Effective October 1, 2012, QUALCOMM Incorporated completed a corporate reorganization in which the assets of certain of its businesses and groups, as well as the stock of certain of its direct and indirect subsidiaries, were contributed to Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. (QTI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of QUALCOMM Incorporated. Learn more about these changes

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Home › About Qualcomm › Corporate Citizenship › Workplace › Global Citizenship: Health and Safety

Health and Safety

As the world leader in next-generation mobile technologies, Qualcomm is commited to transforming the way communities and individuals live, learn, work and play. As a responsible citizen of the global community, this commitment extends to our partners, our employees and customers. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in the areas of health and safety.Qualcomm is passionately dedicated to maximizing the performance of our workplace safety programs while minimizing our environmental footprint.

Our Injury and Illness Prevention Plan (IIPP) provides a roadmap for how we manage our Health & Safety program. Key components of the IIPP are management involvement, health and safety training, safety audits, incident investigation, and safety communications. How we manage these elements has helped Qualcomm maintain an incident rate below the national average.

Qualcomm is passionately dedicated to maximizing the performance of our workplace safety programs while minimizing our environmental footprint.

Qualcomm offers a wide range of safety and health training programs including:

  • Ergonomic Safety
  • Hazard Communication
  • Lab Safety
  • CPR/First Aid/AED Training
  • Back Safety
  • Bloodborne Pathogens
  • Lockout/Tagout

In addition to workplace training programs, we offer safety advice on our internal Web site Home Page on topics ranging from ergonomic tips for business travelers to how to prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

Lab Safety Program

Our new Lab Safety Program is designed to provide a safer working environment for lab employees and guests. The program emphasizes the minimization of hazardous waste, all of which is recycled or properly disposed of, while ensuring compliance to rules and regulations. Our Lab Safety Training targets ergonomic awareness and workstation design - improvements that reduce injuries and increase worker efficiency.

Emergency Response

Qualcomm maintains an emergency response team and fire marshals for its domestic locations. The teams consist of volunteers to whom Qualcomm provides on-going training and support. Their role is to respond to emergencies in order to protect the health and safety of employees, as well as company property and assets.

Safety Performance

Qualcomm regularly compares its safety performance to established benchmarks. As reported by the California Division of Industrial Relations, Qualcomm continues to lead its peers in the wireless communications industry in terms of injury prevention.

Qualcomm assigns high priority to safety and environmental sustainability in the workplace as evidenced by our Injury and Illness Incidence Rate. Qualcomm’s Total Injury and Illness Incidence Rate is 20 percent below industry peers with 1,000 or more employees. Qualcomm’s safety record outperforms our peers thanks to a proactive safety management system.

Our comprehensive Ergonomics Program includes one-on-one training and ergonomic assessments of work environments. Our Environmental Health and Safety Department performed 700 ergonomic assessments in Fiscal Year 2009. Qualcomm’s Light Duty work program has successfully accommodated many employees allowing them to continue effectively working while recovering from injury. As a result, Qualcomm’s Lost Time Injury/Illness Rate is 75% below industry peers with 1,000 or more employees. Qualcomm experienced no fatalities in Fiscal Year 09.

FY09 Injury and Illness Incidence Rate Compared to Bureau of Labor Statistics Injury and Illness Data for 2008