AIDA is committed to complying with human rights, in other words, with fundamental ethical principles. Examples of our commitment include: AIDA Values, signatory to the UN Charter of Diversity, our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and compliance with the Modern Slavery Acts as well as the UNWTO principles of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.
Our code of conduct and ethics forbids any kind of exploitation of minors and forced labor and states our ambition to comply with all laws and other regulations in connection with slave labor and human trafficking. We expect our business partners also to comply with and respect these laws and other regulations and make ethics the basis of their decisions in all of their areas of activity. These requirements arise from our code of conduct and ethics which explicitly forbids the exploitation of slave labor and human trafficking in our supply chain.
One of the basic principles of AIDA Cruises is to observe the laws of those countries where AIDA Cruises operates and to make every effort to maintain the highest possible ethic standards in business activities.
The following ‘Code of Conduct and Ethics for Business Partners’ was drawn up to maintain AIDA Cruises’ commitment to those laws and standards. Some of the binding principles set out in the document include:
We expect not just our employees but also all of our business and agency partners to share unreservedly the values of our entrepreneurial activities and support these to the best of their ability. The basic principles defined in the Business Partner Code of Conduct and Ethics serve as the guidelines for our joint business relations. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your future support.
A committee for examining and assessing possible conflicts of interests as defined in the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics simultaneously functions as a point of contact for all employees and is currently staffed by two representatives of the Executive Committee and one representative from the legal department.
WE ARE COLORFUL. This is one of our company’s key values - both on land and at sea. In a broader sense of the word, COLORFUL stands for diversity and inclusion, without which AIDA would not be so successful.
We are liberal-minded, very quality-conscious and are convinced that cultural diversity enriches our company. Learning from one another is no mere lip service at AIDA, but is in fact a core component of our AIDA Values. As a multinational company with employees hailing from more than 50 countries, diversity is a natural part of our professional life - and a huge asset. It is for this reason that we joined the ‘Diversity Charter’ initiative. Through this participation, we are expressly proclaiming our commitment to respect all of our employees on an equal footing, regardless of gender, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, ideology or age. We moreover respect the unique cultural features of our colleagues’ country of origin and take their needs into account.
Should an employee notice a breach of our values, he or she is able to approach their superior, their employee representative or a trusted liaison officer. The HR Manager, who is on the ship’s board, supports human resources work on board our ships and also provides advice regarding questions on labor law. Every employee can also make use of the Compliance Hotline, anonymously if desired, right around the clock. We examine the incidents reported to us meticulously and enact labor law measures as required in line with our zero-tolerance policy.
We collect, process and use personal data of guests, employees and business partners only in compliance with the legal provisions. The European and German data protection laws are our principal sources of legal authority, especially the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Data privacy statements and protection regulations are binding for all employees. The AIDA Cruises Corporate Data Protection Officer monitors compliance with these provisions. Our guests may exercise their right to information and revocation at any time by contacting datenschutz@aida.de (dataprotection@aida.de).
AIDA Cruises’ compliance with data protection is moreover regularly examined by TÜV Süd (Technical Control Board South).