Top 20 Corporate Social Responsibility achievements in 2017

Top 20 Corporate Social Responsibility achievements in 2017—Teachers Mutual Bank Limited

“We believe business should be driven by ethics and purpose, and our performance shows that we continue to deliver on our values.”

—Steve James, Chief Executive Officer.

1. We’re 1 of only 3 banks worldwide to be named One of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute. This is the 4th consecutive year that we’ve received this citation.ⁱ
2. We issued $200m of ethical bonds; an Australian banking first. It’s the first Certified Ethical Investment wholesale cash product, and the first based on fossil fuel lending and investing exclusionⁱⁱ.
3. We’ve extended our Certified Ethical Investment by the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia of TMBL $500m Debt Issuance Programme for wholesale investors for a further two years.
4. We’ve been a global leader in community investment, for the 5th year in a row with an investment of 5.4% of pre-tax profits (5.4% NPBT, or 98% NPAT). As measured by the London Benchmarking Group, this is 10 times the Au&NZ average, 17 times the Au&NZ finance/insurance sector average, and 5 times the international average.ⁱⁱⁱ
5. We’re 1 of only 106 organisations around Australia noted as a 2016 Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by the Workplace Gender Equality^iv Agency. A key citation that recognises organisations that are championing gender equality among their workforce. 
6. We exceed the ASX average percentages for women at all leadership levels; 44% of our Board members, 25% of our Executive team and 37.5% of Management are women.
7. We’ve joined the Global Alliance for Banking on Values, an international network of 39 member banks who represent AU$140 billion of combined assets, dedicated to working collaboratively to expand and develop sustainable, values-based banking practices around the world.
8. We’ve kept our business practices consistent with our climate change policy, ensuring TMBL ‘does not use members’ deposits to directly lend to, buy equity or debt in, any large-scale greenhouse polluting activities from fossil fuel exploration, extraction, production and use’.
9. We’ve achieved net zero buildings via the mandatory installation of solar PV and LEDs on all our owned offices, and carbon offsets. Solar PV generated 16% of electricity in the first year.
10. We’ve retained status as a carbon neutral bank for the 5th year in a row.
11. We approved our Vendor Governance Policy, where all Material, Strategic and Major suppliers are required to complete a comprehensive CSR Survey, and all contracts are to include clauses on CSR.
12. For the 5th year in a row we’ve been recognised for our Sustainability achievements in the 27th Annual Australian Retail Banking Awards as finalist, winning three times in 2016, 2015 and 2013^v.
13. We’ve sponsored 134 events that support the professional development of teachers, office and support staff.
14. We’ve supported the next generation of educators through our Future Teacher Scholarships, with an investment to date of $310,000. A record number of applicants prompted us to increase the recipients to 10.
15. We’ve introduced a $15,000 scholarship to support a teacher who specialises in indigenous education.
16. We’ve invested $60,000 in the CUFA Cambodia Financial Literacy Project to help provide education programs to 10,000 primary school children via 200 teachers in 500 classroom lessons.
17. We’ve updated our CSR Policy, a 35 page document detailing 200+ actions that underpin our drive to be an international leader in sustainable business practices.
18. We’ve recorded an employee engagement score of 81%, employee satisfaction of 78%, and 81% of our employees would recommend the Bank as a good place to work.
19. We’re proud to be ‘One of the top 10 Australasian Employee Engagement Companies of the Year’ as named at the 2016 ANZ Employee Engagement Awards & Conference^vi
20. We’ve established a volunteer day for all staff, to allow our people to support their communities.

Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ethos

1. Teachers Mutual Bank Limited (TMBL) is a values based bank where profit has a purpose.
2. Doing business ethically and sustainably are core values that drive our model of mutual banking.
3. We believe corporate social responsibility is about the whole bank. It is embedded in who we are as a bank, what we do and why we do it.
4. We recognise that our success is not only measured in terms of profits and growth, it is also how we engage with and support our members, communities, employees, and how we minimise our impact on the environment.
5. We lead by example and are committed to being a responsible business, as we believe it is the way business should be run, and that it should be driven by ethics.
6. CSR is integrated and integral to us. As a mutual bank, we integrate CSR throughout our operations, governance and programmes.
7. To TMBL, being responsible is in fact our core purpose; it is built-in, not bolted on.
8. CSR is not just part of our business, it is how we do business.

About Teachers Mutual Bank Limited

Established in 1966, Teachers Mutual Bank Ltd has grown to become one of Australia’s largest mutual banks, dedicated to providing financial products and services exclusively for teachers, their families and employees in the education sector. TMBL has over 190,000 members and more than $6.6 billion in assets, following successful mergers with UniBank and Firefighters Mutual Bank. For more than 50 years, Teachers Mutual Bank has embedded three core values: advocacy, passion, and sustainability.

Further information in our Annual Report and Sustainability Update 2017 and via [email protected].