CBM wins Duty of Care Award

CBM

In May 2018, CBM won the International SOS Duty of Care Award in Chicago. The awards recognise outstanding achievements in meeting high standards of health, safety and security at work. It honors organisations and individuals who have made a significant contribution to protecting their staff as they travel and work overseas.

After being ‘highly commended for our innovative work during the 2016 Awards , we are now especially glad to have won the Duty of Care Award 2018 in the category ‘Thought Leadership’. 


Background

This award recognises new and novel approaches to identifying, managing and mitigating risk by shining a light on best practices to raise standards in Duty of Care. Out of ten shortlisted finalists, CBM received this prestigious recognition thanks to our thought leadership in disability inclusive safety and security. 

CBM has set the bar and the standard. This research and then practical application has changed the entire Modus Operandi for this organization, how it recruits, how it operates and how it deploys in a fully inclusive way. The engagement, constant engagement, with stakeholders throughout the process and the agile iterative developments they have added to the programme is fantastic. The leadership, uncompromising in its direction, is superb. The quality of the work completed is seen by the organizations that now want to learn from CBM. Well done CBM.
Quote from the judges of the Duty of Care Awards 2018

Robust health, safety and security policy in place

CBM has been working relentlessly to not just implement a robust health, safety and security (HS&S) policy throughout the organisation, but also to ensure that it is disability inclusive. The results of our efforts have a direct and positive impact on CBM staff and travelers worldwide whereas we also proactively share our concept. CBM staff spend a lot of time working and traveling alongside staff of partner organisations. In opening up our trainings, and freely sharing our written security materials, we incrementally see that security standards are enhanced at partner level too. This is especially relevant to safeguard staff that travel in high and extreme risk areas. It is in such areas that many persons with disabilities live and good safety and security thus works as tool that enables programme continuity in areas which would otherwise remain without services or support.

Winning this award makes our resolve for a disability inclusive safety and security approach even stronger and we hope to see it being implemented across the CBM Federation and by other global organisations as well.


Disability Inclusive Duty of Care

CBM’s duty of care covers the legal and moral obligation to take all possible and reasonable measures to reduce the risk of harm to those working for, or on behalf of CBM. CBM’s duty of care also encompasses support mechanisms following an incident or crisis, such as access to confidential care support services for psychosocial issues such as stress, anxiety and depression, and a crisis hotline for security related support as well as medical emergencies. 

In all these elements, CBM seeks to embed disability inclusion. Our ongoing dialogue with CBM travelers with a disability has helped us to constantly enhance our work and make it relevant for those who face travel challenges without the use of their eyes, ears or legs. 


Rainer Brockhaus, CBM International Leadership Team Chair, says

“CBM strongly emphasizes the importance of Duty of Care towards staff across the CBM Federation. CBM accepts the legal and moral duty to provide high-level standards of health, safety and security for all our employees – at any location globally and at any point in time. Implementing Duty of Care enables CBM programmes to have a continuous and meaningful impact for beneficiaries who often live in areas with an elevated security risk. The 2018 Duty of Care Award is an excellent recognition of CBM’s efforts and dedication to ensure safety and well-being of our staff”.