Environmental health and Safety Issues

We are committed to following stringent environment, health and safety (EHS) regulations applicable to our operations, providing products and services in an environmentally responsible manner and protecting the health and safety of our employees within the jurisdictions in which we operate.

Our operating companies had no significant environment, health or safety compliance-related enforcement actions in 2016 (defined as those actions that resulted in sanctions equal to or exceeding $100, 000). We take our EHS stewardship seriously and we evaluate our EHS performance through regular reviews and audits. When issues are identified, we cooperate closely with federal, state and local agencies to reach resolutions that are in the best interest of the environment, our customers and the citizens of our communities.

In the event an accident occurs in the workplace, our policy is to respond swiftly, investigate contributing factors, determine the root cause and take appropriate corrective actions to protect our employees, neighboring communities and the environment. We require employees to report all alleged work-related injuries, illnesses and accidents. For U.S. operations in 2016, our OSHA total recordable occupational injury and illness rate was 1.75 per 100 employees. This rate is lower than the most recent (2015) average published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the telecommunications industry, which was 2.2 per 100 employees.i

Our Code of Business Conduct (CoBC) specifically includes a section on creating a safe and secure place to work. Each employee – from our part-time workers to our CEO – is responsible for reviewing the code annually and understanding its provisions. In 2016, approximately 98% of employees completed the annual COBC training.

We train all employees on our EHS system, and we conduct specialized training based on job tasks and the hazards an employee is likely to encounter in his or her position.

Environment, Health & Safety Management System

AT&T has adopted an Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Management System based on the principles of International Standards Organization (ISO) 14001 and Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001. Please see our comparison table for alignment.

The EHS Management System provides a framework for AT&T to systematically manage its environmental risks and health and safety hazards, in an effort to improve our operations and performance, and maintain the highest levels of commitment to the health and safety of our employees and the protection of our environment.