Diversity, equity 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 154 different nationalities working in 66 countries, and 52% 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, the Group has 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, gender identity, sexual orientation, membership in a political, religious, trade union or minority organisation, or any other characteristic that could be subject to discrimination.

In 2022, Societe Generale also decided to assess where it stood in terms of diversity and inclusion, with the Mixity score – a digital tool that measures equality in 5 areas: gender, disability, LGBT+, ethnicity and generations. Discover the Societe Generale Mixity Score.

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, 98% of the Group’s workforce have policies or implement mesures promoting gender equality at work. Among them are:

• deployment of mentoring and leadership programmes to promote women in the company;
• promoting gender diversity;
• implementing actions in favour of parenthood; 
• initiatives to bring more women into the digital and IT world.

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 2022 financial year. It is calculated based on 5 indicators provided by the legislation:

In accordance with the provisions of the “Rixain” Law of 24 December 2021, aimed at accelerating economic and occupational equality between women and men, Societe Generale SA France publishes, for the year 2022, 2 indicators:

• representation of women and men in executives: 33% women and 67% men;
• representation of women and men in members of the governing body: 27% women and 73% men.

For the third year running, 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 fourth consecutive year, Societe Generale is recognised for its commitment and actions fostering diversity and inclusion, by appearing in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index (GEI), alongside 484 companies (out of 11 sectors and 45 countries).

In 2022, Societe Generale was in the Top 100 of the Equileap international ranking on gender equality with a score of 66% (+3 points compared to 2021).

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, 1,918 young people under 26 were hired on permanent contracts in 2022.

Actions

Societe Generale promotes inter generational cooperation through:

• dedicated development programmes;
• reverse mentoring;
• 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, 74% of the workforce are covered by actions targeting employees over 50.

Results

The average age of the Group’s employees was 40 at the end of 2022 (vs. 39 in 2021) and average seniority was 10.5 years at the end of 2022 (vs. 10.1 years in 2021).

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 third year running, several Societe Generale employees were named “Role Models” at the Other Circle event. One member of the Management Committee was named LGBT+ Role Model.

In the United Kingdom, Societe Generale appeared in Stonewall’s Top 100 employers for equal rights in the workplace and received their silver award. This index rewards notable employers who commit to supporting their LGBT+ staff and customers.

In the United States, Societe Generale New York again received the “Best Place to Work for LGBT+” by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. This award recognises employers who have taken concrete measures to guarantee greater equity in LGBT + inclusion.

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 sixth time, Societe Generale SA in France renewed the 2023-2025 Three-Year Agreement “promoting jobs and labour market participation by persons with disabilities”. 

Actions

To promote the rights of persons with disabilities, the Group carries out a number of actions, in line with its diversity, equity and inclusion commitments: participation in the SEEPH (European Week for the Employment of People with Disabilities), thematic conferences, meetings with experts, etc. 

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 400 people with disabilities have been hired since 2007.
• Since 2007, more than 6,500 jobs in France have been adapted to the needs of disabled employees.
• More than 1,850 employees declared Recognised status as employees with disabilities (RQTH) in France in 2022.
• More than 400 local contacts to support the employees concerned on a daily basis: Local disability representatives, occupational physicians, social assistants, HR managers, etc.

Results

At the end of 2022, Societe Generale employed 2,590 employees with disabilities, mainly in France, the Czech Republic, and India, accounting for 2,2% of the overall workforce.

The direct employment rate for France at SGPM is 4.95% in 2022.

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 2023. It was agreed that new negotiations will begin during 2023. This extension provides for the maintenance of all existing commitments (budget of €10m over 4 years via the 2019 wage agreement, of which €3 million for 2022) and enhances them with new measures on eliminating the gender pay gap: an additional budget of €3,5m has been allocated for 2023 for this purpose.

Engaged employee communities

The Group has many internal networks that actively participate in promoting its commitments to diversity and inclusion, such as WAY: We Are Young, a network 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.