RUSAL held its first creative competition, ‘Ethical Act of the Year’, dedicated to various topics of corporate ethics. Competing for victory, the company’s employees shared inspiring stories that reflect the Company’s corporate values and demonstrate adherence to ethical principles in their work.

The competition committee evaluated the works according to several criteria. Submissions in the form of an engaging story, essay, or poem had to vividly demonstrate employees’ adherence to RUSAL’s corporate values and the benefits of their activities for colleagues or the Company.

‘In our daily lives and workplace activities, we are not naturally inclined to notice subtle yet important, positive, and kind deeds, such as expressions of care, respect, honesty, or openness,’ notes Alexnder Pakhomov, Compliance Director. ‘We frequently take such things for granted. Yet it is precisely these kinds of actions that build trust and team spirit. That is why we wanted this contest to help our colleagues recall such positive and inspiring stories from the past year. Participants could share a story about themselves, reflect on their own deeds, or nominate a colleague or manager for the contest. Despite the challenging theme of the contest, we received more than 35 stories from employees across various production facilities.’

The story of one of the winners, Yulia Azarova, Head of Customer Relations at RUSAL Accounting Centre, was a demonstration of empathy, care, and concern, as well as respect for her work and the work of her colleagues. She assisted a retired employee in confirming his pensionable service history and wage records with the Social Fund of Russia. This became necessary when it emerged that his surname had mismatched spellings in his native Azerbaijani and Russian languages. He joined the plant back in the Soviet era, and at that time, no one paid attention to how his last name was spelled in his HR records. The documentation error could have cost him his pension.

Another winner, Denis Andreev, an employee of the Irkutsk Aluminium Smelter, brought together the whole group of colleagues to help the large family of a missing employee. Together with his manager, Andrey Maltsev, and other workers, they purchased materials and repaired the fence of the family’s private home.

The third winner of the competition was Ekaterina Vilkova, head of the Hydrochemical Process Control Laboratory at the Achinsk Alumina Refinery. Written as a poem, Milana Loginovskaya’s submission highlights her colleague, Ekaterina. Beyond winning 3rd place in the leadership category at the ‘Professionals of RUSAL’ awards, Ekaterina actively helps develop young professionals by creating individual development plans for them, participates in career orientation projects, introduces school students to the laboratory technician profession, mentors interns, and frequently joins the Company’s volunteer and other initiatives.

The award ceremony for the contest winners, featuring commemorative statuettes and gifts, took place during the corporate New Year’s TV and radio broadcast. The contest is planned to become an annual event.