Legal Compliance and Corporate Responsibility
Corporate Compliance Program
Our corporate activity is governed by national and local laws and statutes that place a range of obligations on the Bayer Group and its employees throughout the world. Bayer manages its business responsibly in compliance with the statutory and regulatory requirements of the countries in which it operates.
The Board of Management has also issued guidelines to support legal compliance. These are summarized in the “Program for Legal Compliance and Corporate Responsibility at Bayer” (Corporate Compliance Program), which contains binding rules on complying with international trade law, adhering to the principle of fair competition and concluding contracts with business partners on fair terms.
To avoid conflicts of interest, every employee is required to separate corporate and private interests. The program also lays down clear rules for employee integrity toward the company and the responsible handling of insider information.
Compliance committees have been established for Bayer AG, the external link: Bayer HealthCare, external link: Bayer CropScience, external link: Bayer MaterialScience subgroups and the service companies external link: Bayer Business Services, external link: Bayer Technology Services and external link: Currenta. Each Compliance Committee includes at least one legal counsel.
The role of these committees is to initiate systematic, business-specific training programs and oversee their implementation in line with the Corporate Compliance Program. They are also responsible for investigating any suspected violations of the Corporate Compliance Program and, if necessary, taking remedial action. All Compliance Committees report at least once a year to a coordination committee chaired by the Chief Financial Officer on any violations notified to them, the investigations carried out and their outcomes, and any remedial or disciplinary action taken. They also report on the systematic training programs initiated and their implementation. The Group Compliance Officer and the Head of Corporate Auditing regularly report to the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board on any compliance violations.
All Bayer employees are required to immediately report any violations of the Corporate Compliance Program. A telephone hotline to a law firm has been set up to allow this to be done anonymously.
In August 2007 the Group Management Board initiated an internal communications campaign calling on all managers, compliance officers and communications functions worldwide to remind their employees of the rules contained in the Corporate Compliance Program and focus on preventing and combating corruption.
The Board of Management has also issued guidelines to support legal compliance. These are summarized in the “Program for Legal Compliance and Corporate Responsibility at Bayer” (Corporate Compliance Program), which contains binding rules on complying with international trade law, adhering to the principle of fair competition and concluding contracts with business partners on fair terms.
To avoid conflicts of interest, every employee is required to separate corporate and private interests. The program also lays down clear rules for employee integrity toward the company and the responsible handling of insider information.
Compliance committees have been established for Bayer AG, the external link: Bayer HealthCare, external link: Bayer CropScience, external link: Bayer MaterialScience subgroups and the service companies external link: Bayer Business Services, external link: Bayer Technology Services and external link: Currenta. Each Compliance Committee includes at least one legal counsel.
The role of these committees is to initiate systematic, business-specific training programs and oversee their implementation in line with the Corporate Compliance Program. They are also responsible for investigating any suspected violations of the Corporate Compliance Program and, if necessary, taking remedial action. All Compliance Committees report at least once a year to a coordination committee chaired by the Chief Financial Officer on any violations notified to them, the investigations carried out and their outcomes, and any remedial or disciplinary action taken. They also report on the systematic training programs initiated and their implementation. The Group Compliance Officer and the Head of Corporate Auditing regularly report to the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board on any compliance violations.
All Bayer employees are required to immediately report any violations of the Corporate Compliance Program. A telephone hotline to a law firm has been set up to allow this to be done anonymously.
In August 2007 the Group Management Board initiated an internal communications campaign calling on all managers, compliance officers and communications functions worldwide to remind their employees of the rules contained in the Corporate Compliance Program and focus on preventing and combating corruption.