Singtel

Singtel is involved in an innovative programme, Donate Your Data, to make digital technologies more affordable. Under this programme, which the company offers through its subsidiary Optus, mobile subscribers can donate their unused data to disadvantaged youth. The company also has a programme for supporting digital access for women and girls. Moreover, it is a leader in terms of its initiatives for users with disabilities. For example, it co-chairs the Singapore Business Network on Disability, which aims to advance equitable employment opportunities for people with disabilities. The company is also transparent about how it distributes the value it creates among its stakeholders, and it reports taxes paid and employment in its main markets.

Singtel educates senior citizens on how to use smartphones and social media apps through its Silver Mobile Workshops – which is especially relevant considering Singapore has one of the most aged populations in Asia. Additionally, the company’s #DQEveryChild programme teaches primary schoolchildren digital skills, including how to protect themselves online.

Singtel follows several best practices in cybersecurity. It has high-level oversight of cybersecurity, a security incident response team and information security management certification. Further, the company reports the data breaches it experiences. Singtel is also one of the leading companies in its approach to enhancing child online safety. It supports the Singapore Government with mechanisms to report child online harm and partners with global initiatives on child online protection.

Singtel contributes to the tech innovation ecosystem through its venture capital investments and other support for start-ups. It also discloses information on its research and development (R&D) locations and meets industry norms by reporting its carbon emissions data.

Singtel’s programmes focused on increasing internet access for disadvantaged youth and women are a leading practice in ensuring digital inclusion. However, the company can carry out a third-party impact assessment for both programmes to judge the potential for scaling and replicating these programmes.

Next to its basic skills programme for the elderly, the company can consider supporting initiatives to increase intermediate and technical digital skills among vulnerable and underrepresented populations.

Singtel should consider developing and implementing a group-level privacy policy. The company also has an opportunity to publish a transparency report detailing the government requests it receives for user information.

Singtel can consider making a high-level policy commitment to support open source initiatives and standards, as well as undertake activities in this area. The company also has an opportunity to support sustainability research. Furthermore, it can enhance transparency on its support for inclusive and ethical innovation by reporting the number of women it employs in technical roles, and by disclosing how it evaluates ethical implications when undertaking R&D activities.

Singtel does not have a publicly available policy statement committing to respect human rights or all of the ILO core labour rights, in particular the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining. The company does, however, require its business relationships to commit to all of the ILO core labour rights. It has a grievance mechanism accessible to both workers and external stakeholders to raise human rights concerns and complaints. However, it does not disclose a process to identify, assess and take action on the salient human rights risks in its own operations and in its business relationships. The company describes the stakeholders it engages with in general, but it does not specify whether it engages with stakeholders whose human rights could be affected by its activities.

Singtel publicly commits to respecting the health and safety of workers and also requires this from its business relationships. The company does not specify that workers are not required to work more than regular and overtime hours. It also does not explicitly state that it requires this from its business relationships. Singtel provides no relevant evidence in relation to paying its workers a living wage and does not publicly commit to gender equality and women’s empowerment. The company does, however, provide the salary ratio of women to men per employee category, as well as a breakdown of employee diversity by age group and gender per employee category.

Singtel has a policy prohibiting bribery and corruption, and it includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in contracts with its business relationships. Furthermore, the company has a global tax strategy. It discloses the income taxes it pays in Singapore and for its Australian subsidiary Optus, but it does not disclose income taxes paid in its individual tax jurisdictions. Singtel does not disclose its approach to lobbying and political engagement. Specifically, it has no publicly available statement indicating that it does not make political contributions, and it does not disclose its lobbying expenditures.

The below datasheet disaggregates scores within the three core social measurement areas and by specific indicators.