About Press Releases Careers RELEASES VOLKSWAGEN GROUP UK ACHIEVES INCLUSIVE EMPLOYERS ACCREDITATION Mar 22, 2021 Volkswagen Group UK awarded Inclusive Employers’ Silver Accreditation and becomes the first automotive company in the UK to achieve the Standard Extensive assessment process examines how companies strive to maximise inclusion in the workplace and provides a framework for continuous improvement Milton Keynes, 22 March, 2021 – Volkswagen Group UK has achieved a Silver Standard award from Inclusive Employers, the UK’s first and leading membership organisation for employers looking to build inclusive workplaces, following its first foundation assessment. The Inclusive Employers Standard is a framework to support an organisation in delivering its diversity and inclusion strategy. An ongoing process, it is designed to support companies in measuring, monitoring and continuously improving their progress towards becoming a more inclusive employer. Inclusive Employers has over 200 member organisations from a wide range of public and private sectors. What they have in common is a commitment to creating an inclusive culture. In order to gain accreditation, organisations have to undergo a thorough assessment of their D&I programme, activities and policies, covering 35 questions across six pillars. Alex Smith, Managing Director of Volkswagen Group UK, commented: “I am delighted that our efforts to become a more diverse and inclusive organisation have been recognised with the Silver Accreditation from the Inclusive Employers Standard. It is also with pride that we are the first company within the UK automotive sector to be recognised. I am also pleased that Inclusive Employers has helped us identify where we can do more as we are committed to constant improvement.“ From Inclusive Employers, Rupert Moyne, Managing Director – Corporate Services, passed on his congratulations: ‘Huge congratulations to Volkswagen Group UK on achieving Inclusive Employers Standard Silver accreditation. We can see they have been working hard in a strategic and innovative way to truly embed inclusion into their organisational culture. Their success in the Inclusive Employers Standard is a huge credit to the many people in their business making inclusion an everyday reality. It is wonderful to see the inclusion momentum growing across these ambitious businesses and particularly to see Volkswagen Group UK become our first accredited organisation from the automotive industry.’ Penny Weatherup, Human Resources Director at Volkswagen Group UK added: “We started our D&I journey some years ago, and have since widened our remit and activities from gender balance to covering multiple elements of inclusion. Underpinned by a core group of employees and the leaders and members of our Employee Network Groups, we can now see how starting the conversation and listening to feedback has begun to support our cultural development. Working with Inclusive Employers over the past year has supported and accelerated our efforts, and I am delighted to have their accreditation and ongoing advice. “Diversity and Inclusion is not a destination, it’s a journey to examine constantly how we operate and seek to provide an even more open, welcoming and inclusive environment for our existing and future employees where different opinions and views are respected and valued and that these are not perceived as barriers to personal development and career progression. “I am really looking forward to understanding Inclusive Employers’ recommendations, as well as sharing our experiences and learnings with other accredited organisations. Attaining the Gold Standard is our next aspiration!” For further information please click on the links below: https://www.inclusiveemployers.co.uk/about/ https://www.volkswagengroup.co.uk Volkswagen Group UK Head of Group Corporate and Public Relations Oliver Larkin Mobile 07767 418946 E-mail oliver.larkin1@vwg.co.uk About the Volkswagen Group: The Volkswagen Group, with its headquarters in Wolfsburg, is one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmaker in Europe. The Group comprises twelve brands from seven European countries: Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Audi, SEAT, CUPRA, ŠKODA, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, Ducati, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Scania and MAN. The passenger car portfolio ranges from small cars all the way to luxury-class vehicles. Ducati offers motorcycles. In the light and heavy commercial vehicles sector, the products range from pick-ups to buses and heavy trucks. Every weekday, 662.600 employees around the globe produce on average 40,000 vehicles, are involved in vehicle-related services or work in other areas of business. The Volkswagen Group sells its vehicles in 153 countries. In 2020, the total number of vehicles delivered to customers by the Group globally was 9.31 million (2019: 10.97 million). Group sales revenue in 2020 totaled EUR 222.9 billion (2019: EUR 252.6 billion). Earnings after tax in fiscal year 2020 amounted to EUR 8.8 billion (2019: EUR 14.0 billion). Committed to becoming CO2 balance sheet neutral by 2050, The Volkswagen Group is investing €35bn into electrification over the next 5 years with over 70 all electric vehicles planned to be in the market by 2030. Volkswagen Group United Kingdom is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, and is the importer of Audi, SEAT, CUPRA, ŠKODA cars as well as Volkswagen passenger cars and commercial vehicles. The company directly employs approximately 1,000 people in the UK, and approximately 25,000 more are employed in the retail networks, logistics operations and with Financial Services. In 2020 the Group registered 360,450 cars, achieving a market share of 22.1%, plus a further 32,500 vans and pick-ups, through our network of over 600 retailers – confirming Volkswagen Group as the clear UK number one. DOCUMENTS : 1 VOLKSWAGEN GROUP UK ACHIEVES INCLUSIVE EMPLOYERS ACCREDITATION 67 KB WORD DOC © 2020 Volkswagen Group UK, Inc. All Rights Reserved Joint Privacy Statement Volkswagen AG Volkswagen Financial Services UK Volkswagen Group UK LinkedIn Whistleblower system