Below are feature stories of Genentech's environmental commitment in action. Click on the links below to read examples of how we at Genentech are changing the way we affect the environment.

Oceanside Fire Response
Ergonomics
Genentech Bicycle Club

Oceanside Fire Response

As wildfires raged across Southern California in October 2007, Genentech's Oceanside campus supported its employees by providing families and their pets with safe and comfortable onsite shelter as well as food. Evacuated employees were accommodated in local hotels, and assistance was provided to employees who needed to make insurance claims. EHS Manager, Joe Hess, was evacuated from his home, and he recalls his thoughts during the early morning evacuation. Joe says, "It was a very stressful time, but it was great knowing that Genentech would accommodate my family's needs for the week and in the future if needed, allowing me to focus on campus operations." Within hours of the fire starting, Joe helped set up an Emergency Operations Center, which was maintained throughout the eight days that the fire threatened the area. Contingency plans were put in place to protect our employees, protect our facility and save our inventory.

In response to the wildfires, Genentech contributed $100,000 to the "Biotech Fund First Responders," a fund arranged by BIOCOM (a life science association based in Southern California) to support the San Diego Foundation. This local nonprofit organization works closely with disaster relief organizations such as the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army. The gift supported immediate response and recovery activities, primarily to provide food, shelter, housing and healthcare needs to people in the affected areas. Genentech's matching funds program enabled employees who made personal contributions to double their gift. Like the company did after Hurricane Katrina, Genentech raised the limit on matching funds to $10,000 per employee.

Ergonomics Ergonomic-related injuries are painful for employees and costly for the company. Our goal is to implement effective ergonomic solutions that protect employees and enhance productivity at Genentech.

A majority of Genentech's overall lost workdays in 2006 were attributed to cumulative trauma injuries, so in 2007 we made this a focus area, and implemented a web-based office ergonomics system. The purpose of the system is to proactively assess risks that can contribute to fatigue, reduce the quality of work and lead to ergonomics-related discomfort or cumulative trauma injuries. Employees take a personal online assessment and training, and they and their supervisor are sent individualized recommendations to reduce the risks related to both workstation set-up and work practices. Employees' risk profiles are identified, and subsequent periodic assessments track the improvement in these profiles.

The program was piloted in 2007 in South San Francisco, Vacaville and Oceanside. Participation during this first year was 28 percent of the total workforce. In 2008 we will continue a phased roll-out of this program, with a target of increasing employee participation to 75 percent.

While this program is still young, initial indications are that our lost work days due to ergonomics issues are decreasing. In 2006, cumulative trauma accounted for 85 percent of all lost work days, while in 2007 this was reduced to 48 percent. Additionally, the number of lost work days for cumulative trauma injuries per 100 employees has been reduced from an average of 11.6 in 2006 to 5.8 in 2007, indicating that by increasing awareness and catching problems sooner, we can reduce the severity of these problems.

At our South San Francisco campus, employees are encouraged to visit any of our ergonomics showrooms. In the showroom, they can work with the ergonomics team to try out various workstation setups with a range of ergonomic chairs, alternative keyboards or mice, and other office tools. After visiting the showroom, they can purchase recommended improvements through the online ergonomic product list. Our web site and showrooms are also a resource for laboratory and manufacturing ergonomics interventions. If needed, employees can schedule an evaluation by an ergonomics specialist in their office, laboratory or manufacturing work area.

Genentech Bicycle Club In support of Genentech's emphasis on providing a "great place to work" we have a variety of wellness-related clubs, including clubs for cycling, running, golf and skiing.

One of the most active clubs is the Bicycle Club, which has over 400 members from South San Francisco, Vacaville and Oceanside sites. Some commute by bike, some organize lunchtime rides and some regularly participate in charity bike rides.

Pictured here are Michelle Valintis, Paige Lloyd and Scott Steele at the Waves to Wine ride in May 2007, where about 100 Genentech riders raised $68,000 for Multiple Sclerosis. Scott says, "It is great to work for Genentech and with employees who give so much back to our communities! It feels great to contribute towards finding cures and raising community and public awareness."

For over eight years, riders from South San Francisco and Vacaville have donned Genentech Bicycle Club jerseys and participated in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure in Napa Valley. They also regularly participate in the American Lung Association's Bike for Breath and the Festa Foundation's Giro di Peninsula Bike Ride.

Each year on Bike to Work Day, the Bicycle Club organizes group rides, a lunchtime barbeque and tricycle races.