer:
                                                                                                    time to fully understand what it is

     regarding our progress against our second
                                                                                                                                          our RAP and sharing culture with        Text or call: 0404 821 140
                                                                                                    and why it’s needed.

                                                       local communities.
                                                                                                                                          our 200,000 team members.               Email: cpalmer@woolworths.com.au

     RAP. This assists us to continually develop,                                                                        Giveaway
                                                                                                                         The movie, The Final Quarter is a must-see for all Australians. To ensure you, your family

     implement and review our RAP, and our           A key focus of our RAP is diversification                           and friends get to see it, we’ve made it available for you to watch online until
                                                                                                                         31 March 2020. It is a powerful exploration of racism in Australia, presented in an
                                                                                                                         engaging and interesting way using only clips from the media at the time. Ask the

     actions to meet it. Our data also contributes   of our supplier relationships by                                    Finance team, as more than 100 team members watched it together during lunch. To
                                                                                                                         watch the movie online go to:
                                                                                                      The Final Quarter http://bit.ly/WGTheFinalQuarter

     to Reconciliation Australia’s annual RAP        increasing our number of Aboriginal and          Password: wOOLgROup
                                                                                                      To win a copy of the DVD go onto the First Nations Bunji’s Google+ community

                                                     Torres Strait Islander supply partners.
                                                                                                      and share an image or write something that tells us ‘what reconciliation means

     Impact Measurement Report, which
                                                                                                      to me’. Two winners from each state will be selected and sent a DVD.

     outlines the collective impact of the wider     We continue to actively seek out
     RAP program.                                    opportunities to build Aboriginal and
17

                                                                                                                                     SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                     WOOLWORTHS GROUP
small Indigenous‑owned businesses                                                         Supporting the
Supply Aus, Cole Workwear and
Position Promo, when COVID‑19
                                                                                          Uluru Statement
was at its peak in March to get much                                                      from the Heart
needed hand sanitiser supplies to
its stores, with over 300,000 litres                                                      We have a deep respect for
of hand sanitiser supplied by local               Aboriginal and                          our Aboriginal and Torres
Indigenous businesses.                         Torres Strait Islander                     Strait Islander team members,
                                                  team members                            customers and all of those
We delivered critical food                                                                who live in the communities

                                              4,500+
supplies to remote Aboriginal                                                             we serve. We firmly believe

                                                                                                                                          1
communities during the COVID‑19                                                           they should have a voice in
pandemic, whilst maintaining                                                              decisions that affect them.
the integrity of remote travel                                                            That’s why we support the Uluru

                                                                                                                                     HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                     PERFORMANCE
restrictions and protecting our                                                           Statement from the Heart, and
                                                                                          the recommendations of the
most vulnerable Australians. In
                                                                                          Referendum Council.
order to effectively contribute
to Aboriginal communities, we                                                             A First Nations voice to
developed partnerships and worked                                                         Parliament enshrined in our
with Metcash, manufacturers
and organisations, including the
                                                                                          Constitution and a Makarrata
                                                                                          Commission to oversee
                                                                                          agreement‑making and
                                                                                                                                        2
Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal

                                                                                                                                           PEOPLE
                                                                                          truth‑telling are critical steps
Corporation (ALPA), Outback Stores                                                        toward reconciliation. They
and the NSW Aboriginal Land                                                               allow First Nations people to
Council. We are pleased to have                                                           claim their rightful place in our
been able to donate approximately                                                         nation and enable us to move
6,500 Basics Boxes (equating to                                                           forward together.
more than 100 tonnes of essential
supplies) directly to those retailers.
                                                                                                                                        3

                                                                                                                                           PLANET
We were able to move around
4,000 Basics Boxes (or around 64
tonnes of product) in approximately
24 hours of learning of the issues
being faced to assist with urgent

                                                                                                                                       4
distribution of essentials items.
We have also invested in listening       National Reconciliation Week
and learning opportunities to foster

                                                                                                                                           PROSPERITY
a deeper understanding of the            Our vision for Reconciliation is a           added their own personal commitments
perspectives and experiences of our      better tomorrow where all Australians        to reconciliation. We distributed
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander    have a voice and equitable access to         reconciliation notebooks that contained
team members, customers and              opportunities for prosperity. During         information about Acknowledgement of
communities. While rollout has been      National Reconciliation Week 27 May          Country, our RAP and the Uluru Statement
delayed due to COVID‑19, we have         ‑ 3 June, we took this time to reflect,      from the Heart, and launched our new
                                         educate and raise awareness across           First Nations – Sharing Culture website,
made plans for listening sessions
                                         the group. Our activities included           containing links to register support for the
in each State and Territory across       sharing a video of Brad Banducci and         Uluru Statement as well as information for
Australia to better engage our           Adam Goodes talking to Woolworths’           our team members to explore further.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander    team members about Reconciliation
team members and seek their views        Week and the Uluru Statement from
on our RAP and our framework             the Heart, opening meetings with a
to advance reconciliation. Two           heartfelt Acknowledgement of Country,
alumni of our Resourcing the Future      encouraging team members to learn
Employment Program, Iesha and            about Australia’s true history and to find
Ranelle of our Rockhampton team          out more about their local Aboriginal and
                                         Torres Strait Islander community.
(see page 19), have been integral
in designing the listening sessions,     To reinforce our support for the Uluru
which would include face‑to‑face         Statement from the Heart, we used
First Nations team members and           Reconciliation Week as a platform to
store and support office team            share information, start a conversation
                                         and encourage our team to learn more.
member participation. The national
                                         This included adding a reconciliation wall
program of listening sessions
                                         containing the Uluru Statement from the
will get underway as soon as the         Heart to the team rooms of our stores
pandemic passes.                         and sites to which our team members
18   Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment

                                                                             Apprenticeship First
     Resourcing the Future
                                                                             Nations baker:
     Our Resourcing the Future Employment Program                            Cassandra Campbell
     is a partnership between us, the Australian
     Federal Government and Diversity Dimensions to                          WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKET, COOMERA WESTFIELD
     address and overcome the barriers to employment
                                                                             Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders make up 6.9% of all of
     opportunities in our recruitment processes for
                                                                             our apprentices, and amongst them is Cassandra Campbell, a
     Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians and
                                                                             strong Aboriginal woman from the Waanyi people of the Lawn
     increase the number of First Nations team members
                                                                             Hill area near the Gulf of Carpentaria.
     joining the Woolworths Group. Since the program’s
     inception in 2015, we have offered employment                           In 2016 she moved to the Gold Coast to further her studies and
     to 2,884 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander job                      career, first approaching Woolworths Ormeau to complete her
     seekers, with most of these roles offered in regional                   apprenticeship as a baker. Cassandra chose Woolworths as
     or remote areas. Retention rates remain high at 71%.                    “bakers are in high demand and Woolworths has great job stability.”
     The program has been structured to set up both                          Balancing the demands of study with her apprenticeship was
     our teams and the candidate for success. Our team                       difficult at times, but Cassandra persevered. Cassandra’s
     members undertake Indigenous cultural training                          journey with us has made her stronger and more resilient.
     before the candidate commences work, and our
                                                                             “If you are a female, don’t be afraid to take on a trade! It can seem
     candidates have access to a mentor to support them
                                                                             very daunting but also very rewarding.”
     throughout the program.

         Jawun partnership:
         Simon Tracey
         WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS
         MARKETING TEAM
         Since its inception in 2013, our partnership with the
         Jawun Indigenous Community Program has enabled
         team members from across the Group to take part in
         invaluable cultural immersion opportunities. Simon
         Tracey was seconded to help develop a partnerships
         strategy for the Gadigal Information Service Aboriginal
         Corporation (GIS), which broadcasts Koori Radio
         (93.7FM 2LND).
         Simon supported the management team to develop
         the sponsorship strategy and examine the GIS
         brand, communications and website and assisted
         with team training in areas such as project, time
         and information management.
         Simon found the secondment incredibly beneficial,
         as it forced him to challenge his personal beliefs
         and introduced him to more holistic, respectful and
         community‑oriented ways of thinking, working, living
         and behaving. During his time with GIS, Simon was
         told, “It’s not the job of Elders to educate, it is the privilege
         of the younger generation to be able to ask for knowledge
         when they are ready to listen.”
         Simon notes, “There was a lot I didn’t know, and
         conversations with First Nations peoples are steeped in
         truth‑telling. Once I took a hard personal look at who I
         am, and what I’d like to create for future generations, my
         paradigm view expanded.”

                                                                             Simon Tracey with Lola Forester, Presenter/Producer of “Blackchat” news
                                                                             and current affairs program on Koori Radio 93.7fm
19

                                                                                                                                        SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                        WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Resourcing the Future:
IESHA GAGAI AND RYNELLE MAROU
We have been introduced to many talented Aboriginal and             Rynelle says that this role with Woolworths has helped her to
Torres Strait Islander peoples through our Resourcing the           support her family and provided opportunities for growth that
Future Employment Program delivered in partnership with             she has never had before. “It has given me huge self confidence
Diversity Dimensions. Two examples of that talent are Iesha         and makes me believe that I can achieve my goals”. Iesha echoes
Gagai, a community member from Cherbourg, Queensland and            a similar sentiment to Rynelle and feels like Woolworths has
the Badu community in the Torres Strait and Rynelle Marou,          enabled her to “break the cycle” and be a positive role model
from the Wangkumarra people of Queensland and the Torres            to her children. They are both advocates for the program and
Strait Islands.                                                     working at Woolworths, due to the short and long term benefits
Iesha joined the Parkhurst store in 2019, which is her first ever
job and Rynelle joined the Woolworths store in Yeppoon in
                                                                    that it has provided them in their personal and professional
                                                                    lives. They are excelling within their respective positions, with
                                                                    Rynelle taking the opportunity to step up into a relieving team
                                                                                                                                             1

                                                                                                                                        HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                        PERFORMANCE
October 2019. Both team members started off in their own quiet
                                                                    support role.
way, but quickly became familiar with our stores and customers
and started to contribute and make a real difference. They are
liked and respected by their team members and have a great
relationship with our customers.

                                                                                                                                           2

                                                                                                                                              PEOPLE
                                                                                                                                           3

                                                                                                                                              PLANET
                                                                                                                                          4

                                                                                                                                              PROSPERITY

Rynelle Marou, Woolworths Yeppon, Qld
20

     Caring for                                                                                      IMPACT

                                                                                                     Commitment
                                                                                                                             7

     the safety                                                                                      Status

                                                                                                     Sustainable
                                                                                                                        PROGRESSED

     and wellbeing
                                                                                                     Development Goal

                                                                                                     Safety

     of our teams
     and customers
     Safety, health and                          sensors for our team to help improve
                                                 their manual handling, are just two of
                                                                                              undertaking (EU) with the Northern
                                                                                              Territory regulatory agency (WorkSafe)
     wellbeing                                   the innovations that are being currently     and remain committed to improving the
                                                 piloted within our business.                 effectiveness of how we manage our
     We care deeply about the physical                                                        more significant risks.
                                                 In addition to these predictable risks,
     and psychological safety, health and        we also face broader risks. One such         We have seen a 19% reduction in
     wellbeing of our customers, team            example is the complex area of vehicle       total recordable injury frequency rate
     and business partners and we are            logistics. Sadly, in 2016, a member of       (TRIFR) in F20 (11.94) compared to
     committed to creating environments          the public lost his life in the Northern     F19 (14.75). Manual handling remains
     which uphold these commitments.             Territory after being involved in a          our key cause of injury, and throughout
                                                 vehicle incident at a Woolworths store       F20 there was a focus of tailored safety
     Physical safety and health                  loading dock.                                interventions. These included manual
     With over 3,000 sites and a diverse                                                      handling training and risk awareness
                                                 We deeply regret this event and the
     set of operations spanning retail,                                                       campaigns, improved access and
                                                 tragic loss of life, however we have
     manufacturing, logistics and hospitality,                                                availability to manual handling aids
                                                 made a commitment to learn from this
     safeguarding the physical health and                                                     and materials handling equipment,
                                                 incident and have worked to further
     safety of our team, customers and                                                        and proactive utilisation of our early
                                                 enhance the safety of our loading
     partners is of paramount importance.                                                     intervention physiotherapy programs
                                                 docks. Specifically we have looked at:
                                                                                              to deal with symptoms before an injury
     Our commitment is to implement the          • Enhancing traffic controls, including      occurs. As a result we have seen a
     most effective solutions to enable us to      traffic lights for trucks at store docks   24% reduction in manual handling
     manage our physical health and safety                                                    injuries this year. We are exploring
     risks. As part of this commitment,          • Installing sensors to detect people
                                                                                              emerging technologies to help us
     we are continually looking at ways to         and reversing trucks
                                                                                              better assess and address manual
     innovate and improve and have invested      • Installing lighting, CCTV and              handling risks including the use of
     in new technology to align with current       monitors to increase visibility            biofeedback technologies that help map
     examples of best practice.                                                               real time biomechanics and identify at
                                                 • Installing barriers, signage and line
     For a business like Woolworths                marking to separate people from            risk movement.
     Group, repetitive strain injuries for         moving vehicles
     team members, and a slippery floor          • Improving the training for our team.       Psychological safety
     for customers, are amongst our                                                           and wellbeing
     biggest incidents. In response to this,     As part of the incident investigation,
                                                 Woolworths entered into a Workplace          Safeguarding our team’s psychological
     automated robots that can detect spills
                                                 Health and Safety enforceable                safety and wellbeing is an equally
     and tripping hazards, and wearable
21

                                                                                                                                          SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
                                                                                                                                          WOOLWORTHS GROUP
critical part of our overall commitment          members with additional skills and an        As with our commitment to innovate
to caring deeply for our people. Mental          ability to support other team members        and improve in terms of physical
health and suicide remains a major               who may be struggling to cope.               safety, we are also continuing to
challenge for Australia and New                                                               listen and learn and have found that
                                                 The concepts learnt through “I am
Zealand, and industry and government                                                          financial wellbeing is an ever increasing
                                                 here” not only improve the lives of team
bodies recognise the impact of the                                                            yardstick in determining people’s
                                                 members, but can also be used outside
COVID‑19 pandemic is likely to lead to                                                        wellbeing. In response to this, we have
                                                 of work with friends, family and the
increased rates of suicide and mental                                                         launched a series of targeted financial
                                                 broader community.
health within our communities.                                                                programs, supported by our partner,
                                                 In support of our commitment to              Good Shepherd such as interest free
At Woolworths we believe that it is
                                                 mental health, we also introduced            loans and targeted financial aid, so
okay to not feel okay, and it’s absolutely
                                                 Unmind, an app that can be                   as to support teams through difficult
okay to ask for help.
                                                 downloaded by any team member on             life situations.
To support this belief, we launched our
“I am here” program, with over 27,000
team members completing the course.
                                                 their phone that empowers our team
                                                 to discover and care for their mental
                                                 wellbeing. Unmind provides practical
                                                                                              Our commitment to safeguarding our
                                                                                              people remains resolute and by living            1
                                                                                              our values of caring deeply, constantly

                                                                                                                                          HIGHLIGHTS
                                                                                                                                          PERFORMANCE
Using “I am here” at the centre we have          tools based on positive psychology,
                                                                                              listening and learning and, importantly,
broken down our wellbeing offering into          cognitive‑based therapy and
                                                                                              being willing to do the right thing, we
Physical, Mental, Social, Community              neuroscience to support our team to
                                                                                              believe we are strongly positioned to
and Financial Wellbeing elements.                help identify and manage mental health
                                                                                              continue to create both physically and
                                                 issues, and realise their full potential.

                                                                                                                                             2
This year we also launched “I am here                                                         psychologically safe environments.
                                                 We currently have over 10,000 active
Ambassadors”. This provides team
                                                 users of this app.

                                                                                                                                                PEOPLE
    Responding to COVID‑19
    Safety, health and wellbeing was at the
    forefront of our response to COVID‑19
                                                  • Managing the number of customers in
                                                    our stores
                                                                                             unflinching commitment to the safety,
                                                                                             health and wellbeing of all of those who
                                                                                                                                             3

                                                                                                                                                PLANET
    for both our customers and team                                                          came into contact with us whilst the
                                                  • Making gloves and masks available
    members. As an essential service it was                                                  pandemic was playing out. As we settle
                                                    for all team members to wear,
    critical that we could continue trading to                                               into the “new normal” we continue to
                                                    ramping up support for locations
    support our communities.                                                                 focus on creating a COVIDSafe and
                                                    where mask use is mandatory, and
                                                                                             COVIDCare environment for our team
    Our response was shaped by our values           highly recommending mask use for
                                                                                             and customers.

                                                                                                                                            4
    of doing the right thing, listening and         team members and customers in
    learning and caring deeply. We worked           some regions                             We would genuinely like to thank all of
    closely with government bodies such as        • Temperature checking options across      you for your support in keeping us and

                                                                                                                                                PROSPERITY
    the Department of Health and shared             all sites                                each other safe.
    learnings with other retailers both in
    Australia and across the world. It was        • Providing wellbeing support programs,
    amazing to see how quickly we came              particularly related to mental and
    together, learnt, adapted and implemented       financial health.
    measures in over 3,000 sites.                 During this period, we were guided
    We significantly invested in new              by our purpose and values in our
    measures in place to help make our            interactions with our customers. Our
    stores a safer place to shop and work,        team was empowered to continue to
    many as a direct result of feedback           put the needs of the customer first,
    from store teams and customers.               however they were equally empowered
    These included:                               to safeguard themselves and their
                                                  teammates and do the right thing when it
    • A significant increase in cleaning,         came to dealing with isolated examples
      especially “high touch” surfaces and        of customer aggression.
      hygiene ambassadors to wipe down
      basket and trolley handles as you enter     COVID‑19 amplified certain levels of
                                                  aggression, so to protect our team
    • Sanitiser stations for customers at         and customers, we employed extra
      store entrances and exits                   security in our stores and also worked
    • Reinforcing hygiene standards and           with academics and industry experts
      messages around hand washing and            to develop responses to support our
      staying away when you are unwell            team members.
    • Physical distancing across all sites        Despite these isolated incidents,
      – asking customers to keep 1.5m             overall it was heartwarming to see how
      between each other in store                 much respect and kindness was shown
    • New Plexiglass screens across our           to our team members and how the
      staffed checkouts                           public responded so positively to our
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