Social support for employees and their families
Nornickel’s contribution to the national goal of preserving the population, strengthening health, and improving the well‑being of people, supporting families
Targets and objectives:
a) Raise the total fertility rate to 1.6 by 2030 and to 1.8 by 2036 [...]
b) Increase life expectancy to 78 years by 2030 and to 81 years by 2036, with particular emphasis on accelerating the growth of healthy life expectancy;
e) Reduce the overall duration of temporary disability among working‑age citizens by 2030 by promoting healthy lifestyles, creating conditions for timely disease prevention, and encouraging regular physical activity;
f) Improve public satisfaction with access to physical education and sports by 2030
Nornickel’s performance highlights and plans
- Provision of extra payments to women on maternity leave, monthly financial assistance to women on leave to care for children under the age of three (0.7 thousand women received additional payments, and 2.5 thousand were provided with financial support in 2024)
- Organisation of health resort treatment for employees and their family members (24.6 thousand people received health resort vouchers in 2024, with a target of 25.8 thousand for 2025)
- A total of 80.7 thousand Nornickel employees and their family members are covered under voluntary health insurance (VHI) policies
- Almost 22 thousand employees participated in a human genome sequencing programme
- A wide range of quality medical services is provided to employees, their family members, and local residents (Corporate Healthcare project)
- A range of mass sports events for employees and local residents in the regions where the Company operates (more than 40% of employees were involved in sports and fitness activities in 2024)
Nornickel’s contribution to Russia’s national projects
Family national project
Relevant UN SDGs
Related federal projects
Older Generation
Support for Families
Large Family
Family Values and Cultural Infrastructure
Nornickel’s key initiatives and focus areas
The Company’s Veterans, a programme focused on supporting non‑working retirees
Co‑Funded Pension Plan, a corporate private pension programme
Mother at Work, a programme aimed at supporting new and expectant mothers
Organising family‑oriented events and developing infrastructure for family leisure in the Company’s host cities
Creating jobs across the Company’s footprint
Long and Active Life national project
Relevant UN SDGs
Related federal projects
Modernisation of Primary Healthcare in the Russian Federation
Health for Everyone
Fighting Cardiovascular Diseases
Fighting Diabetes
Fighting Cancer
Healthcare Personnel
Nornickel’s key initiatives and focus areas
Compensating employees and their families for health resort treatment and recreation expenses (partial compensation for the cost of vouchers)
Provision of VHI policies to employees and their families, and participation in a human genome sequencing programme
Conducting occupational health and safety training sessions (for more details, please see the Workplace Safety section)
Providing employees with personal protective equipment (PPE) (for more details, please see the Workplace Safety section)
Corporate Healthcare project (for more details, please see the Workplace Safety section)
Programme of mass sports events
Benefits and social support programmes
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Discounted tours for health resort treatment and recreation of employees and their families
Annual reimbursement (in excess of amounts currently required by Russian laws) of holiday travel expenses for a round trip and baggage fees for employees and their families living in the Far North and equivalent regions
Other benefits and programmes aimed at the social support of employees
VHI for employees and their families
Redundancy payments
One‑off financial assistance to employees experiencing certain major life events or in difficult circumstances
Relocation package for employees moving to another regionSubject to the provisions of the Employee Relocation programme.: lump‑sum payment for resettlement, reimbursement of travel expenses and baggage fees, monthly rental (sub‑rental) payment / compensation for dormitory fees
Complementary corporate pension plan and other types of social benefits under the existing collective bargaining agreements and internal regulations
In 2024, spending on social programmes and benefits totalled RUB 16.5 billion, remaining flat year‑on‑year. Travel expenses and baggage fees (22.1%), health resort treatment (15.1%), and VHI (13.4%) accounted for the largest shares of total expenses.
Special support for certain categories of employees:
- Employees with disabilities are eligible for additional paid leave (three calendar days per year) and also receive annual financial assistance of up to RUB 10 thousand from the Company;
- Women on maternity leave receive an extra payment to match their fixed salary, and women on leave to care for children under the age of three receive monthly financial assistance;
- Special attention is paid to professional longevity: the Company provides free health resort vouchers to employees of retirement and pre‑retirement age.
In 2024, in the run‑up to Mother’s Day, Nornickel launched a comprehensive programme for female employees with children and those expecting a child – Mother at Work. The programme is designed as a guide to help female employees navigate the range of opportunities offered by the Company. The information portal includes three sections:
- The Care section provides details about Nornickel’s benefits package and various support measures;
- The Development section is dedicated to professional and personal growth and contains information about corporate programmes, training courses, and books;
- The Children section features resources that assist with child development and parenting.
The programme was launched with a webinar featuring its initiators and female Nornickel employees, who shared their personal experiences of successfully balancing career and motherhood. Future plans include integrating the information platform for current and expectant mothers into the Supernika corporate mobile app, expanding the resource, and enriching it with various activities. The portal is also intended for fathers, offering a wealth of useful information for them as well.
The Nornickel Dynasties corporate project upholds the traditions of generational succession among employees: parents demonstrate their best qualities and skills, and children learn from their example. Hard work, a solid upbringing, and belief in one’s vocation help build strong families and true dynasties – the backbone of Nornickel. The Company’s initiatives help promote family leisure, strengthen bonds, and bring people together around shared moral values.
More than 200 family dynasties work across 35 Group enterprises in Norilsk and Dudinka, with 135 of them having a combined length of service exceeding 200 years.
Employee comfort programme
For more than 20 years, the Company has run Made with Care, a workplace welfare facility repair programme aiming to provide employees with comfortable and safe working conditions.
Every day, Group entities operate over 4 thousand sanitary, amenity, sports and fitness, catering, healthcare, and recreational facilities with a total area of more than 410 thousand sq m.
In 2024, the programme set a new record for the number of facilities renovated, the scope of work completed, and the number of employees whose working conditions were significantly improved.
Facility renovations are carried out based on a Group‑wide standard solutions catalogue featuring solutions for the improvement of welfare facilities and incorporating modern technologies and materials. In 2024, a new design concept was developed for recreation rooms at production facilities. The project was piloted at the Kola site.
Along with the commissioning of new welfare facilities, plans for 2025 also include the repair of several entrances, common use areas, and façades of administrative facilities.
| Cumulative programme results for 2003–2024 | Results for 2024 | Plans for 2025 |
|---|---|---|
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Employees with disabilities are engaged in the Company’s office‑based work supported by inclusive infrastructure. For example, entrances to office buildings in Moscow are equipped with ramps, lifts, and accessible restrooms. The Group’s recreational and treatment and preventive care facilities are also equipped with ramps for wheelchair access. The Company’s health resort in Sochi features 33 rooms and four villas specifically designed for people with disabilities. The facility also features lifts for wheelchair users and provides beach wheelchairs to assist people with limited mobility in bathing.
Health improvement programmes
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Nornickel runs a health resort treatment and recreation programme aimed at protecting and improving employees’ health, preventing disease, and organising wholesome family vacation – all of which help enhance employee productivity.
The collective bargaining agreements in place at MMC Norilsk Nickel and at Group enterprises set out obligations to implement health improvement and health resort treatment programmes for employees and their families.
The health resort treatment programme covers a wide range of locations. The Zapolyarye health resort in Sochi remained the most popular destination for treatment and recreation in the reporting year. The Company also continued to offer employees vouchers for health resorts in popular destinations such as Belokurikha, Gelendzhik, and Kislovodsk. Children of Company employees spent their summer holidays in a health resort in Anapa, on the Black Sea coast. In addition, a children’s sports camp was organised at the Universiade Village in Kazan.
Health improvement and health resort treatment programmes are selected on an individual basis, taking into account the results of employees’ medical examinations.
Voluntary health insurance
In addition to compulsory health insurance of employees required by federal laws, the Company provides voluntary health insurance.
The VHI policy covers a wide range of professional medical services. Employees living in the Far North can use their VHI policy both within their region of residence and beyond. The range of services is the same under all insurance programmes. The programmes for different employee categories differ only in the level of clinics and the region of coverage.
As part of the VHI programme, employees have a unique opportunity to take a test under the human genome sequencing programme. The programme provides the most comprehensive personalised information about one’s body characteristics and identifies the risks of significant diseases. Using these data, employees can take steps to minimise the likelihood of health problems. Almost 22 thousand employees have already taken part in the programme.
Pension plans
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To retain and attract talented and professional specialists, Nornickel operates a corporate private pension scheme. The Co‑Funded Pension Plan programme is implemented in line with the relevant plan. The Parity Plan provides for joint funding of pension savings by the employee and the Company on a parity (equal) basis.
In 2024, the average contribution per participant equalled 4.2% of their salary, or RUB 7.8 thousand per month, across the Company.
In addition to the Co‑Funded Pension Plan programme, the Company offers:
- Complementary Corporate Pension Plan – a lump‑sum payment from the Company’s funds for employees aged 55 to 65 with at least 20 years of service, provided they resign and relocate outside the Norilsk Industrial District. In 2024, 494 employees received this benefit;
- Lifetime Monthly Corporate Pension Plan (LMCP) – available to employees awarded the Company’s Badge of Honour. Since the launch of the programme, 237 employees have been granted this entitlement; 193 were receiving payments as of the end of 2024.
Programmes supporting former employees and their families
In addition to the private pension plan, the Company provides ongoing support measures for former employees.
The Company’s VeteransA comprehensive support package for non‑working retirees permanently residing in Norilsk. The main eligibility criterion is the employee’s length of service with the Company
A range of measures providing assistance to former employees who retired before 10 July 2001, provided they had at least 25 years of service with the Company and permanently reside outside the Norilsk Industrial District. The Fund is financed through voluntary monthly salary contributions by current employees and charitable contributions from the Company
Reimbursement of expenses for medical treatment, medications, funeral services, and other support in difficult circumstances
Housing programmes
The Company runs housing programmes (Our Home / My Home and Your Home) offering employees the opportunity to acquire apartments in the Moscow and Tver Regions, the Krasnodar Territory, and Yaroslavl on special terms.
Commercial lease agreements with a purchase option
Sales and purchase agreement with payment by instalments
Participants: highly skilled and sought‑after employees under 50 years of age with at least five years of continuous service, whose occupation/position falls within the priority focus areas
Subsidised loan programme
Nornickel provides housing support in the form of partial reimbursement of mortgage interest and/or an interest‑free loan for a down payment to purchase a home in any region of Russia.
Relocation support programme for new employees
Nornickel provides support for newly hired employees, their family members, and apprentices (candidates) under professional training contracts with the Company in relocating to their place of work in Norilsk and the Taimyrsky Dolgano‑Nenetsky Municipal District from other regions of Russia.
Reimbursement of travel expenses and baggage fees
Reimbursement of rental costs (for three years)
Lump‑sum resettlement payment to help employees settle in their new place of residence
Relocation programme
As part of its Relocation programme, Nornickel helps employees smoothly adapt to a new place of residence when relocating to another region to take up new job responsibilities.
At the end of 2024, the programme included 82 Nornickel employees, 11 of whom joined during the year.
Relocation allowance of up to 40% of basic salary (depending on the region), provided throughout the period of employment in the relocation region
One‑time relocation allowance
Reimbursement of travel expenses and baggage fees as well as an additional reimbursement for round‑trip travel to the employee’s permanent place of residence (twice a year)
Reimbursement of housing rental costs or temporary hotel accommodation costs
Additional three‑day paid leave in the first year of employment to help with settling in
Employee well‑being support programme
Any Nornickel employee can benefit from the Nornickel Will Support comprehensive corporate programme comprising three components: health care, training in useful knowledge and skills, and supporting those in need.
| Programme component | Description |
|---|---|
| Telemedicine – a healthcare service | Included in every employee’s VHI package, Telemedicine provides online access to healthcare services without queues. Both emergency and scheduled consultations are available. Appointments and communication with doctors take place via the insured person’s personal account, which also stores their history of consultations and medical reports |
| Remote advice on legal, psychological, financial, and healthy lifestyle matters | The service provided by PRAVOCARD and RESO‑Garantia offers access to qualified lawyers, psychologists, financial advisers, and healthy lifestyle experts via phone, video calls, or online chat (through a mobile app or website). Each user receives a secure personal account, where a history of their consultations is stored. There is no limit to the number of consultations. In 2024, 1,962 consultations were provided, with the most in‑demand services being psychological support and legal advice. Employee feedback on the service has been highly favourable, with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5.0 |
| Expert webinar service | Nornickel is developing an online training service with leading experts, accessible to Company employees from any location. In 2024, employees were offered webinars on financial, legal, and social topics as well as building strong family relationships. On average, one webinar is held each month, with 300 to 500 employees connecting online, while others watch the recordings later |
Social support for employees made redundant due to closure of production facilities
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As part of the programme to wind down operations and place the Kaula‑Kotselvaara shaft of Severny Mine on care and maintenance, a range of social support measures was developed for employees affected by the redundancy and transferred to other Company units. These included severance pay of at least six average monthly salaries, early access to the corporate pension for participants of pension programmes, and the option to terminate housing programme participation early in favour of the employee, among others. In addition, employees were offered a smooth transfer to other Company production sites, including opportunities for retraining.
The bulk of the programme was implemented in 2023. All employee‑related actions were carried out in compliance with the Russian labour and employment laws as well as Nornickel’s social support policies and programme.
New Year presents for children of Nornickel Group employees
Each year, to celebrate the New Year, the Company purchases over 65 thousand presents for employees’ children aged 0 through 15.
Development of corporate communities
To boost employee engagement in achieving business goals and objectives, improve quality of life in the regions, share experience, and foster partnerships, Nornickel brings together proactive employees through its corporate communities.
Plant of Goodness corporate volunteering programmeFor a description of charitable and volunteer environmental and social projects implemented by employees as part of the Plant of Goodness programme, please see the Improving the Well-Being of Local Communities section.
Those Who Care corporate change management programme For several years now, Nornickel’s Those Who Care programme has served as one of Nornickel’s key catalysts for positive change and a tool for improving operational efficiency. It brings together proactive employees who jointly develop and advance ideas to address a wide range of challenges facing the Company – from onboarding and professional growth of new hires and efficient inventory management to gas and condensate processing, the development of a plastic recycling system, and the search for alternative fuels for copper fire refiningInterviews with participants, experts, and business customers are availableon the programme’s official website..
teams
In Good Company is a project for young people enabling Nornickel employees under 35 to follow educational tracks and develop their skills across a wide range of fields: boosting personal effectiveness as well as enhancing useful skills and acquiring new ones for work and career growth to proposing development projects for the Company or local communities and unlocking creative potential. The programme covers four focus areas, providing each participant with a platform to bring their ideas to life and fulfil their potential.
| Track | Goal | Participants | Examples from 2024For more details, please visit the programme’s social media page., | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professional practice | Fostering innovation‑driven thinking. Building teams of like‑minded peers within thematic communities | Innovators and efficiency champions focused on increasing the Company’s efficiency and advancing their own professional growth | Implemented projects and initiatives: Garage, May Day, December Day, Working, Pit, Shop | ||
| Growth | Providing young employees with opportunities to build a successful career and fulfilling life | Active, engaged, and loyal young employees eager to learn and grow | Safe Safety case competition, webinars with experts | ||
| Social practice | Involving young employees in local development projects and strengthening their ties to the regions where the Company operates by building a social corporate community | Employees committed to solving local challenges and exploring new approaches and solutions | Implementation of projects proposed by social innovators, for example, developing a cutting‑edge olympiad for high school students, a yoga tour, a chatbot helping users navigate coworking spaces across the city, a projection pedestrian crossing, and more | ||
| Creativity | Establishing conditions for creative, intellectual, and athletic self‑expression of young employees. Involving them in the co‑design and delivery of corporate events | Smart and creative people or anyone eager to learn more about the Company and the region | Just Dance tournament, phygital basketball, workwear fashion show, and creative master classes | ||
| Options for participation in the programme | |||||
| In‑person meetings and track‑specific events | In Good Company mobile app accessible 24/7, featuring educational and entertaining tasks | Online events: lectures, webinars, educational courses, and quizzes | |||
For the convenience of all participants, the Company offers a secure proprietary mobile app, where users can select any number of tracks and activities, expand their social circles and interests, and interact freely – regardless of job title, speciality, or location. By successfully completing tasks in the app, users can earn and accumulate experience points (XPs) and nickelcoins (NCs). The app’s virtual currency can be redeemed for useful rewards from the online store.
Women in Modern Industries Russia initiativeNornickel is a key partner of the Women in Modern Industries (WIM) association, which aims to build a community of women professionals in modern sectors, elevate the status of careers in industry, and support the professional and personal development of female leaders, in particular, by launching special programmes to foster women’s leadership in the regions.
In 2024, WIM Russia held its Talented Woman in the Extractive Industry award ceremony in Moscow for the fourth time. The award received 630 entries, which is 28% more than in 2023. It brought together women from 64 Russian and CIS companies. A total of 125 women were named winners, including three Nornickel employees who won in various categories. Another 19 female employees from Nornickel were recognised as prize‑winners in various categories, and 12 earned a Jury’s Choice award For the full list of winners and participants, please visit WIM’s official website..
Participation and victory in the competition have a positive impact on the participants’ professional development and career growth. Over the four years of the award’s history, 31% of Nornickel’s female employees who participated in the competition got promoted, with career progressions such as from chief engineer to centre director, grade 5 control console operator to plant process engineer, control room operator to lead engineer, and grade 5 flotation operator to facility foreman.
Mass sports events programme
To promote a healthy and active lifestyle among employees and their families, Group entities run a variety of mass sports events. The Company supports regular fitness activities, organises and holds annual sports events and corporate competitions. Specifically, the following events were held in 2024:
- Annual spartakiad competitions across the Company’s footprint, in sports such as alpine skiing and snowboarding, cross‑country skiing, swimming, volleyball, futsal, basketball, and ice hockey as well as family competitions and corporate runs;
- Holiday‑themed sports events, including Defender of the Fatherland Day, Miner’s Day, and Metallurgist’s Day;
- A range of tournaments, such as the Night Hockey League, Business Champions League, and other leagues;
- Training sessions in various sports.
The Nornickel: Hooked on Sport corporate project aims to encourage every employee to engage in regular physical activity, maintain a healthy diet, manage stress effectively, and enjoy both life and work. A dedicated mobile app brings together colleagues from different cities and offers a fun way to explore the Company’s host regions through virtual journeys. The platform tracks all the kilometres covered and minutes spent training and uses a special ratio to convert them into an internal currency called “charges”. These charges can be redeemed for branded accessories and apparel or an additional course on healthy eating. In 2024, the project was rolled out to the entire Group.
A new concept was developed for the project for 2025 to celebrate the Group’s anniversary – Energy 9.0 All activities and challenges will revolve around this milestone number: 90 minutes, 90 charges, 90 repetitions, 90 challenges of varying difficulty, and a series of global 90‑day challenges. Teams will be formed by host city or region to pursue shared fitness goals and maintain a healthy lifestyle together.