On to adventure
STIHL employees can grow professionally and personally through international assignments
We are a global market leader in our heads and a family business in our hearts. Together, this approach defines our understanding as an employer. We maintain a partnership-based corporate culture around the globe with family-friendly working hours, individual development opportunities, and comprehensive social benefits.
Overall strategic responsibility for human resources (HR) at the STIHL Group lies with the STIHL AG Executive Board member for Human Resources and Legal Affairs. All large subsidiaries have HR departments that are jointly committed to global standards of excellence in all key HR processes. We adjusted our organizational structure at the beginning of the reporting year. The HR managers of all production facilities and major sales companies now report functionally to the Executive Board member for Human Resources and Legal Affairs.
The HR department has a particularly important role to play, especially in times of transformation: To deliver on its role as effectively as possible, the HR team at the founding company has partnered with managers in charge of staffing at the production and sales companies in Germany and France to develop an international HR strategy.
Our new strategy consists of the five areas of action ONE HR, digital HR, HR as a transformation partner, leadership transformation, and new skills and abilities. The aim is to achieve a standard of excellence in HR at STIHL. To this end, the HR department will continue to grow together across the Group in line with strategic guidelines. STIHL employs standardized HR software across the Group to manage core HR processes. Standardized KPIs can be analyzed across all companies and used by the Executive Board and Advisory Board to manage the Group. Digital self-services, such as for the entry of personal data and for internal application and staff development processes, are modernizing HR. In 2024, the HR master data system was rolled out broadly across the STIHL Group, including at our production companies in the United States and Brazil as well as at 15 subsidiaries on five continents. The kick-off for the launch took place at five European distribution companies and at the production sites of the German founding company. Implementation is also planned at our companies in China and India as well as at the ZAMA locations over the coming years.
As a partner in the transformation, the HR department has an impact on the entire STIHL organization. The department is actively involved in shaping important projects, and HR employees are constantly developing their own roles and skills to drive transformation and innovation.
The transformation is also changing the demands placed on managers and their activities. They need to develop skills and capabilities that will make every employee fit for the future and integrate them into the Group. STIHL prepares executives for their future roles with global management programs. The STIHL Leadership Principles were created in this context. They guide the leadership transformation and form the basis of the Leadership Academy, which was launched in 2024 (see “Leadership development”).
As of December 31, 2024, STIHL Group companies employed 19,732 people worldwide. This means that the number of employees has fallen slightly on the previous year (19,805) (excluding temporary staff). In respect of all other employee figures in this report, we have included the founding company, STIHL International GmbH, the Dieburg distribution center, the production companies in the USA, Brazil, Austria, China, and Switzerland, and ZAMA. The companies within this scope of consolidation had a total of 17,423 employees at the end of 2024 (previous year: 17,515, not including temporary agency workers).
In 2024, there were 2,210 new hires (previous year: 1,934). This figure also includes temporary employees, trainees, and students, but not temporary agency employees. Our current reporting system does not provide for a breakdown of new hires by age group or gender, but we are looking into this for future surveys.
as of Dec. 31
| 2024 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total headcount within the STIHL Group¹ | 19,732 | 19,805 | ||
| Total headcount within the scope of consolidation¹ | 17,423 | 17,515 | ||
| Of which apprentices and students | 743 | 844 | ||
| Average headcount¹ | 17,410 | 18,142 | ||
| Number of temporary agency workers | 735 | 180 | ||
| 1 Not including temporary agency workers. STIHL does not employ any nonguaranteed-hours employees. | ||||
As of dec. 31 (previous year in parentheses) – values rounded
While the number of employees was only marginally lower than in the previous year, the number of temporary workers increased significantly. At STIHL Inc., STIHL Tirol, and ZAMA in China in particular, production peaks were covered by temporary staff in production-related areas.
As of dec. 31 – values rounded (previous year in parentheses)
As at December 31, 2024, around 90 percent (previous year: 91 percent) of our employees have permanent contracts. We are thus contributing to achieving the “full employment” sub-goal of the UN Sustainable Development Goal “Decent work and economic growth” (SDG 8) within the scope of our possibilities.
as of dec. 31 – values rounded
Maintaining an open and constructive exchange with employee representatives is a long-standing tradition at STIHL. All of our plants in Germany have employee councils, and work agreements for staff are in place there. Together, these individual employee councils form the General Employee Council for the founding company. Our international locations, such as Brazil and China, have employee representation bodies in line with national law. Collective bargaining agreements or similar collective wage structures are in place at many production companies. At the end of 2024, these regulations covered around 56 percent (previous year: 57 percent) of employees. Employees in all countries generally receive standard market remuneration. By protecting workers’ rights, STIHL is making a contribution to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal “Decent work and economic growth” (SDG 8).
STIHL promotes fair cooperation in a spirit of partnership throughout the Group. This mindset is at the heart of our corporate culture and is expressed in collegial support and open communication. The fact that our values can also be experienced in day-to-day operations is demonstrated by the long periods of service and low number of resignations (excluding retirements) at almost all of our locations. The turnover rate of permanent employees in the indirect area, i.e. outside of production, amounted to 4 percent for the underlying scope of consolidation in the reporting year (previous year: 3.6 percent). Because the number is so low, we do not keep records of voluntary resignation by region, gender, or age group.
Our employees frequently have the opportunity to work abroad at other companies within the STIHL Group. We thus promote international networking and cooperation, which strengthens both the exchange of knowledge and mutual understanding between our national companies. In the reporting year, there were 84 (previous year: 86) corresponding secondments. You can read reports here. Events such as parties, joint hiking days and competitions, campaigns for Women’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day, and local initiatives further strengthen the sense of community at the locations.
STIHL employees can take advantage of voluntary social benefits that go far beyond the requirements of collective agreements.
At nearly all STIHL companies, eligible employees receive an annual bonus linked to financial performance. Employees at the founding company can also participate in a company pension plan that is financed entirely by STIHL and acquire profit participation rights within the scope of a stock ownership plan. Their own contribution is one third, while STIHL contributes two thirds. Interest is paid on the profit participation rights depending on the company’s performance. Commitment and performance can be directly translated into building equity. In the reporting year, we also concluded a works agreement regarding a company bike program. Employees have been able to take advantage of company bike program since 2019. The works agreement now provides employees with additional benefits and STIHL has increased the attractiveness of the bike programs. Additionally, since 2024, STIHL has been offering its employees the Deutschlandticket as a Group-subsidized transit pass and will continue this in 2025.
Awards
In 2024, STIHL once again topped the rankings for the plant/mechanical engineering industry in the BEST RECRUITERS study, which reviews around 1,200 large employers from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein every year. In the overall ranking across all economic sectors, we achieved a commendable 23rd place. The magazine CHIP and the portal great-jobs.org have recognized us as a TOP employer for IT jobs. STIHL Tirol took second place in the “Best Employers in Austria” ranking in 2024. And STIHL Inc. has once again been included by Forbes magazine in its list of the best medium-sized employers in the USA. We were also particularly pleased to receive the Top Company seal of approval from the employer rating platform kununu. Only around five percent of the top-rated companies receive this accolade.
We offer our employees many opportunities to achieve the best possible work–life balance. First and foremost, these opportunities concern working hours. At most locations, Group member companies work with employees to arrange working models that are flexible enough to take childcare, family care, and other personal circumstances into account. STIHL provides additional support with part-time models. We are also expanding childcare facilities at some locations, including with the Mia Stihl company daycare center and in cooperation with private facilities where STIHL offers childcare. In 2024, two more nursery spots were added to the existing nursery places in Waiblingen at a cooperating daycare center; further expansions are planned. In addition to a breastfeeding room, our chain plant in Switzerland also has a room where parents can hand over their children to each other when changing shifts. STIHL also offers maternity and paternity leave in Switzerland that is longer than legally required (16 and 3 weeks respectively instead of 14 and 2 weeks respectively), which is paid at 100 percent of the employee’s salary (instead of 80 percent). The ZAMA Group also has a breastfeeding room at its site in the Philippines.
The coronavirus pandemic has also made us aware at STIHL of the advantages to remote working. Since the end of restrictions, employees and supervisors have made individual arrangements regarding this matter. At the founding company, at the distribution center in Dieburg, and in Brazil, the guidelines call for staff to be in the office 60 percent of the time, with remote working possible for the remaining 40 percent of their hours.
Diversity and equal opportunity not only make our HR policy more sustainable – they also help ensure our long-term success. Our commitment is based on STIHL’s core values such as internationality, openness, and diversity. As a family business, we view diversity in all its forms as an asset. Our aim is to create a culture in which employees can grow and develop their full potential. To this end, we foster an inclusive working environment in which all employees feel equally respected and valued.
As of dec. 31 – values rounded (previous year in parentheses)
In the reporting year, women accounted for around 30 percent of the total workforce (previous year: 29 percent). Two of the five STIHL AG Executive Board members are women. As a result, STIHL has more than met the target defined by the STIHL AG Supervisory Board in June 2022 of having at least one woman on the Executive Board. Four of the twelve members of the STIHL Supervisory Board are women, exceeding the statutory requirement in Germany of at least 30 percent.
At a strategic level, in the reporting year we set milestones for what we want to achieve in terms of diversity. In the next step, we will be promoting increased networking between the STIHL founding company and our international businesses. The aim will be to establish a shared understanding of diversity, even if the national companies can act independently in their projects and priorities. The topic is structurally anchored in our newly established project group, which is staffed by experienced team members and responsible for developing initiatives and creating a Group-wide framework that promotes diversity awareness and strengthens an inclusive corporate culture. As a sign of our commitment, we have joined the “Made in Germany. Made by diversity” campaign. The target statements on diversity were adopted at the end of the reporting year. We currently plan to sign the Diversity Charter in 2025.
Throughout the reporting year, we also promoted diversity with a large number of specific events and initiatives. The focus was particularly on promoting women and improving intercultural cooperation. We have further expanded our “Female Leadership” program and added a communication training course for women. As our Group operates around the globe, we have increased our focus on intercultural skills and offered dedicated training on working with colleagues and business partners from other countries. Our “Working together successfully internationally” program has enabled STIHL employees across different cultures and countries to develop the skills required for successful project collaboration. In October 2024, the new cross-mentoring program was launched in which we work together with three other companies to promote female managers. New training courses have also been launched on our e-learning platform since 2024, including “Diversity & Inclusion – Leading and promoting diversity” and “Intercultural Teams – Communicating with colleagues from other cultures.” Both training courses help employees to actively embrace diversity and inclusion, and improve collaboration in diverse teams. The attendance figures for and feedback on both training courses have been positive to date.
Launched in 2023 under the patronage of CFO Ingrid Jägering, the “Women Network @ STIHL” continued its work in the reporting year with online presentations. Online events on topics such as mental load, subconscious bias, and gender-sensitive health and their consequences for the world of work were very well attended. The kick-off event for a local women’s network took place at STIHL Tirol in the reporting year.
In addition to our internal programs, STIHL places a great emphasis on external networking and cooperation. Through our membership in numerous cross-industry networks, we promote communication on diversity issues and learn from the best practices of other companies. Our involvement in networks enables us to stay updated on current developments in the field of diversity and inclusion and to integrate them into our strategy.
The knowledge, skills, and development potential of our employees ensure the success of our Group. We employ the STIHL competency model to both preserve existing knowledge within the Group and promote the development of new expertise. The model is based on survey results and workshops with employees and managers, and defines our common understanding of competence requirements. It comprises eight fields of competence, which, in addition to specialist knowledge, also reflect motives, attitudes, and values – from an entrepreneurial mindset and behavior to partnership-based leadership and shaping change. To ensure a consistent approach to talent development and succession planning throughout the Group, the competency model has been introduced at all companies. It acts as a basis for annual staff performance reviews. In the reporting year, we made small adjustments to the competency model to make it even easier to understand and more accurate. Thanks to the digitalization of the annual staff performance reviews, employees from production have also been able to use the digital format since 2024 with impressive response rates.
Employees at almost all STIHL companies have access to a wide range of training opportunities, whether in-house or external, face-to-face, hybrid, or purely digital. The key issues covered include social and interpersonal skills, methodological competencies, project management, and technical training for employees in production. In 2024, each employee across the Group received an average of roughly 23 hours of professional development over the course of the year (previous year: 20 hours).
Our learning management system “STIHL HR Online Training” was rolled out to other national companies in the reporting year and will be available at all STIHL locations by the end of 2027. Employees can find information on training courses on the platform and book them directly. STIHL also offers employees support in completing professional training measures, such as pursuing a degree program or gaining master tradesperson certification. Technical staff who work on gasoline-powered drive technology can take advantage of training and gain qualifications in electrical engineering and mechatronics to support them in our ongoing shift to battery-powered drive technology.
In the reporting year, STIHL also addressed the topic of “Future Skills,” i.e. the skills that will be required in certain professional fields in the future. The Projekt „Future@skills.BW“ emerged from a study conducted jointly by the Baden-Württemberg state government, trade unions, and employer associations in the metal and electrical industry. The aim is to develop further training modules for selected future skills that are relevant to the Group and can be integrated as closely as possible to the workplace. At STIHL, we plan to implement this project in the plastic parts production center. Our focus is on several digitalization measures that have the power to positively change the working methods and efficiency of employees. We initially worked with employees and works councils to identify opportunities and risks as well as implementation steps. After trial runs, the training courses at STIHL were finalized by the end of 2024.
In 2024, we took the next step in the reboot of our executive development program at the founding company, which has been ongoing since the end of 2022. As a result, the STIHL Leadership Academy has been launched with three pilot programs. The aim of the project is to develop a systematic Group-wide approach that addresses relevant target groups, their needs, and strategic competence requirements using modern didactic approaches.
As part of the STIHL mentoring program, long-serving managers pass on their knowledge and experience to the talents of tomorrow, rounding out the range of offerings. This mentoring usually lasts one year and is designed to promote talent in the long term. The international STIHL companies – such as those in China and Brazil, as well as ZAMA – also offer a variety of programs.
In partnership with the St. Gallen Management Institute, STIHL launched the International General Management Program (IGMP) in 2021, which is designed for senior international leaders. It imparts strategic management knowledge and current perspectives on management topics and is also intended to strengthen international exchange within the Group. Some 17 managers completed the program in the reporting year. The International Talent Management Program (ITMP) was added in 2024 and targets second-tier managers who show potential for executive positions or other senior leadership roles. The 18 participants in the first year rated the program very highly across the board.
In March 2024, the digital Global Leadership Summit took place at STIHL with around 2,500 managers in attendance. In addition to contributions from the Executive Board, the day was filled with learning opportunities that participants could book themselves onto. Alongside strategy, innovation, and transformation, the summit also focused on diversity and sustainability.
The Global Leadership Survey for managers, which was last conducted in November 2023, underwent further conceptual development in 2024, transforming it for the first time into a globally standardized, short pulse survey system for all employees across the STIHL Group. The first Global Pulse Survey will begin in May 2025. The aim is to obtain information on STIHL culture and emerging trends – for example, factors influencing staff performance and fluctuation or the “STIHL management culture KPI” – as well as sustainable improvements with regard to cooperation.
As a Group that offers vocational training, STIHL has been highly committed to securing young talent for decades. In addition to many technical and commercial apprenticeships, young people can also complete a dual study program at the STIHL founding company in cooperation with the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University in Stuttgart. Both training and education paths are an important part of our strategy to ensure access to specialists in the long term. In 2024, 205 apprentices and dual students were employed at the STIHL founding company. In terms of the scope of consolidation, there were a total of 740 trainees and students.
We are constantly updating our vocational training and its content around the globe, including in terms of sustainability. The reporting year also saw us step up corporate volunteering among our junior employees. First-year vocational trainees and students now volunteer at the „Vesperkirche“ in Stuttgart and the food bank in Waiblingen. In their second year of vocational training or study, they can choose between stints at the SOS Children’s Village in Schorndorf, the Remstal Workshops in Kernen, or a nursing home in Waiblingen.
In Germany, we provide training as part of a dual approach at four locations. Most recently, we have also rolled out proven training concepts in line with this dual approach at locations where the state school system does not provide this type of training, such as in the United States, Brazil, and Qingdao, China. At our Swiss chain plant, we offer our unskilled employees up to twelve places on EFZ (Federal Certificate of Competence) apprenticeship programs as plant operators every year.
STIHL’s Global Mobility Program offers employees the opportunity to develop both professionally and personally while on an international assignment. The program also promotes the exchange of knowledge and networking within the STIHL Group. Regardless of which company they work for or which country they end up in, they can rely on comprehensive support. STIHL makes it easier for expats to find their feet in their new home and provides them with practical support for the entire duration of their assignment abroad.
STIHL’s Global Mobility Program offers employees the opportunity to develop both professionally and personally while on an international assignment. The program also promotes the exchange of knowledge and networking within the STIHL Group. Regardless of which company they work for or which country they end up in, they can rely on comprehensive support. STIHL makes it easier for expats to find their feet in their new home and provides them with practical support for the entire duration of their assignment abroad.
Scott Smith had been toying with the idea of living in Germany for a long time – it was a dream that he and his wife discussed again and again. When he was offered a chance to move to STIHL’s German headquarters in Waiblingen for two years starting in September 2023, it didn’t take long to decide: “My wife and I love traveling and experiencing new cultures. This assignment gave us the perfect opportunity to get to know Germany not just as tourists, but really from the inside out.”
After ten years in Virginia Beach, the move to Germany was also a fresh start professionally for Smith, who had been working as an infrastructure team leader. He took on the role of server administrator in the IT team at headquarters instead. “I wanted to experience firsthand the challenges and opportunities that come with working on global projects,” says Smith, who is now 51.
»Here in Germany, the teams are more specialized, which makes close cooperation and good communication between the departments even more important.«
Scott Smith STIHL Inc.
But embarking on a new life in Germany was not without its challenges. The couple came to Waiblingen without speaking much German, which made it difficult to deal with Germany’s infamous bureaucracy: “We had a great language teacher, but navigating the visa and registration process was still difficult.” These initial hurdles are now behind him, and Smith and his wife have settled in well: “We love going to festivals, sampling German cuisine and enjoying the peace and quiet of Sundays.” Having coffee and cake has now become a fixture of their everyday life.
The assignment has opened up new career prospects for Smith: “These new experiences will make me a more versatile team member when I go back to the States.” He was especially impressed by the German work culture, which is very different from that in the U.S. “My team in the United States was smaller and covered more ground. Here in Germany, the teams are more specialized, which makes close cooperation and good communication between the departments even more important.”
Sometimes life takes us down paths that we would never have planned ourselves. For Paula Martinez, it all began with an international assignment to Australia – initially for just six months. But it wasn’t long before she realized she wanted to make her time in Australia longer than initially planned. “It still feels surreal that I’m still living and working in Australia today,” she says with evident excitement. “The offer to stay here came at just the right time.” Martinez, who is 27, had wanted to live abroad for a long time.
Originally from Spain, she studied Marketing and did an exchange in Ireland at university. The experience left such a lasting impression on her that when she joined STIHL Spain, she also hoped to be able to work in another country again. “I knew that international experience was crucial to getting ahead professionally,” she says. So the Australian offer came at just the right time for her.
»My assignment abroad gave me a whole new perspective of my professional career.«
Paula Martinez STIHL Spain
With a thoughtful five-year plan and support from her superiors and managers in Spain, Paula succeeded in convincing the company of her plan. The 27-year-old’s first few weeks in Australia brought numerous new impressions and challenges. “The Australian team gave me an incredible support right from the start, from finding a place to live to settling into the new working environment,” she explains.
Working with her manager, Joanne Katsos, was especially important to her. “Jo was not only a great boss, but also a mentor in professional and personal matters.” Professionally, Paula contributed her experience from Spain, but she also learned a lot of new things. She was especially impressed by how the marketing department had the dealers structured in different clusters, adapted to the needs of the huge country: “It’s fascinating to see just how important it is to know the market and customers’ needs in detail in order to be successful.”
In the end, she wanted to stay for various reasons: the job, but also the country itself, the culture and above all, the people: “Australia is incredibly diverse, and I’ve met people here who have really been a valuable addition to my life. The assignment has completely changed my perspective on my professional career.” Today, Paula Martinez lives in Australia and feels right at home there. “I never would have thought I would put down roots on the other side of the world, but that’s exactly what happened,” she says, visibly happy. “And I couldn’t be happier.”
The distance between São Leopoldo and Oradea – from the south of Brazil to northwestern Romania – is some 7,000 miles. But that didn’t scare Eduardo Colucci Bonome. On the contrary, in fact. In 2023, Bonome (43) not only decided to go far away, but also to take something of a plunge into the unknown. This was the first time that the STIHL Group had sent an employee abroad between the two countries – and the first time that the assignment involved setting up an entire production chain. That made this uncharted territory for Bonome and STIHL alike. “Right off the bat, I knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” For him, it was a chance to develop new skills in a directorial position and to fully immerse himself in a new culture that had been completely foreign to him until then.
»Right off the bat, I knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.«
Eduardo Colucci Bonomes STIHL Brasil
On arriving in Oradea, Romania – the STIHL Group’s newest production site – Bonome soon realized that the task far exceeded expectations. The interplay between the Brazilian and Romanian working styles required a great deal of flexibility from everyone involved. Looking back, Bonome views the challenge very positively and as the greatest opportunity in his professional life. And he sees no end in sight to this positive development: “The moment the first product rolls off the production line will be the final proof that all our efforts have paid off.”
There is still a lot to do before then, but Bonome is confident as he looks to the future. He is also looking forward to everything that lies ahead of him in Romania. In addition to the professional challenges, getting used to life in Eastern Europe was not always easy. But with support from his family, who embraced the adventure abroad with openness and curiosity, Bonome’s initial uncertainty soon faded, and he came to feel at home. Bonome and his family are now exploring Romania, with its rich culture and stunning landscapes, step by step.
The health of STIHL employees is a top priority for us. STIHL is committed to promoting and preserving health. We are constantly optimizing occupational safety and accident prevention, and our health management is tailored around the differing needs of employees across the Group.
Our management system for occupational health and safety is certified according to ISO 45001 at all plants of the STIHL founding company, at the production companies in Brazil and China, and at ZAMA China and ZAMA Philippines. In the reporting year, this corresponded to coverage of 71 percent (previous year: 64 percent) of all employees. All management systems were successfully recertified in 2022 and 2023. In addition to these regular checks, internal and external audits are carried out on an annual basis. STIHL guidelines and standards define the processes and instructions relating to occupational health and safety. Overall responsibility for the topic lies with the Executive Board member for Human Resources and Legal Affairs. At our locations, dedicated specialists within the executive departments for occupational safety are responsible for compliance and the implementation of legal and internal guidelines. Safety officers in the specialist departments further reinforce awareness of occupational safety and help their superiors to implement safety precautions. The target statements for the “Workplace health and safety” module were adopted in the reporting year.
STIHL directives define a hazard analysis and risk assessment process for work involving machines and other activities, with the aim of systematically identifying and avoiding potential hazards. The responsible managers and safety officers work together to assess the risks with guidance, training, and support from occupational safety specialists. We formulate our goals and steps for further improving occupational safety on the basis of these assessments. New findings are incorporated right away into safety training for our employees. All external parties, such as visitors or employees of external companies, are made aware of potential hazards before entering the STIHL plants and are familiarized with our safety precautions and rules.
Reports of accidents and incidents are collected by the respective occupational health and safety departments at the sites. Incidents like these are investigated together with those affected, their superiors, and the Employee Council within the scope of the relevant legal provisions. As a result of these investigations, we may review risk assessments and adapt them if necessary. If the investigations reveal a need for change, we implement the corresponding changes immediately. Higher-level adjustments are determined and executed based on our systematic analysis of all incident reports.
Our goal is to keep the number of workplace accidents as low as possible. We record the number of accidents involving employees, contractors, and visitors. In 2024, the accident rate stood at 3.8 per 1 million hours worked and was therefore slightly lower than in 2023 (4.2). We did not record any fatal accidents at work. In the reporting year, we successfully completed our “Get involved” pilot project for all founding company locations, which was first launched back in 2022. Our aim with this project is to permanently reduce the number of accidents and improve our culture of safety. During the project period, we established “10 minutes for safety” as a firm fixture in all team meetings. In many cases, we have directly implemented the findings from these meetings. For example, tripping hazards were eliminated, the use of cell phones while walking was recognized as a risk and addressed, and previously missing safety signs and markings were installed in the relevant locations. Communication was also at the heart of the campaign outside of meetings. To promote workplace safety awareness, we have uploaded educational videos onto our intranet and installed screens in busy areas like canteens.
| 2024 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total workplace accidents | 135 | 145 | ||
| Of which employees of STIHL Group companies | 117 | 127 | ||
| Of which outside workers | 18 | 18 | ||
| Serious workplace accidents (more than 6 months’ time lost) | 1 | 1 | ||
| Of which employees of STIHL Group companies | 0 | 1 | ||
| Of which outside workers | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1 Includes workplace accidents with at least 1 day of time lost. | ||||
(STIHL employees only) per 1 million hours worked
| 2024 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total accident rate | 3.8 | 4.2 |
| Serious accident rate (more than 6 months’ time lost) | 0.0 | 0.1 |
We want to transfer the most important findings from the project phase into everyday working life, which is why safety remains a fixed element of regular communication in all teams and areas. Following the project’s completion in July 2024, we initiated an ideas competition at the founding company focused on enhancing workplace safety to reinforce employee involvement. There were around 190 submissions on various topics such as the elimination of hazardous areas, additional protective equipment on machines, the safe and ergonomic design of workplaces, and cleanliness and tidiness. Many suggestions were implemented directly or incorporated into the planning of future workplaces and processes. In turn, this has made a strong contribution to improving occupational health and safety.
Another aim of the campaign was to strengthen the role of safety officers, who support line managers in all specialist areas with their safety work. We introduced visual displays to make safety officers more recognizable in all areas. The safety officers receive technical support and share information in regular meetings with the occupational safety officers, and a cross-departmental workshop for all safety officers was held in fall 2024. They received valuable expert input from the employer’s liability insurance association (Berufsgenossenschaft) through presentations and information booths.
In Qingdao, China, the focus in the reporting year was on road and occupational safety. Through specific support programs and preventive measures, STIHL employees in this megacity of ten million receive training to minimize road accidents, similar to factory safety protocols. Our site conducts eight road safety inspections each year and has established a local safety protocol. The protocol defines the safety requirements for our employees on the various transport routes to and from the site, whether by shuttle bus, car, motorcycle, bicycle or on foot. As part of the road safety campaign “Searching for mines on roads,” employees identified dangerous spots and safety risks on critical commuting routes, which they then marked using an app and shared with all colleagues.
Awareness and knowledge are the two most important building blocks for ensuring occupational health and safety. Our regular training courses for all employees promote both aspects. All employees undergo a safety briefing at least once a year. Training courses such as fire drills and training on hazardous goods and load securing are part of our training catalog. Any employee who requires special training for a job, for example to drive a forklift or operate a crane, will receive it. New managers also complete a two-day mandatory training course on occupational health and safety. At the founding company, around 200 managers took part in this program in the reporting year. Occupational safety awareness is continuously promoted in posters, employee communications, regular updates in Executive Board reports, and reports from management at Group meetings. Employees can submit improvement recommendations related to occupational safety aspects and other topics at any time using the local idea management system.
In addition to our core activities, we also ran a pilot project entitled “Cultural Dialogues” at our founding company in cooperation with the heads of our production and logistics centers. This led to the introduction of a firmly established process that needs be upheld to prevent and deal with accidents in production. It involves regular workplace safety inspections on the one hand, and on-site meetings with a larger group on the other, at which the accident victim describes the incident and a shared understanding of causes and lessons learned is developed. STIHL has defined “Five questions on deviations from the rules” for a structured analysis of accidents.
In 2024, STIHL Brazil launched the “Caring Leadership Program.” We aim to improve the safety culture at the site and further reduce the number of accidents by providing additional training for process managers in production. At the Swiss chain plant, we also prioritize special safety awareness and want to encourage others to follow suit. Each month, we select occupational safety and environmental “kings” and “queens.”
Healthy and happy employees are very important to STIHL. Nearly all of the STIHL production companies have company doctors or agreements with external physicians and occupational health specialists. Together with the health management experts, they provide the workforce with occupational health care and individual health advice. STIHL also offers regular preventive occupational health exams and aptitude tests. At many locations, the Group even provides counseling and a free annual flu shot. In the reporting year, 477 employees from the Waiblingen and Ludwigsburg sites completed first aid training.
In addition, we provide a wide range of different information and courses that our employees can use to promote their physical and mental health. We aim to make our employees feel that they are in good hands with us, and keep them healthy and motivated when it comes to their work. In order to establish this as early as possible, we have already integrated courses on the four prevention principles of exercise, nutrition, addiction, and stress into the training plans for our vocational trainees and students. Depending on the location, our corporate health management incorporates various options, including individual physiotherapy, health promotion, and prevention and sports programs, as well as consultations, training sessions, and lectures on workplace ergonomics, nutrition, addiction, stress management, mindfulness, and resilience.
In April 2024, STIHL held two health days in Waiblingen with presentations, information booths, and individual services, including measuring strength, fatigue, and blood pressure. During break times, employees were able to find out about nutrition during shift work, healthy sleep, and resilience. We also offered a series of lectures on healthy sleep entitled “Well rested and fit.” A campaign day in October, also held in Waiblingen, was dedicated entirely to the topic of “skin.” Since the reporting year, employees have not only been able to find a video series with yoga exercises on the STIHL intranet, we have also launched a health calendar. The calendar is based on international health days, which focus on and raise awareness of a certain health topic on a fixed date each year. Once a month, we choose one of the health days and offer related content, such as online participation courses. In 2024, we supported World First Aid Day and World Mental Health Day, among other health days.
At STIHL in Switzerland, the STIHL Care program offers employees support as needed in the event of difficulties at work or at home. We also provide incentives for sport and health-related activities, for example by offering discounted gym subscriptions.
With our health services, we contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal “Good health and well-being” (SDG 3), particularly with regard to general health care, access to vaccines, and addiction prevention.
