Print This PageRespecting Communities and People
Vehicle Safety
Monsanto began its vehicle safety program for employees in 2002. Each year, every employee completes an online driver’s training module. Employees who spend extensive time driving are required to complete behind-the-wheel training. Before the program began, we recorded more than nine accidents for every million miles driven. Today, our record is less than four accidents for every million miles driven.
"Our goal is to see all Monsanto employees safely buckled
up every time they are in a vehicle, on and off the job."
In 2007, the Vehicle Safety team placed a renewed emphasis on seat belt use. “In 2006, we saw several off-the-job vehicle accidents,” says Maureen Mazurek, Monsanto director of global safety and human rights. “In some cases, the consequences of these accidents might have been minimized if the drivers had been wearing seat belts.” The results of the check indicated that 85 percent of all employees were safely buckled up entering or exiting our sites, said Mazurek. “These are strong results, but we would like to see them higher,” she said.
We have a mandatory seat belt policy. The policy covers all employees in company vehicles and all employees in personal or rental cars on company business. Seat belts are required for the driver and all passengers whether the driving is done on a public road, company site, or farm.
Monsanto also enacted a cellular phone use policy in 2007. When driving company vehicles or driving on company business or on company property, employees may not use handheld cellular phones.
An employee’s commute to and from work is considered off-the-job by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) definition, but many jurisdictions around the world require seat belt use and prohibit handheld phone use while driving. “We hope employees take the practice of wearing seat belts home and share it with their families,” said Mazurek.
“Our goal is to see all Monsanto employees safely buckled up every time they are in a vehicle, on or off the job.” To carry our commitment further, Monsanto hosted 30 multinational companies at our Creve Coeur, Missouri, campus to share best practices and work collaboratively in the area of vehicle safety.
