Diversity and inclusion

Because fighting against all forms of discrimination is a question of fairness, equality and respect, but also of performance, Societe Generale defends the values of diversity and inclusion in the workplace every day. Our ambition is to be recognised as a company where everyone can feel free to be themselves, without hiding or conforming.

Diversity is the norm in the Group, with more than 117,000 employees representing 141 different nationalities working in 66 countries, and 57% of the workforce employed outside France. This is a strategic issue for today and tomorrow in the service of our corporate purpose: “Building together, with our clients, a better and sustainable future through responsible and innovative solutions.”

Creating a work environment conducive to inclusion

Diversity and inclusion at every level of the organisation

Above and beyond ethical and performance issues, the Group holds the view that diversity and inclusion are strategic priorities. Thus Diony Lebot, Deputy CEO, is a Diversity and  Inclusion sponsor and brings these issues to the highest level of our organisation.

To steer and accelerate the deployment of its actions, in 2021 the Group set up a Diversity and Inclusion Board (D&I Board), made up of members of the Management Committees of its Business Units and Services Units (BUs/SUs), with the task of defining the Group’s ambition and guidelines in terms of diversity and inclusion, as well as the annual (or multi-year) priorities.

Values conveyed through common measures

This Diversity and Inclusion policy reflects the Group’s determination to recognise and promote all talents, whatever their beliefs, age, disability, parenthood status, ethnic origin, nationality, sexual or gender identity, sexual orientation, membership in a political, religious, trade union or minority organisation, or any other characteristic that could be subject to 
discrimination.

Fighting against all forms of discrimination

Focus on gender equality

Commitments

The Group’s gender equality policy is based on a variety of actions: 

• monitoring of the representation of women within the entities’ management bodies and with respect to promotions and salary increases;
• public reporting or reporting to the employee representative bodies, in the UK and France, of indicators on pay gaps and the representation of women at the various levels of the Company;
• social agreements, which set targets for the promotion and advancement of women within the company: Agreement on gender equality in the workplace and the 2019 Wage Agreement (Societe Generale SA in France).

Actions

Overall, 123 entities representing 98% of the Group’s workforce have policies or programmes in place to promote gender equality at work. Among them are:

• deployment of mentoring and leadership programmes to promote women in the company;
• promoting gender diversity;
• the implementation of actions in favour of parenthood.

Results

In accordance with the requirements of the French “Loi Avenir” of 5 September 2018, that aims to eliminate wage disparities between women and men, Societe Generale SA in France has published its Gender Equality Index score, which stands at 86 out of a maximum score of 100 for the 2021 financial year. It is calculated based on 5 indicators provided by the legislation:

In October 2021, Diony Lebot, Deputy CEO and Diversity Sponsor, and Claire Calmejane, Group Chief Innovation Officer, were named by Financial News magazine to its FN100 Most Influential Women in European Finance list for the second consecutive year.

For the third year in a row, Societe Generale is included in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index alongside 418 companies (across 11 sectors, 45 countries & regions). This index recognises public companies committed to supporting gender equality through transparent disclosure of their information.

In 2021, Societe Generale is positioned in the 2022 Top 100 of the Equileap international ranking on gender equality with a score of 63%, well above the average score for companies in the financial sector (38%).

Focus on generational balance

Commitments

Societe Generale SA in France encourages intergenerational cooperation through social agreements. Measures aimed at strengthening international solidarity were incorporated into the framework of a new agreement on changing professions, skills and employment on 13 March 2019 aimed primarily at assisting with anticipation of retirement and the transition from employment to retirement, avoiding difficulties and passing on knowledge and skills.

In France, as part of the effort to adapt the “generation contract”, Group subsidiaries have established specific agreements and dedicated action plans for young people and seniors. Societe Generale SA in France continues to hire many young university graduates. Through these efforts, 1,149 young people under 26 were hired on permanent contracts in 2021.

Actions

Societe Generale promotes inter generational cooperation through:

• dedicated development programmes;
• focus groups which aims to bridge the generation gap in order to create more inclusion and open up lines of communication between generations: Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1965), Generation X (born between 1966 and 1980), Millennials or Generation Y (born between 1981 and 2000) and the first members of Generation Z (born after 2000);
• supporting seniors in areas of training, health and prevention, adjustments to working hours and end-of-career skills transmission;
• including the intergenerational issue in seminars organised by the Group to raise awareness of matters related to inclusion in the workplace.

More generally, 55 of the Group’s sites, employing 73% of the workforce, are implementing actions targeting employees over 50.

Results

The average age of the Group’s employees was 39 at the end of 2021 (vs. 38 in 2020) and average seniority was 10.1 years at the end of 2021 (vs. 10.3 years in 2020)

Focus on non-discrimination of the LGBT+ community

Commitments

Societe Generale implements the UN's guiding principles for tackling discrimination against LGBT+ people in the buiness world in all aspects of professional life. It is important to remember that in France, discrimination is a criminal offence.

From the job interview to promotions, through our management principles, we ensure that everyone feels heard and valued, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity*.

Actions

Alongside Pride & Allies, which brings together our staff members in different countries, the Group defends and applies a corporate culture that promotes the inclusion and equal rights of LGBT+ member of staff**. 

*Gender identity: the gender with which a person identifies
**LGBT+: acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans and "+" for all other sexual orientations or gender identities (intersex, queer, asexual, pansexual, etc.).

Results

For the second year in a row, two members of Societe Generale’s Management Committee have been recognised by the global network INvolve for their active commitment to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Frédéric Oudéa and Diony Lebot, respectively Chief Executive Officer and Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Group, were on the OUTstanding 50 Ally Executives list in 2021. They made the list again as the result of actions taken at the highest level over the past two years to create an inclusive work environment and to ensure equal rights and treatment for all Group employees.

In the United Kingdom, Societe Generale won for the first time, in 2021, the «Stonewall Bronze Employer Award», rewarding the initiatives implemented on LGBT+ inclusion.

In the United States, Societe Generale New York again this year achieved a top score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index thanks to its LGBT+ inclusive policies and work practices.

Focus on people with disabilities

Commitments

The Group is a signatory to the Business and Disability Charter, under the aegis of the International Labour Organization, promoting the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the world of work. It is also a member of the Global Business and Disability Network.

For the fifth time, Societe Generale SA in France renewed the 2020-2022 Three-Year Agreement “promoting jobs and labour market participation by persons with disabilities”. 

Societe Generale SA in France also signed the 2019 Manifesto for the Inclusion of the Disabled in the World of Business and the Responsible Digital Charter, which contains an inclusive digital policy.

Actions

To promote the rights of persons with disabilities, the Group carries out a number of actions, such as the participation of the Group in Inclusiv’Day as an Official Partner. This event, which was held in a 100% digital format, provided an opportunity to share Societe Generale’s experiences and best practices in terms of diversity and inclusion policy, through subject-specific seminars and dedicated meetings with our experts.

Mission Handicap Societe Generale

Created in 2007, Mission Handicap Societe Generale has spearheaded multiple efforts to support the hiring of employees with disabilities, including support for the retention of employees, training and raising the awareness of teams, developing partnerships with educational institutions, qualifying work-study programmes and using businesses in the sheltered sector. 

Key figures

• More than 250 people with disabilities have been hired since 2017.
• Since 2007, more than 6,500 jobs in France have been adapted to the needs of disabled employees.
• More than 1,800 employees declared RQTH* in France.
• More than 400 local contacts to support the employees concerned on a daily basis: Local disability representatives, occupational physicians, social assistants, HR managers, etc.
• One anonymous toll-free number to ask any question.

*Reconnaissance de la qualité de travailleur handicapé (Recognised status as employees with disabilities).

Results

At the end of 2021, Societe Generale employed 2,597 employees with disabilities, mainly in France, the Czech Republic, and Russia, accounting for 2% of the overall workforce.

The direct employment rate for France at SGPM is 4.66% in 2020.

Promoting employee diversity that reflects our customers and our societies

Employee careers based on skills

From hiring to career management, anti-discrimination monitoring is an integral part of the Group’s policy. The Group’s ambition as a responsible employer is to establish a fair career management process to enable every employee to develop their own range of skills and job responsibilities without any sort of discrimination.

A balanced compensation policy

Societe Generale’s compensation policy is aligned with the Group’s diversity and inclusion policy and meets regulatory requirements. The 19 December 2018 Professional Equality Agreement has been extended from 1 January to 31 December 2022. It was agreed that new negotiations will begin during 2022. This extension provides for the maintenance of all existing commitments (budget of €7m distributed as follows: €3m in 2019, €2m in 2020 and €2m in 2021) and enhances them with new measures on eliminating the gender pay gap: an additional budget of €3m has been allocated for 2022 for this purpose.

Engaged employee communities

The Group has many internal communities that actively participate in promoting its commitments to diversity and inclusion, such as WAY: We Are Young, a community open to all the Group’s interns, work-study students and juniors, which aims to support them through various professional and fun activities, including coaching, conferences and after work gatherings.