Health Safety Environment (HSE) Policy

Purpose

At Linde, health, safety, and environmental responsibility are core values, which means we always act and operate in a way that prevents harm to people, the environment, and the communities in which we operate.

We expect all our employees and contractors to conduct themselves at all times in alignment with the values, commitments, and principles in this policy.

This HSE Policy should be read in conjunction with the Responsible Care Policy, which defines Linde’s HSE and security-related commitments to stakeholders and the management system elements that enable continuous improvement in HSE and security performance.

Scope 

This includes all Linde companies and subsidiaries, and affiliates and joint ventures (JVs) in which a Linde company or subsidiary owns a majority interest or has operational control.

Goal

At Linde, we are driven to ensure that no harm comes from our actions to people, the environment, or the communities in which we operate.

• Values and Commitments

• Health, safety, and environmental responsibility are core values at Linde and integral in all that we do.
• Compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and Linde policies is a license to operate for our employees, contractors, suppliers, and partners.
• HSE ownership through visible, demonstrated leadership across the organization.
• Collaboration with our employees, the industry, and other professional associations to continuously improve HSE performance. 

HSE Principles

At Linde, we believe that:

• All incidents and injuries are preventable.
• HSE is a line management accountability.
• We are responsible for our own safety and that of others around us.
• Our employees and contractors are obliged to stop a job or refuse to perform it, if it cannot be performed safely.
• All HSE incidents must be reported, and learnings taken from them.
• Our commitment to, and efforts in, HSE will yield results.
• Acting safely is a condition of our employment and supplier contracts.

We expect our employees, contractors, and partners to embrace these principles and reflect them in every aspect of work they perform.

This policy is integral to Linde’s business strategy. Executive leadership is committed to the full implementation of this HSE policy.

Responsibilities

Executive Leadership is responsible for approving the HSE Policy and is committed to its full implementation.  The Vice President of Global Safety, Health, Environment and Quality is responsible for periodic review of the HSE Policy. Line Managers are responsible for ensuring that their employees and contractors understand the requirements of the HSE Policy. All employees are responsible for ensuring they understand this policy and behave in accordance with Linde HSE values and principles.