On the reporting date Dec. 31, 2023, 653 people worked at VAUDE (2022: 669). For the purposes of this report, we include all persons with permanent or fixed-term contracts, interns, trainees, and employees in marginal employment (450 Euro mini-jobs). Employees on parental leave were not included. Of our employees at the end of 2023, 415 were female and 238 male. The working hours of the total workforce corresponded to 538 full-time positions (2022: 548).
There were seasonal fluctuations in the size of the workforce over the course of 2023; this mainly affected our Logistics Department during the most intensive delivery periods. The number of full-time equivalents varied between. 115 in March and 94 in January and December.
During the reporting period, a total of 57 employees and three trainees were newly hired on a permanent basis, of which 37 were women and 23 men. Of these, 33% were under 30 years old, 50% were between 30 and 50 years old, and 17% were over 50 years old. In addition, 84% short-term employees (e.g. holiday jobs), temporary workers and interns were newly hired.
No collective wage agreements apply to our employees.
In 2023 (as of 31.12), VAUDE had 596 permanent employees with unlimited contracts (2022: 518).This refers to employees who were neither hired as part of an apprenticeship or internship, nor as seasonally limited temporary workers, nor had an employment contract limited in time for a substantial reason. Of these employees, 388 were women and 208 were men. 358 of the permanent workers were full-time on the reporting date, 238 part-time (40%).
It is very important to us to maintain long-term relationships with our employees, who help shape our success with their professional experience, sense of belonging and commitment. For this reason, we carefully check all fixed-term contracts to see whether it is possible to convert them into permanent contracts. If this is not immediately possible, another fixed-term contract extension may be considered, but for reasons of fairness we only want to practice this once per person.
No freelance or contract workers are used for essential company activities. After employing up to 60 temporary workers in our logistics and production due to significantly increased demand in 2022, the number of temporary workers drastically reduced to eleven by January 2023. As of May 2023, we no longer had any temporary workers employed. This reduction stemmed from both adjustments in our staffing plans, enabling us to manage peak times with employees from other departments, and our ability to transition some temporary workers into permanent positions. In principle, we seek opportunities to transition temporary workers into permanent employment contracts, contingent upon successful collaboration.
One of our key challenges is to reliably and sustainably meet our demand for skilled personnel and workers in the commercial sector as well. Our HR department and the managers of the areas particularly affected are called upon to provide effective incentives through special commitment and creative solutions that ensure the long-term recruitment and loyalty of employees.
| GRI: | 102-8 |
