There’s no “war” at Ems. Majority shareholder and CEO of Swiss polyamide specialist Ems (Domat; www.ems-group.com), Magdalena Martullo-Blocher, who is rarely at a loss for words when it comes to articulating her position, has forbidden her employees from using the term “war” when referring to the Russian attack on Ukraine.

Several German-language media in Switzerland have quoted from a company-wide email sent out by the CEO with the subject line “Instructions: Ukraine conflict”. This allegedly states that “in Russia, the use of the word ‘war’ in conjunction with the conflict between Ukraine and Russia is punishable by imprisonment. In the Ems Group, the expression ‘Ukraine conflict’ is to be used both internally and externally until further notice. The word ‘war’ is not to be used.”

According to the media reports, Ems has not denied the content of the email but explained that it was to protect the company’s Russian employees against prosecution in their home country.

Ems reportedly has two firms with a workforce of around 60 in Russia. The PA specialist employs some 2,600 people worldwide and reportedly generated sales of EUR 2.15 bn last year (see Plasteurope.com of 16.02.2022).

Blocher, who is politically active and has a seat in the Bern parliament as vice-president of the right-wing conservative party SVP, has caused a stir and made headlines on repeated occasions. Last year, for instance, she criticised the German automotive industry, which after all is one of Ems’ key customers, for not doing enough to counter the EU requirements on electromobility and the ban on the registration of cars fitted with combustion engines as of 2035 (see Plasteurope.com of 10.08.2021).