Diversity

Diversity makes us strong

At the REWE Group, we reflect a varied world. This is a good thing; it is clear to us that to achieve success, you need people who think outside the box. Diversity is the mother of creativity – and different viewpoints and experiences are what will drive us forward together.

Successful thanks to diversity.

As an international company, our employees hail from 150 different nations.

Competence is not a matter of age.

To us, what counts is the interplay of practical experience and fresh, innovative ideas.

LGBT-network

In 2013, we established our LGBT network di.to., which has been committed to advancing tolerance and acceptance at the workplace ever since.

%	24 female retail managers
%	76 male retail managers

One in four of our independent REWE supermarkets is managed by a woman.

LGBTQ: Proudly diverse

The REWE Group is a modern employer that is committed to tolerance and diversity. We welcome all people, regardless of sexual orientation, and treat everyone without prejudice. No one should feel the need to hide their sexuality or sexual identity for fear of bullying, bias, or any other form of discrimination. Our LGBTQ network, di.to., is dedicated to ensuring that everyone feels comfortable at the REWE Group.

We interact with one another with openness and tolerance – and this also holds true when it comes to the sexual orientation of our employees.

To the interview

Lionel Souque, Chief Executive Officer

It began with regular meetings for gay and lesbian employees at our central locations in Cologne. Today di.to. is the REWE Group’s official LGBTQ network and is now active nationwide. Its sponsor is Lionel Souque, Chief Executive Officer of the REWE Group. Employees active in di.to. organize network meetings, plan and participate in LGBTQ events, and implement a variety of initiatives designed to promote tolerance and openness throughout the company.

A clear signal

It all began in the spring of 2006, when we started displaying a rainbow sticker at the entrances of more than 3,300 REWE markets. The rainbow symbolizes tolerance and diversity, communicating to our customers that we offer a space that is free from prejudice and where no one is excluded. These stickers can now be found on the doors of all toom Baumarkt stores, PENNY markets and DER travel agencies.

“Solidarity teddy bears” fight AIDS

Every year since 2017 on World AIDS Day – December 1 – di.to. volunteers have raised money for regional AIDS organizations by selling stuffed animals called “solidarity teddy bears.” Participation fees and donations collected at other events also benefit the LGBTQ community. Since the network was created, its Cologne office has supported the youth centre anyway e.V. and the educational and anti-discrimination project Schlau NRW, as well as the Cologne AIDS organization, Aidshilfe Köln.

Playing football to promote diversity

The Come Together Cup is Europe’s most popular recreational football tournament. Once a year, approximately 20,000 spectators gather to watch over 1,200 football players take the field to promote diversity and tolerance. The mixed-gender team, REWE Group di.to. Kickers, participates every year. To support the tournament, di.to. runs a refreshment stand and donates the proceeds to Aidshilfe Köln.

Showing support

Christopher Street Day in Cologne: This is the highlight of the year. For many years di.to. has been proud to participate in that event. The motto in 2019 was “Fifty years of pride. Many. Together. Strong.” At the REWE Group, we too are many and strong, and more than 150 of our employees have demonstrated together for diversity, acceptance and global respect for human rights and in opposition to discrimination.

Promoting the advancement of women: Our Plan W

Although women account for two-thirds of REWE Group employees, they are still underrepresented at the highest levels of management. This is something we want to change, and we attach particular importance to bringing our female employees into positions of leadership.

Our female employees offer enormous potential for our company. We need to take advantage of that potential and bring them into positions of leadership.

Dr Daniela Büchel, Member of the Management Board – Chief People and Sustainability Officer

We have set a clear goal: By 2023, we want to increase the share of women at the top three executive levels to 20 percent. We can do this, for example, by offering more ways to achieve a work-life balance. Other projects and initiatives that have been launched in recent years will also help us achieve that goal. For example, our Women’s Drive programme provides support for women who have already gained some experience in a leadership role. An in-house network known as f.ernetzt allows 200 female executives to share information and experiences with one another on a regular basis. The REWE Group is also a member of the Cologne-based coalition “Mit Frauen in Führung” (Leading with Women).

REWE Group joins UN initiative “Women’s Empowerment Principles”

In November 2020, the REWE Group joined the UN initiative “Women’s Empowerment Principles”. We are thus committed to the targeted strengthening of women in the company and in society. By signing a total of seven principles, we undertake to further promote gender equality in the workplace and to back it up with concrete and measurable measures.

To press release

fer.netzt

An opportunity to benefit from the experiences of others, share information in a safe space, or simply find new contacts: “fer.netzt” is a network for women in the REWE Group that allows female executives and experts to communicate with one another on a regular basis.

Women‘s Drive

The Group-wide Women’s Drive programme provides one year of support for women who have already gained some executive experience. Participants benefit from targeted training and the advice of experienced mentors.

Nationalities: Diversity makes us strong

More than 150 nationalities in one company: A global perspective is in our DNA and makes our cooperative strong. By working together across national and cultural boundaries, we – as a company, but also as individual employees – take advantage of our full potential in a diverse, colourful world.

Some 282,000 people from 150 countries: This is the REWE Group in Germany. Globally, we employ more than 384,000 people from nearly every country in the world. Each of our employees enriches and helps to shape the REWE Group. To all of them, we say aciu, danke, dziękuję, gracias, grazie, hvala, köszönöm, paldies, спасибо, شكرا , merci, thanks, takk, teşekkür ederim…

The international character of our company not only enriches our culture; it also represents a competitive advantage – for example as we seek to enter new foreign markets. This is why we have launched a variety of programmes to promote intercultural exchange and understanding.

Building bridges

The integration initiative “Kimat” was launched in REWE’s southern region in 2016 as a way of integrating migrants into the labour market and promoting intercultural communication and understanding. This award-winning project is building bridges between people’s past and their future, focusing particularly on refugees. Many are now participating in training programmes at REWE, while others are preparing to enter training, for example by taking language courses.

A look across the border

Roughly 20,000 REWE Group employees in Germany and Austria have a foreign passport, and that figure is continuing to rise. This is due in part to a shortage of new applicants. Accordingly, the REWE Group in Germany is training more young people in a variety of occupations. In the future, we intend to focus on recruiting prospective trainees and executives from other European countries.

Integration through training

In an effort to help young refugees join our society and enter professional life, the REWE Group is offering additional internships. Candidates are accepted into a training programme after an intensive recruitment process that includes career taster days and internships – sometimes in cooperation with the “Joblinge Kompass” programme. Refugees often participate first in a six to twelve-month introductory course that focuses on language and culture, then begin their training.

Inclusion: Eliminating barriers

People with physical or intellectual impairments are no less capable of productive work – provided they have a job that fosters their talents and a barrier-free workplace. The REWE Group is taking a number of steps to ensure successful inclusion.

More than ten million people in Germany have a disability. We are dedicated to ensuring that all our employees are afforded the same opportunities – with the help of numerous projects and cooperation with such organizations for the disabled as Aktion Mensch and Lebenshilfe. We create barrier-free workplaces – not only for administrative positions, but also in our markets. Employees who use a wheelchair may be able to work as cashiers, for example. Our representatives for people with serious disabilities and our inclusion officers assist employees in applying for social security benefits and provide support as people return to work after an extended illness.

Inclusive play

Playgrounds where children with and without disabilities can play together: Making these playgrounds a reality is the mission of “Stück zum Glück,” a nationwide fundraising campaign run jointly by REWE, Procter & Gamble (P&G) and Aktion Mensch. By July 2020, the campaign had already reached its goal of raising one million euros, and its efforts continue; the project partners are hoping to raise another million euros within the next three years.

Active involvement

In an effort to dismantle barriers, for a number of years toom Baumarkt has been creating jobs for disabled individuals from Lebenshilfe sheltered workshops. It is also establishing long-term sponsorships with Lebenshilfe – for example, between toom’s markets and local workshops for the disabled. This cooperation has already led to a variety of joint initiatives, such as spring festivals, renovations and internships.

Learning to “do it yourself”

From instructions for growing your own tomatoes to a quick course in painting furniture: With a “do it yourself” brochure in simple language, toom Baumarkt and its partner Lebenshilfe are seeking to eliminate barriers that prevent people from performing certain tasks in their daily lives. Access to information in simple, easy-to-understand language is particularly important for people with mental or learning disabilities, as well as for anyone who is new to such tasks.

Across generations and life stages: Old and young are strong together

Should the old give way to the young? No, because without the involvement and encouragement of experienced employees, companies are deprived of valuable knowledge. By the same token, older employees can often learn from their younger colleagues. The REWE Group therefore sets great store by a balanced mix of generations.

When it comes to human resources policy, we face a variety of challenges. The percentage of older employees is steadily increasing, as a result of demographic trends and a shortage of trainees. Roughly 30 percent of our current workforce is over the age of 50, while an equal share is younger than 30. Every stage in life has its own family-related challenges. To help our employees cope with these challenges, we offer childcare, time off to care for family members, and much more.

Seal of approval

Since 2009, the REWE Group’s distribution chains have been certified by the company berufundfamilie Service GmbH, through its “work and family audit” programme. This programme, an initiative of the non-profit Hertie Foundation, evaluates companies’ HR policies as they relate to families and life stages. Approximately 2,700 of REWE’s branch offices, markets and administrative and logistics locations, which employ a total of 107,000 people, are certified. PENNY, with its 27,000 employees, became the first discounter in Germany to undergo this evaluation in 2018. REWE Group headquarters and all toom Baumarkt stores have been awarded the “work and family audit” certificate as well. The REWE Group is currently the largest company in Germany to have earned this distinction.

Helping parents

To facilitate a return to the workplace following parental leave, the REWE Group is expanding its in-house childcare programmes and, in some regions, strengthening cooperation agreements to ensure that nursery school provision is available to the children of employees. At all central sites, special parent-child offices have been created to allow employees to take their children to work with them in emergency situations. At many locations, the REWE Group also provides childcare support during vacation periods.

Balancing professional and private life

The REWE Group is working with awo lifebalance to help employees strike a balance between their professional and private lives. A subsidiary of Arbeiterwohlfahrt (the German workers’ welfare association, AWO), awo lifebalance has a national network of experienced experts and time-tested facilities. Its services, which include counselling and referrals to childcare and elder care providers, are available to all employees at the central and regional sites, as well as in the company’s markets and logistics locations. Through awo lifebalance, the REWE Group also offers vacation camps in various locations throughout Germany.

Support in caring for loved ones

In an aging society, more and more people are facing the challenge of caring for their loved ones. In 2015 and 2016, the REWE Group entered into works agreements that provide additional benefits to employees, expanding on the law that provides for family leave. These benefits include leave to care for family members as well as two hours of paid time off to attend to official business and to submit applications related to care for a family member.

Time off from work

Many people dream of taking a break from work. This is precisely what we offer to our employees, in the form of a sabbatical: Employees can take up to six months in a 12-month period off from all work responsibilities, without providing a reason. Their wages continue during that period, at an adjusted rate, which allows their social security coverage to continue. The REWE Group also offers the option of a reduction in work hours for older employees to facilitate their transition to retirement.

Strength through diversity