STMicroelectronics Reports Further Advances in Corporate Responsibility during 2008

2008 was a milestone year for STMicroelectronics. In 2008, several important initiatives that have reshaped the company into a leaner, faster, more innovative and powerful competitor in the world's semiconductor arena were implemented in a deteriorating world economy. At the same time, the Company was able to record continued progress in all areas of Corporate Responsibility, thanks to the continued success of its Sustainable Excellence program.

ST’s Sustainable Excellence program was designed to embed Corporate Responsibility into every level of the Company’s activities. The term reflects ST’s firm belief in its ability to balance stakeholders’ expectations to make the Company ‘sustainable’ – successful now and in the future – in the short and long term and enable it to contribute to sustainable development at a global level.

“Year after year, we continue to find that pursuing the highest standards of Corporate Responsibility brings both short-term and long-term benefits,” said Georges Auguste, Executive Vice President, Director of Quality, Education and Sustainable Development, STMicroelectronics. “In the short term, our people are inspired to produce more innovative products and to do so with ever-increasing quality, while in the longer term we are better able to further the professional development of our employees, attract the best new talent, and strengthen the relationships with the communities in which we operate.”

STMicroelectronics was one of the first global industrial companies to recognise the importance of environmental responsibility and has won many awards for its pioneering work in this field. The Company played a pivotal role in demonstrating that ‘Green is Black’ i.e. that environmental responsibility delivers real financial benefits. Since the company published its first ‘Environmental Decalogue’ in 1994, it has continually widened the scope of its definition of corporate responsibility and increasingly formalised both the deployment of its principles within the company and the reporting of the results to stakeholders to ensure that it remains at the forefront of Corporate Responsibility.

In fact, the 2008 report confirms that ST maintained its continuous improvement in all of the Company’s traditional areas of Corporate Responsibility excellence such as environment, employee well-being, community involvement, and product responsibility while also demonstrating strong performance in aspects that are becoming increasingly important to stakeholders. These include Health & Safety, diffusion of Corporate Responsibility in the supply chain, implementation of human rights, and responsible restructuring.