Leonardo

Leonardo employs 8,000 people across seven sites in the UK. For every 100 jobs within the company, it also supports 355 jobs across the country. It has a long tradition of supporting its employees, as well as its supply chain and its communities.

Leonardo believes that the best way to deliver financial stability and resilience for individuals and communities is by providing well-paid, skilled jobs that not only provide employment but also offer rewarding careers in a company where people want to continue to work. The average length of service in Leonardo is greater than 20 years. During the pandemic it did not lose, or furlough, any members of staff but quickly facilitated remote working where appropriate, or continued onsite working where needed, to ensure customer deliveries.

Extending the talent pool Leonardo firmly believes in equality of opportunity - a person’s upbringing or background should not define the success of their future.

It acknowledges that those who do not have experience in their families or peer groups of working in the engineering or defence sector would not necessarily consider that the company is for them. It works hard to inform and educate those with talent of whatever background so they can access career opportunities through its STEM educational activities and its apprenticeship and graduate schemes. The opportunities for underrepresented communities not only change individual career trajectories and life prospects but create much-needed role models within families and communities. Leonardo recognises the value in wider and often overlooked talent pools, including those returning to the industry after a career break, particularly women and those from an ethnic minority background. Programmes across its UK sites give experienced professionals the chance to get back into full-time employment through training and upskilling on the job. This approach also ensures that Leonardo has access to a wider population for recruitment, engaging talent which may otherwise be lost to the sector.

Wider diversity in its workforce means a broader and more innovative perspective for the business. That makes good business sense, particularly in the context of the current skills gap across industry.

Retaining underrepresented groups Retaining staff is just as important for the business as attracting them in the first place. Leonardo is one of the UK’s largest employers of engineering apprentices and graduates and invests about £3.5 million on employee training and development annually to retain their staff and their unique knowledge. As a result of the high tech employment it offers, the average salary at Leonardo is £51K, compared to a national average of £31k. Its approach obviously pays dividends as productivity within the company is 95K a head, 80% higher than the UK average of 57K.

A person’s upbringing or background should not define the success of their future.

Creating opportunity through its supply chain Alongside its own workforce, Leonardo is committed to creating opportunities and offering financial stability through its extended supply chain partnerships, 71% of which were SMEs in 2020 Sorry, we cannot say this at present, as our submission is under review. It seems they may have a problem with accrediting defence companies, although it has already recognised BAE Systems. Watch this space! It does not employ people on zero hours contracts.

Core to its approach is creation and innovation and it is currently developing a digital platform to support upskilling SME employees that will be available across much of its supply chain.

Supporting financial resilience Leonardo has a range of employee benefit schemes which can be used to help its staff save and spend better. Financial wellbeing, alongside physical, psychological and social wellbeing, is integral to employee wellbeing at work.

All Leonardo employees have free access to the Employee Assistance Programme, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It provides support and guidance on many aspects of financial wellbeing including managing finances, legal matters, financial support in times of crisis, managing life events and supporting staff in their retirement provision.

It also offers employees life assurance, income protection for pension scheme members and access to salary finance which provides affordable loans that can be repaid through salary and money insights including webinars, budgeting tips and tools. Leonardo employees have access to discounts at hundreds of online and in-store retailers across the UK, such as supermarkets, gyms and holidays, to make their money go further.

They also have an annual flexible benefits allowance they can put towards the benefit of their choice from its flexible Employee Benefits portal which has a wide choice of financial, physical or social benefits.

As part of the Employee Benefits Programme, there are a number of financial packages available, including a special Workplace ISA where employees have the option of making regular monthly contributions to a savings account. They can also use their flexible benefits allowance from Leonardo to supplement their savings.

The Benefits programme also offers a Cycle to Work scheme and a Technology purchase offering where an employee can take out a loan for the product upfront and pay it back over 12 months via their salary.

Leonardo also offers employees special deals on car leasing and purchasing schemes, including a salary sacrifice green car scheme that reduces carbon emissions and gives the employee tax and National Insurance efficiencies.

Driving more action

Everyone can make a difference, and Purpose Coalition members are committed to going further, faster in order to help their customers, colleagues and communities through this difficult time. As we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic, we can tackle the challenges facing Britain by working collectively.

No organisation, whether that be government, business or communities, can tackle a crisis on this scale alone. The response of every business will and should be different, but it will make a difference. In a tight labour market, standing out from the crowd is essential if business is to attract and retain the best talent. Organisations cannot be seen to simply do the bare minimum, but to also play their part in supporting customers, colleagues and communities when times are tough.

Whilst at the same time getting help to those who need it now, organisations and government must begin to think about how we address the medium term challenges too. This will be a major focus for the Cost of Living Taskforce.

The Cost of Living Taskforce will meet monthly, with new organisations committing to go further faster every month. This document is the beginning - the first seed in a journey to organisations coming together to help customers, colleagues and communities through this difficult time.

In the same way that organisations are doing on levelling up, or have done on Net-Zero and Diversity and Inclusion, every organisation needs to set out their plans. That’s why the Cost of Living Taskforce will meet monthly across the country to share insights, track progress and ensure maximum impact - and every responsible organisation should play their part.