E Ink Corporation - Communication on Progress 2019

Participant
Published
  • 05-Feb-2020
Time period
  • January 2019  –  December 2019
Format
  • Stand alone document – Basic COP Template
Differentiation Level
  • This COP qualifies for the Global Compact Active level
Self-assessment
  • Includes a CEO statement of continued support for the UN Global Compact and its ten principles
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Human Rights
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Labour
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Environment
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Anti-Corruption
  • Includes a measurement of outcomes
 
  • Statement of continued support by the Chief Executive Officer
  • Statement of the company's chief executive (CEO or equivalent) expressing continued support for the Global Compact and renewing the company's ongoing commitment to the initiative and its principles.

  • January 3, 2020

    To our stakeholders:

    I am pleased to confirm that E Ink Corporation ("E Ink") reaffirms its support of the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact in the areas of Human Rights, Labor, Environment and Anti-Corruption.

    We have just finished our first year as a participatory member of the UNGC. We have attended several of the UN events including the UNICEF event in July as well as the UN Global Leaders Week in September. We are also very proud to be participating in the inaugural year of the YSIP program. We want to thank you for this opportunity to join the UNGC this year and participate in this very important mission for the world.

    In this annual Communication on Progress, we describe our actions to continually improve the integration of the Global Compact and its principles into our business strategy, culture and daily operations. We also commit to sharing this information with our stakeholders using our primary channels of communication.

    Sincerely yours,

    Simon Nip
    Chief Financial Officer

Human Rights
  • Assessment, policy and goals
  • Description of the relevance of human rights for the company (i.e. human rights risk-assessment). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on Human Rights.

  • E Ink has an extensive Employee Handbook that describes E Ink's commitment to the UNGC ideals of human rights and labor fairness.

    Below is a list of the Handbook chapters dealing with human rights and labor. The Handbook is accessible to all employees through the internal website accessed weekly by all employees to record their work time.

    Relevant Handbook Policies:

    2-9 Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
    2-10 American with Disabilities Act
    2-11 General Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment
    2-12 Policy Against Sexual Harassment
    2-13 Harassment Reporting Policy
    2-14 Complaint Procedure and Anti-Retaliation Policy
    2-15 Whistleblower Policy
    4-4 Workplace Non-Violence Policy
    4-5 Health and Safety Policy
    6-2 Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), California Family Rights Act (CFRA), and Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA)
    6-3 Additional Parental Leave Policies
    6-4 Breaks for Nursing Mothers and Mother’s Room Policy
    6-5 Massachusetts Small Necessities Leave Act (SNLA)
    6-6 Personal Leave
    6-7 Domestic Violence and Abusive Situation Leave
    6-8 Bereavement Leave
    6-9 Leave for Jury Duty and Court Appearances
    6-10 Military Leave
    6-11 Voting Leave
    6-12 Religious Observance Leave
    6-13 Massachusetts On-Call Firefighter and Ambulance Department Leave
    6-14 Other California Leave Laws
    6-15 Continuation of Benefits While on Leave
    8-4 COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act)

    In addition, there is a supplier handbook that requires that all suppliers abide by the principles of Human Rights.

    There are plans to further incorporate the supplier handbook into our relevant contracts.

  • Implementation
  • Description of concrete actions to implement Human Rights policies, address Human Rights risks and respond to Human Rights violations.

  • E Ink has created several opportunities to allow employees to address any grievances which include an open door policy for Human Resources, a confidential "Ask the Manager" email address and a monthly "Open Air" meeting where employees can raise any issues with the senior management team.

    All new employees learn about our policies during the on-boarding process and are required to take an on-line course through ThinkHR.com "Workplace Harassment Prevention". In Q1 2020, all employees will be required to take a refresher courses on "Workplace Harassment Prevention".

    Changes to the Employee Handbook are highlighted in an email to all employees with a link to the new document and re-posted on the internal website for easy access by all employees.

    Violations of relevant Handbook policies can result in employee discipline, up to and including termination and are handled by the HR and senior management team.

    There are lactation rooms at each of our three US sites.

  • Measurement of outcomes
  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates performance.

  • The HR director is a member of the senior management team and meets weekly with the team to raise and respond to any issues. E Ink tracks all policy-related training and each new employee must acknowledge that they have received, read, and understand the handbook.

Labour
  • Assessment, policy and goals
  • Description of the relevance of labour rights for the company (i.e. labour rights-related risks and opportunities). Description of written policies, public commitments and company goals on labour rights.

  • All posted job descriptions externally and internally reflect E Ink's public commitment to be an equal opportunity employer. There is no form of child, forced or compulsory labor at E Ink and all of our suppliers agree to abide by this in accepting our supplier handbook.

    Below is a list of the Handbook chapters dealing with human rights and labour. The handbook is accessible to all employees through the internal website accessed weekly by all employees to record their work time.

    Relevant Handbook Policies:

    2-9 Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
    2-10 American with Disabilities Act
    2-11 General Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment
    2-12 Policy Against Sexual Harassment
    2-13 Harassment Reporting Policy
    2-14 Complaint Procedure and Anti-Retaliation Policy
    2-15 Whistleblower Policy
    4-4 Workplace Non-Violence Policy
    4-5 Health and Safety Policy
    6-2 Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), California Family Rights Act (CFRA), and Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA)
    6-3 Additional Parental Leave Policies
    6-4 Breaks for Nursing Mothers and Mother’s Room Policy
    6-5 Massachusetts Small Necessities Leave Act (SNLA)
    6-6 Personal Leave
    6-7 Domestic Violence and Abusive Situation Leave
    6-8 Bereavement Leave
    6-9 Leave for Jury Duty and Court Appearances
    6-10 Military Leave
    6-11 Voting Leave
    6-12 Religious Observance Leave
    6-13 Massachusetts On-Call Firefighter and Ambulance Department Leave
    6-14 Other California Leave Laws
    6-15 Continuation of Benefits While on Leave
    8-4 COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act)

  • Implementation
  • Description of concrete actions taken by the company to implement labour policies, address labour risks and respond to labour violations.

  • An annual review of pay is performed by the HR committee to evaluate equity and parity in compensation.

    A bulletin board in a prominent location at all three sites has posters with information about Employee Rights including Child Labor Laws, Paid Family and Medical Leave, Earned Sick Time, local wage and labor laws, Employment Leave to Address Abusive Situations, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Worker's Compensation and any other applicable laws and notices.

    Changes to the Employee Handbook are highlighted in an email to all employees with a link to the new document and re-posted on the internal website for easy access by all employees.

  • Measurement of outcomes
  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates performance.

  • Demographics of the management and employees are collected annually in an EEO report and shared with relevant stakeholders.

    E Ink has a supplier audit process for regularly reviewing suppliers and contract manufacturers to ensure adherence to the supplier quality handbook including all UNGC principles.

    A member of the legal department attends the weekly senior management meetings to respond to any potential issues.

Environment
  • Assessment, policy and goals
  • Description of the relevance of environmental protection for the company (i.e. environmental risks and opportunities). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on environmental protection.

  • E Ink's electronic paper products are a green technology. The technology was developed to minimize the environmental impact compared to existing display technologies and conventional paper. It requires very low or no power to operate and replace the need to cut down trees to produce paper.

    Measures are taken to eliminate ingredients, designs, defects or side-effects that could harm or threaten human life and health during manufacturing, usage, or disposal of products. E Ink’s electrophoretic film products manufactured in Billerica, South Hadley, and Fremont conform to the regulatory and industry requirements as identified below:
    • Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)1 compliant
    • Lead-Free (Pb-Free)1 compliant
    • European Union Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)2 legislation compliant
    • Conflict Minerals compliant
    • EIA/EICTA/JEITA Joint Industry Guide (JIG)4 Level A guideline compliant
    • IEC Halogen-Free compliant

    The EH&S team minimizes the use and ensures safe handling and storage of chemicals and other dangerous substances. A detailed Chemical Hygiene plan can be found in E Ink's controlled document system.

    Every year, the facilities department at each E Ink site has set a goal to proactively decrease our carbon footprint.

  • Implementation
  • Description of concrete actions to implement environmental policies, address environmental risks and respond to environmental incidents.

  • Environmental risks are minimized with regular maintenance of production processes and environmental protection systems in a controlled document which describes all the facets of the Environmental, Health and Safety (EH&S) organization. There are dedicated EH&S employees at each of our three sites.

    Emergency procedures to prevent and address accidents affecting the environment and human health are outlined in controlled documents, "Hazardous Materials Contingency Plan and Evacuation Plan" and in the Risk Management Program. All employees are educated on their respective evacuation areas in the event of an emergency. A practice drill is held at least once a year. New employees working in the chemical laboratories receive additional training per the Chemical Hygiene Plan.

    The facilities team has reduced the supply and exhaust air to minimum ventilation requirements for our laboratories resulting in a electrical usage reduction of 15%. They are in the process of implementing a further electrical energy savings by retrofitting all of our lighting with LED realizing an additional savings of 5 - 10%.

    There is a single stream recycling at each of the sites and a composting program has begun at the Billerica site. An internal grass-roots organization is eliminating plastic from the cafeteria and replacing one-time use cups and utensils with reusable options.

    In 2020, there will be additional activities aimed at improving the sustainability of our products, services and processes as a result of our participation in the YSIP program. The Young Innovators will be making suggestions to the senior management team at the end of the program in June to implement.

  • Measurement of outcomes
  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates environmental performance.

  • The facility team has monitors in place for all of our resources and checked regularly. Email alerts are sent to the team when there are out of specification responses. These are addressed immediately.

    Near miss reporting is available on the internal website and is analyzed for potential risks. As a result, the necessary changes are carried out expeditiously to eliminate any risks to the environment or individuals.

    There is periodic review with the senior management team on a quarterly basis.

    An annual report is generated highlighting our energy consumption and conservation efforts and shared with our stakeholders.

Anti-Corruption
  • Assessment, policy and goals
  • Description of the relevance of anti-corruption for the company (i.e. anti-corruption risk-assessment). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on anti-corruption.

  • There is a written policy of zero-tolerance for corruption, bribery and extortion that is posted on our internal website for easy access by employees. The policy is written into relevant contracts with third parties. A protocol has been established to guide employees in situations where they are confronted with extortion or bribery.

    Every new third party with whom E Ink intends to do business is checked against Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) list prior to entering into a business relationship. Additional due diligence is conducted depending on the anticipated relationship.

  • Implementation
  • Description of concrete actions to implement anti-corruption policies, address anti-corruption risks and respond to incidents.

  • In 2019, more than 90% of all employees were trained on the Anti-corruption policy, Gift policy and business relationship protocol. In 2020, there are plans to train every employee.

    A network of Compliance Officers has been created at each site to whom employees report suspected violations of the anti-corruption policy or similar concerns. There is also a separate email address available for employees to report these concerns.

  • Measurement of outcomes
  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates anti-corruption performance.

  • Employees are encouraged and are responsible for raising any relevant issues with the Compliance Officers. Violations of compliance policies can result in employee discipline, up to and including termination.