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Social dialogue and employee satisfaction **

Objectives:

provide a working environment that respects employee needs,
develop a better balance between an employee’s professional and private lives,
pursue social dialogue.

Highlights in 2008:

number of agreements in 2008: 255 (excluding Rosbank), including 93 agreements and amendments in France.

Collective agreements in France

In France, the agreements signed in 2008 concern remuneration, profit-sharing, the Company Savings Plan, equality in the workplace, working hours, employee benefits (including the retirement scheme), staff representative bodies and the election of staff representatives to the Board of Directors.

governing the mandatory collective bargaining on salaries:

unanimous approval by all trade unions of a wage agreement providing for the payment of a bonus equating to 25% of monthly wages and the payment of a bonus for part-time employees,
signing of an amendment providing for the revaluation by 3% of the scale for minimum wages within Société Générale on January 1, 2009,
signing of an agreement governing the elimination of discrepancies between the wages of men and women. A special budget of
€ 800,000 has therefore been allocated in order to make up for any unfounded differences.

governing working hours :

an amendment to the agreement governing the 35-hour working week in France was signed in May 2008 in order to allow for greater flexibility when it comes to taking time off in lieu and to improve the terms and conditions of time savings accounts,
an amendment to the agreement of June 2, 2004 governing part-time work which now allows employees to work 90% of their normal working hours,
the restitution to employees working part-time of days off in lieu of the reduced working week (on days when employees do not usually work).

Social dialogue is part of the Group's commitment to negotiating and consulting with trade union organizations and staff-elected representatives, both at a national level and with local delegations. Outside France, where regulations differ, social dialogue has also led to the establishment of a number of employee agreements.

European Works Council

Re-elected in June 2008, the European Works Council is a forum for information, dialogue and exchange on economic, financial and social issues that are either of strategic importance or have cross-border implications. The 23 seats on the council are held by representatives from 19 different countries.
The Council covers 145 Group companies in France and 160 companies in the European Union, namely more than 88,206 employees in 27 countries.

Social climate surveys

Over the last 10 years, Société Générale France has conducted a yearly social climate survey of a sample range of the Group’s staff in France (1,300 employees 2008). Today, surveys are also carried out in the Group’s subsidiaries in France and abroad. Social climate surveys have also been undertaken by Crédit du Nord, Rosbank in Russia, Komercni Banka in the Czech Republic, BRD in Romania, Bank Republic in Georgia, ALD Automotive in Morocco, ALD in Portugal, ALD in Norway, Axus in Finland and Sogecap in France.
The aim of these surveys is to establish the needs and expectations of employees and to provide solutions in response to these needs

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**As per our commitment under the Global Compact