Sustainable economic, ecological and social action is an indispensable element of TUI’s entrepreneurial culture and an essential factor in the Company’s success. The TUI Group’s Code of Conduct, which was drawn up in 2008 and will be rolled out across the Group in the first half of 2009 hand in hand with accompanying employee training programmes, addresses fundamental TUI values, such as legal­ity, openness, tolerance and innovation.

On the basis of the new corporate structure, TUI Travel has established sustain­ability as a major issue since the early days of the company. A sustainability department supervises and coordinates the definition and implementation of targets for the tourism companies in close coordination with TUI AG’s Group environmental management. Sustainability officers from all sectors of TUI Travel report to the Group Sustainable Development Steering Committee, comprising members of the management boards of the TUI Travel companies represented. This steering committee adopts the Company’s long-term sustainability targets.

TUI’s convincing sustainability performance was reconfirmed by international rating agencies and sustainability analysts in 2008. TUI AG continued to be the world’s only tourism company in the Travel & Tourism sub-sector listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) World and admitted to the SAM Sustain­ability Yearbook 2008 in which TUI AG was awarded for higher than average improvements of sustainability management in the ‘Travel & Tourism’ sector. In addition, TUI expanded its position in the international ethics indices FTSE4Good, ASPI Eurozone, Ethibel Pioneer Index and ECPI Ethical Index €uro. In 2008, oekom Research AG awarded TUI the investment status rating ‘prime’.

Employees

Further information: Sustainable Development - our employees
Promoting the commitment, qualification and identification of employees with the Group continued to be a key aspect of TUI’s HR activities in 2008. The focus was on initial and advanced training and a welter of activities around pension schemes and health promotion.

Initial and advanced training

Junior staff development and training
Junior staff development and good internal training play a crucial role in securing the competitiveness of Group companies. 755 young employees participated in training schemes run by the German companies in 2008. Around 70% of the staff in training that finished their training in 2008 were offered an employment contract. The proportion of staff in training reached previous year’s high level of 6.7%. As part of the project ‘Fit for a job application’, TUI HR managers again assisted young people in compiling job application documents and preparing for job interviews.

Development of senior and executive staff
In 2008, senior and executive staff benefited once again from selective seminars and coaching to assist them in their complex and multi-faceted tasks. Activities focused on promoting the skills of employees with project responsibility. In both strategic and operative project management, current and future project managers took part in comprehensive training packages that also offered certification. Tailored in-house training schemes focused on customer orientation, strengthening sales skills and similar topics.

TUI Spirit
The initiative TUI Spirit of TUI Travel stands for the vision: “We want to create extraordinary experience” and comprises four main values all our employees identify with. The values ‘Customer obsessed – value driven – responsible leadership – playing to win‘ shape our everyday working life and the interaction between employees, customers, and partners.

Social responsibility

Pension schemes
The companies in the TUI Group offer their employees many different ways of participating in company-based and private pension schemes. Specific national conditions and the economic situation are taken into account in designing the models. Schemes for employees in Germany included pension fund contracts, direct insurance schemes and private pension insurance funds qualifying for state co-sponsorship (the ‘Riester’ pension). In addition, deferred compensation models were offered to enable employees to choose their pension scheme according to their individual preferences. These options to build personal pensions were increas­ingly taken up by employees.

Part-time early retirement
The German companies and employees of the TUI Group made substantial use of the opportunities provided under the German Part-Time Early Retirement Act to shift gradually from employment to retirement. In almost all cases, these part-time early retirement agreements were based on a block model for determining working hours. The assets resulting from this model for the approx. 335 employees working under part-time early retirement contracts were hedged against employer insolvency regardless of entry date. In this respect, the Company went substantially beyond the statutory hedging standard for the benefit of its employees. TUI AG provided approx. €14m for this purpose under a capital investment model.

Employee shares
German employees and pensioners as well as employees in most European countries have been able to obtain shares in the company for many years by subscribing to employee shares. In 2008, employees were entitled to subscribe to up to 250 shares each at a reduced price.

Health management
As part of its modern health management programme, TUI offers a series of measures underlining the significance of health and well-being at the workplace. The internal health programme called ‘fit with TUI’ entails exercise schemes (company sports, cooperation with fitness centres), wellness programmes (yoga, massage at the workplace), health seminars for specific target groups and programmes for the prevention of addictive behaviour. Employees can also take part in annual campaigns such as flu vaccination, cancer screening, eye tests and therapy for back problems. Employees participate in devising and carrying out health promotion programmes. This involves regular staff information campaigns and surveys, and meetings between the health coordinators, the company doctor, health and safety officials and representatives of management and staff.

Company health insurance fund
BKK TUI, the company health insurance fund, was available to German employees, offering a comprehensive range of services to protect employees in the event of sickness and to promote health. Companies and employees promoting and implementing company health schemes received a bonus on their contributions, result­ing in an arithmetical reduction in the contribution rate of 1.1%. Overall, the contribution rate was 13.9% and was thus below the federal average. In the financial year under review, more than 400 new members joined the BKK.

Health and safety
The Group companies again implemented a large number of measures to con­tinuously improve health and safety. Apart from tried-and-tested activities such as workplace visits and the permanent training of first-aid and fire protection assistants, noise measurements and hazard analyses were carried out and fire protection manuals, safety manuals and hazardous substance lists were revised.

Work-life balance
Group-wide programmes are aimed at enabling employees to achieve a better work-life balance. To this end, German companies offer a series of measures to employees on parental leave so that they do not lose touch with the workplace. Financial support is provided for childcare in some subsidiaries and a company crèche is available in Hanover. The Company also offers part-time and home working schemes and an option to apply for unpaid leave for an extensive period of time.

Diversity Charter
In 2008, TUI AG signed the Diversity Charter, an initiative by the federal government to encourage diversity, fairness and appreciation in companies. The issues that TUI has chosen to highlight in project form include origin, cultural specificities and health. Specific projects include programmes to promote children and teen­agers from migrant families, for instance by helping them to read or, in the case of older students, by providing them with a mentor. TUI AG also supports international youth exchange programmes for its employees’ children and engages in annual initiatives for people with health problems.

Employee representation within the Group
In the TUI Group, employees are represented nationally and internationally, both in individual Group companies and at Group level. The Group fosters a culture of staff participation, and this has permitted solutions to be found, working with the Executive Board and the management of the companies, which balance the interests of employees and management during strategic decisions, restructuring and integration programmes.

TUI European Forum
The TUI European Forum was established in 1995. In addition to the statutory bodies for staff representation required under national legislation, this forum currently comprises 58 employee representatives from 15 European countries. Group management regularly briefs the Select Committee of the TUI European Forum and attends meetings to discuss the current economic and HR situation within the Group. The TUI European Forum meets once a year and makes a significant contribution at international level to the transparency of major entrepreneurial decisions and the integration of different nationalities within the TUI Group.

Environmental management

More about environmental protection:
Environmental protection section in the management report, www.tui-environment.com
TUI has been persistently committed to responsible management of the environment and natural resources. Over and above compliance with the legal environmental requirements, TUI is striving to continuously improve its environmental performance. The ecological compatibility of its products, services and processes is an integral component of TUI’s quality standards. TUI promotes climate protection and the preservation of biodiversity by means of efficient energy and drive technologies, conservation of natural resources and the consistent reduction of adverse environmental impacts. The internal suggestions scheme serves to promote the implementation of ideas from employees to protect the environment by adapting operational workflows.

Climate protection and energy efficiency

In 2008 the European Union decided to include aviation in the European emissions trading system as of 2012, underlining the increasing obligation on all airlines to reduce emissions that affect the climate and to contribute to sustainable environmental protection.

TUI has been aware of its responsibility for many years and has already introduced a comprehensive set of programmes for all airlines forming part of the Group, link­ing sustainable development with efficiency enhancements. The measures adopted include an adjustment of cruise speed, resulting in lower aircraft fuel consumption, and noise abatement landing procedures that cut noise emissions in airport areas. The engines of the new-generation Boeing 737s are regularly washed, resulting in savings of approx. 100 tonnes of CO₂ per year. In addition, TUI is one of the first European customers of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which will cut previous aircraft fuel consumption by around one quarter in the long-haul segment due to its specific lightweight construction.

Voluntary carbon offsetting
In cooperation with the myclimate foundation, TUIfly offers its customers the opportunity to voluntarily offset greenhouse gas emissions. TUI customers can offset their flight emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) by paying a proportionate climate protection duty. The foundation uses the donations made in this way to support projects for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. More specifically, donations by TUI customers are used for a development aid project to promote fuel-saving ovens in Eritrea/Africa.

Besides the certified reduction in CO₂ the projects also achieve a substantial improvement in the living conditions of local people. The donations generated within the space of one year (November 2007 – October 2008) offset the equivalent of approx. 21,000 tonnes of CO₂.

Further information www.tui-klimainitiative.de
Since June 2008, TUI Deutschland has also offered its customers the opportunity of actively contributing to climate protection. In cooperation with myclimate, customers can offset the CO₂ emissions for their entire journey, either in the travel agency or on the internet. TUI Deutschland has increased the amount donated per booking by a further 50 cents. The projects sponsored are a wind power farm near Izmir in Turkey and a project to promote energy-efficient ovens in the Peruvian highlands. The projects meet the internationally recognised gold standard for climate protection projects and are designed as VER (Verified Emission Reduction) projects.

Thomson Travel and First Choice enable their customers to offset emissions through the World Care Fund. By December 2008, more than €2.2m has been received for climate protection and sustainability projects. Other Group companies such as TUI Suisse, TUI Nederland, TUI Nordic and Gebeco also offer voluntary aircraft emissions offsetting.

Use of renewable energies by TUI Hotels & Resorts
In 2008 Robinson opened Club Agadir in Morocco. At 900 m2, the country’s largest solar plant was built to supply its warm water and operate the pool land­scape. To secure training for junior staff, the Club opened its own local hotel management college.

Innovative technologies in container shipping
In container shipping, additional efficiency measures were consistently applied in order to reduce climate effects. The newly commissioned container ship ’Kuala Lumpur Express‘ was the first to use a newly developed fin, several metres wide, to reduce hydrodynamic losses in ship propulsion, cutting emissions and fuel costs by up to 6% at the same cruise speed.

Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
The TUI Group again participated in industry-wide carbon disclosure activities. TUI’s emissions account was described in Carbon Disclosure Project 6 alongside the strategic aspects of TUI AG’s climate policy. It was thus made accessible to analysts and investors. For the first time, TUI Travel also participated in the Carbon Disclosure Project and was recognised for its excellent reporting quality in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index.

The economy and biodiversity

In 2008, TUI was invited to join the Business & Biodiversity Initiative of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. The goal pursued by the companies involved is to strengthen the relationship between economic activity and the preservation of biodiversity.

TUI signed a Leadership Declaration at the 9th UN Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, committing to support the initiative by the federal government by means of specific biodiversity measures and continuing to anchor the conservation of biodiversity more strongly in its business processes. In the framework of this initiative, TUI prepared a biodiversity strategy applicable throughout the Group. At the Landscape Auction by the Global Nature Fund (GNF), aimed at raising public awareness, TUI auctioned sustainable manage­ment of one hectare of mangrove forests in Sri Lanka for a period of ten years.

The Group-wide ’Year of the Dolphin’ campaign to protect endangered species was successfully completed in 2008. As an exclusive sponsor of the campaign, TUI used its worldwide network in the destinations to organise distribution of a dolphin manual, prepared in cooperation with the WDCS Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, in hundreds of local schools. In 2008, the focus of the awareness-raising campaign was on the Cape Verde Islands and Kenya. In Kenya, TUI and its subsidiary agency Pollman’s Tours & Safaris instructed local fishermen on sustainable fishing methods. With the financial support of the World Bank, illegal fishing nets were exchanged without charge for legally permitted fishing nets.

One of the milestones of this project was the resolution on an agreement for protecting small whales, dolphins and sea cows in western Africa, including the preparation of specific action plans. More than 30 species are to be protected in this region, which stretches from the Azores via Morocco all the way to South Africa.

To support sustainable development in the Cape Verde Islands, a young holiday destination, TUI sponsored the Turtle Foundation and its activities to protect the Caretta caretta sea turtle species in 2008. Alongside other activities, the Turtle Foundation organised nocturnal control rounds to protect turtle nests in cooperation with the local population.

Environmental quality in the TUI holiday hotels

‘EcoResort’ environmental quality label
In the financial year 2008, TUI Hotels & Resorts again awarded the ’EcoResort’ environmental quality label to Group-owned hotel brands following inspection by external environmental experts. All resorts of TUI Hotels & Resorts offer high performance, quality and environmental standards. The criteria to be met in order for a hotel to qualify for the ’EcoResort label’ go substantially beyond these standards. Hotels awarded this label have a certified environmental management system based on a recognised national or international environmental standard such as ISO 14001 and efficient energy-saving measures.

In addition, TUI EcoResorts co­­operate with local nature conservation groups and actively engage in cultural or social projects. 48 Group-owned hotel and club facilities were marked accordingly in the TUI brochures for the 2009 summer season. The aim of the quality label is to drive sustainable development in the holiday regions further ahead and to secure their ecological quality.

TUI Environmental Champion
In 2008, the 100 most environmentally friendly hotels in 22 countries from TUI Deutschland’s product portfolio were again awarded the TUI Environmental Champion award. The ecological commitment of the contract hotels is determined on the basis of, for example, a checklist and the result of a TUI customer survey. In order to qualify as a TUI Environmental Champion, the candidates have to comply with minimum standards for environmental quality.

Sustainable product development

One of the key tasks is to develop sustainable products adapted to future needs that also factor in economic, ecological and social requirements. Since July 2008, TUI Deutschland has offered ecological and sustainable TUI products as a distinct set of products. The ‘TUI Grüne Welten’ brochure addresses the growing target group of ecologically-minded, brand-oriented customers with high quality stand­ards. An interactive world map directs prospective customers to the offerings they desire.

Corporate citizenship

Further Information: Sustainable Development - Corporate citizenship
Social responsibility is part and parcel TUI’s Code of Conduct and will secure the Group’s future. TUI AG and its affiliates regard themselves as corporate citizens, contributing to economic development and a better quality of living, not only at our sites across the world, but also in our tourist destinations.

Aid in the destinations

In the 2008 financial year, TUIfly continued to support the crisis region Sudan. In cooperation with the German Red Cross, TUIfly shipped more than 56 tonnes of aid such as medical drugs, baby food and mosquito nets to the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. In addition, on-board donations by passengers and staff were used for humanitarian purposes.

In cooperation with the Travel Foundation, TUI Travel supported the adoption of a system to channel the fees for visits to 26 Kenyan Massai villages directly to the local communities. Within the first six months since the launch of the project, the Massai inhabitants of the villages participating in the system saw a substantial rise in their income.

Support for disadvantaged children and teenagers

TUI sponsorship
In 2008, the sponsorship scheme run by TUI employees in Hanover supported the Hanover-based initiative ‘Aktion Sonnenstrahl’. The non-profit association runs six centres to help around 230 deprived children in the social hot spots of Hanover. Employees’ donations were also used to boost existing projects such as children’s lunches, school breakfast, help with homework, play schemes and after-school care. More than 600 children in over 20 facilities benefited from the support.

A large number of Group companies in tourism continued their worldwide commitment in 2008 to protect children from sexual abuse. To mark its 40th anni­versary, TUI Deutschland launched a campaign in aid of the charity ‘Vereinigung Dunkelziffer’. In the spring of 2008, a new educational brochure on protecting children from sexual abuse was distributed in all relevant destinations by ECPAT. Later in the year, during the autumn, ECPAT’s new information leaflets were offered to customers in all destinations.

TUI Deutschland also supported a training scheme in Phuket/Thailand in the summer of 2008. It had been organised by the German Travel Association (Deutscher ReiseVerband, DRV) in cooperation with the German Society for Technical Cooper­ation (Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit, GTZ) and ECPAT. The event lasted several days and focused on cross-sectoral awareness-raising among local hotel representatives and representatives of local travel shops.

Activities by the foundations

TUI Foundation
In 2008, the TUI Foundation sponsored more than 30 selected projects in the four main sponsorship areas: science and research, school projects, qualification schemes for unemployed young people, and culture and arts.

In science and research, TUI funded the supporting research for a project by the Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony. This pilot project is testing new forms of sure-start education designed to prevent criminal behaviour among children in high-risk families. The pilot is accompanied by scientific analysis and academic research.

Activities in science and research also included the presentation, for the 20th time, of the Rudolf Schoen Award for the best scientific publication at Hanover’s Medical University. In addition, funding was provided for four selected research projects by four junior scientists at the Medical University of Hanover.

In education and schools, the TUI Foundation sponsored a total of 15 projects in Lower Saxony. The projects included continuing the START programme run by the non-profit START Foundation to assist particularly talented students from immigrant families. Support was provided for projects at four centres where unemployed young people are taught the skills they need to obtain a place in vocational training. In cooperation with Paritätischer Landesverband Niedersachsen (regional federation of social welfare associations) five additional traineeships were created for disadvantaged teenagers. In culture and the arts, funding was given for theatre projects with and for children and young people.

Further information www.tui-stiftung.de

Hapag-Lloyd Foundation
Sponsoring cultural projects is an integral component of Hapag-Lloyd’s corporate mission. In 2008, the Hapag-Lloyd Foundation continued working with selected partners in Hamburg, where its head office is located. These activities focused on promoting young artists and talents. Outstanding projects included Hamburg’s youth theatre Junges Schauspielhaus, the St. Pauli Theatre, Junges Forum Musik­theater and a placement with the city museums for a trainee restorer.

Further information www.hapag-lloyd.de