Teck Resources Limited

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Employment

Although this part is related to Social Material Topics, it has well-covered context following GRI standards from 401 to 406. (9 pages, pp. 44-52)

Teck focuses on developing the local employees by providing rewarding careers and employee development programs. It further shows that there is local community involvement and Teck concerns the people in the area it operates.

There are graphs to provide comparability over the years and case studies on employee incentive programs – the Excellence Awards – and good emphasis on diversity and equal opportunity such as women employees.

TECK RESOURCES LIMITED

4. SOCIAL MATERIAL TOPICS

4.1 Health and Safety

Teck’s number one priority is safety. Most of their employees have families to take care of, and whenever an accident happens to them, their families will seek compensation, or else they will file civil complaints. That is why they rather spend more on preventing than on compensating, and because of that, the report covers all GRI 403, including Teck’s management approach. (8 pages, pp. 54-61)

It has a detailed assessment on employees’ health and wellness, going as far as conducting a safety survey with more than 5,600 participants to see the effects of long-term exposure when working in mining operations.

They show promising safety leadership in the report; because they admit and acknowledge the number of employees having occupational diseases each year. They admit the fact that mining is hazardous and are willing to increase safety measures and compensate injured worker claims.

4.2 Social Licence

Teck has to earn the right to operate in eyes of multiple and wide range of stakeholders – this is called Social Licence. (Valerie Chort, 2011)

The stakeholders include local communities, local regulators, employees, NGOs and governments. Since Teck cannot bypass the stakeholders or simply find another mining location anytime soon, Social Licence becomes important. To achieve it, Teck has to strictly follow GRI standards. For them to be reliable, the report has responsibility performance report in the environmental and social areas. It has interactions and engagements with the wide range of stakeholders. (23 pages, pp. 62-84)

Social responsibility is defined as “a life enhancing condition within communities, and a process within communities that can achieve that condition.” (McKenzie, 2004)

Teck’s mining sites are located within or adjacent to indigenous peoples’ territories. In the report, Teck pays special attention to the relationship with the locals. It shows that aligning locals’ interests and hiring them to oversee the mining operations is essential to Teck’s success in achieving sustainability goals.

TECK RESOURCES LIMITED

They show willingness to work with local communities to share benefits of mining development.

This relationship is supported through formal agreements. These agreements provide clarity on a range of topics, like environmental management, cultural stewardship, and employment opportunities.

Mining operations mean jobs for the locals. And if Teck ever faces allegations such as violating environmental laws and standards, the authorities would think twice before quickly coming to the conclusion to suspend their mining operations as it would affect the employment of the locals.

It would be balanced if the report shows Teck’s environmental record and case studies on the past violations and how they have improved in the following years.

It is easier said than done – not everyone can be pleased as some activists near the mining areas can be nitpicking about the environment.

The report shows Teck’s devotion to conserving the environment and caring local communities, such as processing grievance from the locals. These may be persuasive at first glance because they show what are they doing, but for stakeholders – with 3 minor cases of pervious dealings with the locals – it is not enough.

Whether successful or not, stakeholders want to know how Teck deals with civil complaints. Admitting or at least revealing civil complaints in the report means acknowledging their requests and therefore shows they are willing to listen and improve, solidifying Teck’s commitment in caring the locals.

4.3 Life cycle assessment (LCA)

The report has a comprehensive assessment on environmental impact of Teck’s mining products. (3 pages, pp. 85-87)

“Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool to review the environmental impact of products throughout their entire life cycle […] from raw material extraction through transport, manufacturing and use all the way to their end of life. In order for the analysis to be meaningful, it is essential to use consistent and reliable data.” (EuLA)

TECK RESOURCES LIMITED

5. ENVIRONMENTAL MATERIAL TOPICS

5.1 Sustainability Strategy

Teck has a sustainability strategy with six focus areas: Community, Our People, Water, Biodiversity, Energy, and Materials Stewardship. These focuses guide Teck’s approach to responsible resource development.

“In the metal industry, production of Cu, Pb, and Zn causes the greatest degradation

of the environment.” (Dudka and Adriano, 1995)

Being an open-pit mining, Teck’s copper, lead and zinc extraction technique requires taking out solid rocks by drilling and blasting with explosives. The end product is then crushed into powder substance. This powder is poured into floatation cells which will then mix with air, water and chemical compounds. This mixture will be filtered, thus extracting pure copper, lead and zinc concentrations. (Teck, 2013)

Though no smelting is required which produces harmful slag, gallons of wastewater containing chemicals is discharged in the production. Not to mention deforestation and air pollution caused by open-pit mining. These all have negative impact not only on environment but human health.

So it is Teck’s duty to have proper water (8 pages, pp. 89-96),