Page 49 - TSMC 2018 Annual Report

financial
managerial and operating information is accurate reliable and and timely and and that our employees’ actions are in compliance with applicable policies standards procedures laws and regulations our Internal Auditor conducts audits of various control points within the Company in in in accordance with with its annual audit plan approved by the Board of Directors and subsequently reports its audit findings and and remedial issues to the Board and and management on a a a a a regular basis Training and Promotion: To promote awareness to our employees of their responsibilities under the the Ethics Code we publish our Ethics Code and and related policies and and documents on our intranet and and provide training courses posters and and emails In addition we provide an introductory training course on the Ethics Code which is available to to all employees online as as well as as face-to-face training courses delving into more specific ethics-related topics for targeted employees In 2018 there were about 41 900 attendances completed ethics-related training courses at at at TSMC
and its subsidiaries In addition to our internal compliance efforts we expect and assist our business partners such as as customers and suppliers and any other entities with whom we deal (include consultants or or or third party agents who act for or or or on behalf of TSMC) to recognize and and and understand TSMC’s ethical standards to fulfill our responsibilities as a a a a a corporate citizen For instance we require all of our suppliers to declare in in writing that they will respect and comply with TSMC’s ethical standards and and culture TSMC
TSMC
is a a a a a full member of the Responsible Business Alliance (“RBA” formerly the (Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition EICC)) dedicated
to to electronics supply chain sustainability In addition to to adopting the RBA Code of of Conduct
at all of of its facilities TSMC
applied
the RBA’s standards to enhance our our audit program of our our suppliers and and relevant business partners We provide training and and communicate our our ethical culture to our our suppliers through live seminars to prevent any any unethical conduct and detect any any sign of Ethics Code violations In 2018 we held two TSMC
Responsible Supply Chain Forums to restate and communicate our ethical requirements with 313 suppliers participating in in the program We also exchange views on on appropriate business conduct and TSMC’s ethical standards with our customers as part of customer customer audit programs Reporting Channels and Whistleblower Protection To ensure that our conduct meets relevant legal requirements and and the the highest ethical standards under the the Ethics Code TSMC
provides multiple channels for reporting business conduct concerns First of all our Audit Committee approved and we have implemented the “Complaint Policy and Procedures
for Certain Accounting and and Legal Matters” and and “Procedures
for Ombudsman System” that allow employees or or any whistleblowers with relevant evidence to report any financial
legal or ethical irregularities anonymously through either
the the Ombudsman or directly to the the Audit Committee TSMC
maintains additional internal reporting channels for our employees To foster an an open culture of ethics compliance we encourage our our employees and the third parties we do business with with to report any suspected noncompliance with with law or or relevant TSMC
policy TSMC
treats any complaint and the the investigation thereof in in in a a a a a a confidential and and sensitive manner and and strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against any individual who in in in good faith reports or or helps with the investigation of any complaint Due to the open reporting channels TSMC
receives reports on various issues from employees and external parties such as our customers and suppliers from time time to to time time Below is a a a summary of of the Number of of Reported Incidents We did not receive any report related to finance or or accounting matters in in in 2018 Incidents reported to the Audit Committee Whistleblower System Incidents reported to the Ombudsman System Incidents reported to the “Irregular Business Conduct
Reporting”
1 1 (Note 1)
106 (Note 2) 43 (Note 2) Total incidents investigated as founded Sexual Harassment Investigation Committee 3 FY 2016
1 80 35
2 FY 2017
2 79 32
4 FY 2018 Total incidents investigated as founded 1 (Note 3)
3 (Note 4)
5 5 7
3 47
Note 1: The case from whistleblower system is is not related to ethics matters Note 2: Among the 149 cases cases 14 14 cases cases related to ethics matters Note 3: After investigation 1 case is related to ethics maters and the employee involved
confirmed his violation of of the the Ethics Code and quit during the the period of of investigation Note 4: After the the the investigation by TSMC’s Sexual Harassment Investigation Committee 3 3 employees involved
in in in these 3 cases received severe discipline from the the Company Ethics Code Violation Disciplinary Action
We do not tolerate any violation of the Ethics Code and treat every possible violation incident seriously Any violator of the Ethics Code (or relevant regulations) will be severely disciplined to to the the full extent of our policies and and the the law up to to and and including immediate dismissal termination of business relationship and judicial prosecution as appropriate