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Initiative

Investing in our employees for the development and operation of Piraeus Bank Group’s Environmental Management System

Investing in our employees for the development and operation of Piraeus Bank Group’s Environmental Management System
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Piraeus Bank Group

Piraeus Bank was founded in 1916. Today it represents the leading Bank in Greece with 30% market share in terms of customer loans and 29% in terms of customer deposits. The Bank is committed to play a leading role in the Greek economy, actively supporting economic activity and extroversion through specialized solutions and high-level services to its customers.

 

https://www.piraeusbankgroup.com/en/group-profile/brief-profile


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Objective Action

Following a decision of the BoD, Piraeus Bank has developed over the last 12 years an integrated environmental approach. The goal is to continuously improve its environmental performance with the active participation of employees. In this context the Bank has developed and implements an Environmental Management System (EMS) in all its branches and administration buildings, which is certified under the European regulation Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) and ISO 14001:2004

With 1,000 directly involved employees in the daily operation of the EMS (7% of total employees in Greece) and more than 700 buildings, Piraeus Bank is one of the largest organisations in Europe –in terms of number of employees and buildings- with such a strict environmental certification.

 

 

Target Audience

The EMS mostly applies within the Group as all employees are involved. Other stakeholders include suppliers and customers, whereas society at large benefits from the EMS results.

 

Duration

The development of Piraeus Bank’s EMS initiated in 2006 during the implementation of the European LIFE project “GREENbanking4Life”. Since then the EMS is constantly upgraded and expanded to include new buildings. 


Description

Environment Unit 

Staffed with specialized personnel, the Unit coordinates, since 2004, the daily operations for the monitoring and reduction of the Bank’s environmental footprint. 

Common Environmental Culture 

EMS’s success lies in the employees’ environmental education and engagement. Environmental education is a strategic pursuit of the HR and is realised on a two-pronged approach. The first approach involves all employees and is mainly implemented with e-learning programmes, focusing on basic environmental concepts and the Bank’s environmental work, while the second approach targets specific groups of employees and concerns issues such as EMS procedures.

During 2013-2014, due to the integration of the infrastructure of six acquired banks in the existing EMS and aiming to create a common environmental culture, priority was given to the training of employees.

Since 2008 more than 30,700 environmental e-learning courses have been assigned and more than 9,000 employees have completed at least one.

In-house development of electronic applications and control procedures

In order to manage all environmental data (~400,000 inputs per year), two applications have been developed: the “Environmental Footprint Database”, an innovative tool designed according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol initiative, and the electronic application “Environmental Management”. The Environmental Footprint Database estimates the environmental impacts of the Bank’s operation (e.g. energy consumption, transportation), with the option to trace the environmental performance of each individual building infrastructure. The Environmental Management application is used by the employees in branches directly involved in the EMS, to enter data regarding the recycling of materials and water / oil consumption, which are then automatically uploaded to the “Environmental Footprint Database”.

Aiming to fully comply with legal environmental requirements, the “Environmental Legislation and Case Law Database” has been developed and is constantly updated by a special environmental legal advisor. 

The Group’s Internal Audit performs ~700 inspections in branches, annually, in order to detect non- compliances and proceed with corrective action plans.
 

http://www.piraeusbankgroup.com/en/corporate-responsibility/environment/environmental-fields-of-action/environmental-management 


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Impact on Society

Environmental Actions: Volunteerism has a significant strategic importance for Piraeus Bank; voluntary environmental activities are systematically organised, with the participation of employees and their families, such as reforestations. Since 2013 3,500 employees have participated in such activities. 

“Green Behaviour wins”: The annual environmental management competition “Green Behaviour wins!” is a significant incentive for raising employee awareness. Employees from 12 branches and 3 administration buildings with the best performance in recycling of consumables and energy-saving are rewarded with small gifts with a clear environmental message. 

Environmental Behavior Questionnaire: The biannual survey’s results are analysed by the Ecological Recycling Society, presenting the average employee environmental performance. In 2015 the questionnaire was voluntarily completed by more than 2,300 Bank employees.

Green Procurement: In 2014 the Bank partnered with companies to supply paper with FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) environmental certification, to be used in communication and marketing printed material. Since 2015 more than 12 million customer statements were printed on FSC certified paper.

A pilot supply and use of eco-friendly cleaning products with the Eco-Label certification was also launched in 6 buildings.



Initiative Location

Piraeus Bank’s EMS is implemented in all its branches and administration buildings in Greece, aiming to expand across the Group. Since 2013, Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation is the only foundation in Greece with an EMS certified under the European EMAS regulation. In 2015 ETVA Industrial Parks completed the pilot implementation of its EMS in the industrial areas of Komotini and Lamia. 


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Working with Organization

Since 2011 the Bank’s Environmental Statement, analysing its environmental performance, is externally verified, annually.

EMAS Register: http://www.ypeka.gr/Default.aspx?tabid=577&locale=en-US&language=el-GR   

 


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Workers Participation

An Environmental Manager of Piraeus Bank Group –staff member of the Environment Unit- has been appointed to ensure successful operation of the EMS. An Environmental Management Group has also been established, consisting of 15 members from various departments (Administrative Support, HR, Marketing, IT). 

A specially-trained employee has been appointed at every branch and administration building assigned with the role of the Environmental Management System Coordinator, to ensure the effective implementation of procedures and environmental programmes, data entry and the achievement of environmental targets. Four employees of the Environment Unit are responsible for the daily EMS operation and communication with the Coordinators.  

 


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Benefits for Οrganization

During the last 7 years and as a result of the EMS implementation, Piraeus Bank has achieved: 

1.Reduction of its environmental footprint:

  • Total CO2/m2 emissions and electricity consumption/m2 were reduced by 20%, while the Bank’s premises tripled. 
  • Through the assignment of 310,000 e-learning courses ~38.5 million kilometers of business trips were avoided.
  • The felling of ~89,000 trees was prevented by using recycled paper.
  • ~3,700 tonnes of paper and 72,500 cartridges were recycled. 

2.Cost saving through the implementation of environmental programmes.
The net profit from the implementation of environmental programmes is more than €5 million, annually.

3.Awards: The environmental management of the Bank is evaluated highly by international sustainability indexes (Dow Jones Sustainability Index, CDP, CRI etc.). For three consecutive years the Dow Jones Sustainability Index graded the Bank’s EMS with a score of 100%.




Connection with Global Goals



No Connection with Global Goals found





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