Celebrations have been held to mark the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Minorange Guild, attended by Monique Bouygues, the widow of Francis Bouygues, Martin Bouygues, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Bouygues Group, Yves Gabriel, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bouygues Construction and President of the Minorange Guild, and members of the Bouygues Construction General Management Committee. Founded by Francis Bouygues in 1963, the Guild is a professional community to which Group employees gain membership in recognition of their skills, conscientiousness and attitude on construction and public works sites and energy and services projects.

This institution, the only one of its kind, constituted a major innovation at a time when building sector workers were still employed on a casual basis. It made it possible to develop employee loyalty, to offer workers health, safety and job stability, and to help them develop pride in their work. The Guild quickly proved a success: initially, there were 42 members, but today there are 1,064 members, spread over fifteen separate guilds, six of which are based in other countries. Outside Bouygues Construction, the Minorange Guild has spread to two other divisions of the Bouygues Group (Colas and Bouygues Telecom).

Members of the Minorange Guild are ambassadors for Bouygues Construction know-how, both inside and outside the Group, and they channel excellence. Embodying Bouygues Construction's values, they have instigated numerous innovations that have been introduced by the company. Widely acknowledged for their qualifications, they play an essential role in transmitting know-how and in encouraging and supporting their less experienced colleagues.

On a day-to-day basis, members of the Minorange Guild also ensure that the Group's standards in the area of health and safety are applied scrupulously. They take part in the upstream process of organising site work and sharing out tasks in order to avoid accidents, train new generations in risk prevention and contribute to improving the health of all their colleagues by taking part, for instance, in anti-addiction campaigns.

Yves Gabriel, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bouygues Construction, remarked: "Members of the Minorange Guild are committed to, and players in, major issues that impact Bouygues Construction, such as safety, professionalism and training. In a world that is constantly changing, they also have a big part to play in meeting the new challenges that our industry faces: sustainable construction, innovation and a range of social issues."

The Minorange Guild reflects Bouygues Construction's ever-renewed commitment to respecting and developing its employees. This is one of the four key priorities of its sustainable development strategy, intended to respond to Bouygues Construction's ambition of shaping a better life.