Veolia grows workforce by 9% while retaining experienced talent

From the newsletter

French environmental services company Veolia is combining workforce growth with strong talent retention as it expands its operations across the continent. LinkedIn data shows the company increased its African workforce by 9% to 843 employees over the past year while maintaining attrition of just 3%. 

• With a presence in multiple African countries, Veolia provides services across three areas traditionally managed by public authorities: Water management, waste management and energy services. 

• The company hired 97 employees and recorded 24 departures over the past year, resulting in a net gain of 73 employees, indicating expansion rather than replacement hiring. 

More details

• Veolia's increase in headcount was driven by new hiring rather than employee replacement. The company recruited roughly four employees for every one who left over the past year, resulting in a net gain of 73 employees. The figures suggest Veolia added staff in response to growing demand for its services rather than simply replacing departing workers. The company also maintained strong retention during the period. Employees had an average tenure of 7.4 years and an average of 14.4 years of professional experience, while attrition remained at just 3%. The combination of low turnover, long tenure and an experienced workforce suggests Veolia expanded without sacrificing access to specialist talent. 

• Hiring was concentrated in a handful of strategic markets, with Algeria recording the strongest workforce growth at 38%, followed by Côte d'Ivoire at 24%. Morocco delivered the largest net talent gain over the past year, adding 25 employees, followed by South Africa with 13 and Egypt with 10. The growth in Algeria coincided with continued investment in water security and desalination, an area of expertise for Veolia while the increase in Côte d'Ivoire may reflect Veolia's expanding role in the country's water sector, including a 15-year contract secured in 2023 to operate and maintain the La Mé drinking water treatment plant near Abidjan. 

• North Africa remained the centre of Veolia's African operations. Egypt and Morocco accounted for nearly half of the company's African workforce, with 220 and 194 employees respectively. In Morocco, the company has longstanding operations spanning water distribution, wastewater management and waste services through subsidiaries and partnerships. In Egypt, Veolia has been involved in the operation and maintenance of water and wastewater treatment facilities as well as industrial utility services, serving a market characterised by rapid urbanisation and continued investment in water infrastructure.

• The workforce profile reflected the technical nature of Veolia's business. More than half of employees held master's degrees, while nearly a third possessed bachelor's degrees. Operations accounted for 26% of employees and engineering a further 15%, meaning more than two-fifths of the workforce was concentrated in technical and operational functions.

• The company's skills profile also reflects its focus on water infrastructure. Water engineering, water treatment, wastewater treatment and water supply ranked among its most common areas of expertise. Engineering was the largest individual skill group, accounting for 10% of employees, followed by water engineering and water treatment at 9% each. The concentration of talent reflected the technical expertise required to support Veolia's water, waste and environmental services operations. 

Our take

• Many of Veolia's activities in Africa are tied to long-term utility and infrastructure contracts that can span more than a decade. Such contracts place a premium on continuity, making experienced employees as important as new hires. Veolia's low attrition suggests the company clearly views workforce retention not simply as a human resources objective, but as a business requirement for delivering long-term public services.

• While the company operates across multiple African markets, nearly half of its workforce is concentrated in Egypt and Morocco. This concentration provides operational scale but also exposes the company to regulatory, economic or political shifts in a relatively small number of markets.