Social responsibility as a norm of life – this is once again proven by the Kazakhmys Corporation. Taking care of its employees and the residents of the cities in the operations areas of the Holding companies is one of the priority tasks of Kazakhmys. The corporate responsibility of Kazakhmys deserves special attention. The voluntary willingness of the company to bear unnecessary expenses for social needs in excess of those stipulated by law is a normal practice here. So, since the beginning of the second half of the year, the corporation announced new measures to support employees: targeted aid. Answers to the main questions. Who can get targeted aid from Kazakhmys? The targeted aid can be provided to the employees of the Kazakhmys Group, whose contingent subsistence minimum is less or equal to the one established by the state as of January 1 of this year multiplied by the corporation coefficient of 1.7 and by each family member. As of January 1, 2020, the subsistence minimum in Kazakhstan is 31 183 tenges. Simple calculation: 31 183 х 1,7 = 53 011 tenges. “For an illustrative example, let’s consider a family of 4 persons: two adults and two minor children. The wife of our employee is on leave to care for a child under the age of one year and gets a state benefit. We do not take this income into account, just like all state benefits. Suppose that the monthly salary of the household head are 256 thousand tenges; after deduction of all mandatory payments to the budget, he gets in hand about 210 thousand tenges. Now we multiply the subsistence minimum by the coefficient of 1.7 (the result is 53 011 tenges) and by 4 family members (employee, wife, minor children). We get an amount of 212 thousand tenges. That is, according to our estimates, to cover the living costs of the mentioned family (costs for food and non-food items, services, utility payments, logistics, etc.), the average amount of 212 thousand tenges per month is necessary. Since the employee’s salary in hands is less than the calculated amount, he falls under the category of candidates for targeted aid. It is important to understand that an employee with a salary of 400 thousand tenges may also be included in the category of candidates if he has an unemployed wife and six minor children as dependents. According to the calculated formula, we multiply 53 011 tenges by 8 family members and get 424 thousand tenges, which is higher than the employee’s salary. In this regard, he, like an employee in the previous example with a salary up to 210 thousand tenges, can receive targeted aid from the corporation with a salary twice as big. It is important to understand that the calculations depend on the total budget and the number of family members.” At the same time, since April 1, the minimum salary in the company is 140 thousand tenges. What does the targeted aid consist of The targeted aid consists of two types of fixed payments, one of which is made quarterly, and the other in a lump sum. It is planned to pay a fixed amount of 60 thousand tenges to the specified category of employees on a quarterly basis for the purchase of the basic food basket. This amount will be given to the employee in full, minus the mandatory payments to the budget, which, again, will be made by Kazakhmys. The first payments are scheduled for the end of the third quarter. The lump-sum payment in the amount of 56,5 thousand tenges will be accrued to the employees of the specified category who have school-aged children. This money is intended for preparation for school, purchase of school uniform, and stationery goods. Payments will be made before the beginning of the academic year. “One of our employees asked me recently: “I have two children, one son is 18 years old, and the other is 14 years old. Can I count on aid?” Yes, she can count on this type of aid, provided that her son studies intramurally at a college or a university.”  What else you should know about the targeted aid The candidates for targeted aid shall collect a full package of documents and submit it to the relevant committees created in each company of the Holding. The list can be found on the website of the Kazakhmys Corporation. The committees will consider inclusion in the lists for receiving targeted aid quarterly, as the situation may change over time in different families. For example, in three months, a child may come of full age, or one of the parents may get a higher-paid job and not need help anymore, while in another family, on the contrary, one of the parents may lose job for some reason. Consequently, the list of this category of employees will be updated regularly. Targeted aid is not a one-time measure, and even not a measure designed for the period of the pandemic. This is a programme that will be applied in Kazakhmys on a regular basis. What do we see? Help never hurts, especially where there are children. Perhaps, quarterly 60 thousand tenges for food will not improve the financial situation in many families significantly but can be a good help. The goal of targeted aid is to support the family budget of the employees, at least partially. The new social initiative of Kazakhmys demonstrates the company's attitude towards its employees. Today, a voluntary response and contribution to the development of the social sphere indicate the willingness of business to take care and participate in the life of society. It is to be hoped that the other large companies will follow the example of Kazakhmys. A source: www.nur.kz