Employees with young children are the main target group of the “We’re counting on you” project that CEZ launched last year. The initiative focuses on three main pillars: keeping employees on maternity and parental leave in touch with their colleagues and the company, adjusting working conditions to enable effective combining of career and family responsibilities, and a development programme to facilitate adapting back to work after returning from parental leave.
“One of our priorities is to help employees with young children manage their work and family responsibilities as best as possible so that we don’t lose their talent unnecessarily. We are pleased that the Nordic Chamber of Commerce appreciated the project because the values of Nordic companies, which focus on equality and diversity, are great inspiration for us,” said Michaela Chaloupková, member of the Board of Directors and director of CEZ Administration Division.
In its Vision 2030 – Clean Energy Tomorrow strategy, built on the pillars of ESG, CEZ Group also sets the goal of greater diversity. The adopted and approved Diversity Policy integrates diversity and inclusion into the company's activities and includes recruitment, management and compensation, development of employee potential and work-life balance. The policy also serves to protect vulnerable groups of employees and provide them with equal opportunities. It includes measures to improve working conditions for employees over 50 years of age, employees with disabilities, LGBTQ+, informal caregivers and parents of small children.
“In this first year, three projects were rewarded. CEZ and one other participant focused on supporting parents with young children, their permanent integration into the workforce, and on financial support. As the Nordic Chamber of Commerce, we are pleased that such projects are being developed in Czech companies and that employers are focusing on this topic. We are delighted that so many companies have participated in the first round of Nordic Chamber of Commerce Diversity Award, and we believe that all the projects submitted will provide significant inspiration in terms of how to move forward in this area. We are already looking forward to next year’s awards, which will be announced in May 2024,” said Lea Turcarová, Nordic Chamber of Commerce executive director.
Parenthood represents a pivotal time in a career, especially for women, who are often automatically expected to bear the brunt of childcare. CEZ, for example, runs company nursery schools, organises summer day camps, provides discounts on babysitting and cleaning services, and other family-friendly benefits to support parents of young children. This year the company launched a new, comprehensive six-month series of educational seminars, entitled Academy for Parents, aimed at parents returning to work. At the same time, they are establishing the groundwork for creation of an employee group to support parents.
CEZ was one of the first companies in the Czech Republic to sign the international Diversity Charter. This year, CEZ also became a signatory to the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEP), which supports companies in creating equal opportunities and empowering women.
The Nordic Chamber of Commerce in the Czech Republic was established in 1995 with the aim to promote and contribute to the development of trade relations between the Czech Republic and all Nordic countries and to increase mutual contacts between them. The Chamber is a non-profit organisation and has no political objectives. It currently has over 150 members. Through events, workshops, seminars and business meetings, it shares best practices in promoting the core business values of Nordic countries, especially sustainability, gender equality and transparency. It thus contributes to the development of the business environment in the Czech Republic.