ESRS S1 – Own workforce

ESRS 2 SBM-3 S1 – Material impacts, risks, and opportunities and their interaction with strategy and business model

In our double materiality assessment, we considered possible impacts, risks, and opportunities in relation to own workforce. The table below shows the material impacts of our business activities on society and the environment that we identified in the process.

We provide overarching information on how material impacts, risks, and opportunities interact with our strategy and business model in the section “ESRS 2 SBM-3.”

The following overview illustrates Deutsche Telekom’s material risks and their financial effects on our financial position, financial performance, and cash flows.

For further information on risks and opportunities that represent a top risk or top opportunity in the next two years, please refer to the section “Risk and opportunity management.”

Employees affected by material impacts only include persons in our own workforce who are directly employed by Deutsche Telekom. Freelancers and workers from temporary employment agencies are not considered and not reported, since – in relation to internal, active workforce – they only account for a small number of people.

In the section “ESRS S2 SBM-3”, we explain how we determine whether certain groups of people within the upstream value chain and in our own business may be potentially affected to a greater extent by the negative impacts of our business activities.

ESRS S1‑1 – Policies related to own workforce

Working conditions (social dialogue, freedom of association, the existence of works councils and the information, consultation, and participation rights of workers). Across the globe, Deutsche Telekom is committed to freedom of association and collective bargaining and complies with the relevant national legislation. As the underlying laws and contracts vary from country to country, we manage co-determination matters locally.

Our approach to managing the material impacts in relation to social dialogue and freedom of association is enshrined in our Code of Human Rights. This Code outlines our values and standards, which are set forth in greater detail in our instructions and processes, creating our framework for action.

Our principles and expectations formulated in the Code include the following:

• Protection of freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining
• Promotion of occupational health and safety at work
• Prohibition of unequal treatment in employment
• Payment of adequate living wage
• Zero-tolerance approach to violence, discrimination, or harassment of any sort
• Training and skills development
• Prohibition of child labor, forced labor, and all forms of slavery as well as human trafficking.

The principles and expectations described in the Code of Human Rights of Deutsche Telekom (excluding T‑Mobile US) are aimed in equal measure at our employees and at our suppliers and business partners. We commit to respect and promote human rights and environmental matters everywhere we operate.

The Code of Human Rights can be accessed on our website by all Deutsche Telekom employees, their representatives, and external parties.

The Code of Human Rights is an integral part of our policy statement on human rights. The Board of Management thus commits to respecting internationally recognized human rights standards. Because our focus topics in social and environmental matters may change as our Company evolves, we continuously review our related due diligence and amend the Code as needed. The Code is in line with the requirements of the German Act on Corporate Due Diligence in Supply Chains (Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz – LkSG) and describes the implementation of our human rights and environment-related due diligence processes, including the internal complaints mechanism. The Code of Human Rights is required to be implemented by all Group companies over which Deutsche Telekom AG exerts a controlling influence as defined by the LkSG. The requirement is that they carry out relevant business activities that are established on a permanent basis and not limited to holding investments. A total of 145 Group companies meet these criteria. By December 31, 2025, 141 Group companies had implemented the updated Code of Human Rights.

T‑Mobile US does not fall within the scope of the LkSG and the company applies its own Human Rights Statement that also addresses the above-mentioned principles and expectations. T‑Mobile US expects its own workforce, as well as third-party business partners and suppliers, to comply with this commitment. All T‑Mobile US employees and external parties can access the company’s Human Rights Statement on the T‑Mobile US website.

The Code of Human Rights is based on our human rights strategy implemented by GCR, for which the Chair of the Board of Management is responsible. Different centralized and local functional units are charged with its implementation. The implementation of the expectations set out in the T‑Mobile US Human Rights Statement is the responsibility of the senior management across Human Resources, Corporate Social Responsibility and Legal Affairs of T‑Mobile US.

For further information on our human rights policy commitments, please refer to the section “ESRS S2‑1.”

Working conditions (health and safety) Occupational health and safety is firmly incorporated into our structures through management systems for health and safety in the workplace as well as suitable policies and guidelines. This helps us address the material impacts of our business activities on the health and safety of our employees. To do this, we use a certified integrated management system for health, safety, and environment (HSE) at many of our Group companies. It is based on the international standards ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 and takes into account the Luxembourg Declaration on Workplace Health Promotion in the European Union and the United Nations Global Compact. Some Group companies are not covered by an umbrella certificate because they have their own certifications. In the Code of Human Rights, we also commit to ensuring occupational health and safety in the workplace for our employees that is at least equal to the level required by applicable law, and we are continuously working to further improve our working conditions.

Our systematic approach to occupational health and safety is intended to maintain and promote the health of our employees. In this context, we develop action plans for occupational health and safety to further improve employees’ safety, keep employees healthy, and improve their performance. What is more, our systematic approach contributes to making sustainability a component of our business processes and of our employees’ everyday lives and helps us to systematically plan, implement, and improve our HSE processes. It also assists us in bidding on new projects in which potential commercial customers require their suppliers to provide HSE certificates. The general responsibilities, duties, and programs for health and safety management are laid down in writing, which serves to harmonize our systems and align them in a targeted manner. To ensure that the requirements of ISO 45001 are met, we regularly carry out internal audits at selected locations and engage independent external certification authorities to conduct annual reviews.

Our commitment to occupational health and safety covers our activities, products, and services: fixed network/broadband, mobile communications, internet, internet-based TV products and services, as well as information and communication-related solutions for business customers of Deutsche Telekom. Our HSE responsibility also extends to monitoring of outsourced processes.

The Board of Management department for Human Resources and Legal Affairs has overarching responsibility for managing occupational health and safety. Information about Deutsche Telekom’s systematic approach to occupational health and safety is documented centrally on the intranet, where it is accessible to all employees (Deutsche Telekom excluding T‑Mobile US). T‑Mobile US employees are provided with the relevant documents by central HSE certification management in Germany. Our employees can participate actively in designing our occupational health and safety actions.

Equal treatment and opportunities for all (diversity; gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value). Fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) is an integral part of our corporate identity. We offer all employees – irrespective of age, ethnic origin and nationality, gender and gender identity, physical and mental abilities, religion, faith and belief, sexual orientation, and social origin – a wide range of development opportunities. Moreover, we do not tolerate any form of direct or indirect violence, discrimination, or harassment in the workplace. Our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) Policy and our Code of Human Rights constitute important cornerstones for promoting the various aspects of diversity and eliminating discrimination within Deutsche Telekom (excluding T‑Mobile US). T‑Mobile US addresses anti-discrimination in its Code of Business Conduct and Human Rights Statement.

The DE&I Policy applies to our employees (Deutsche Telekom excluding T‑Mobile US) as well as to people who are functionally equivalent to employees, for example temporary agency workers. The Deutsche Telekom Group units are responsible for implementing the Policy in their own organizations; the precedence of national and supranational law and the cultural norms within this framework, as well as any participation rights of the responsible or authorized employee representatives, shall be observed. At least every three years, the responsible HR department reviews the provisions of the Group policy to determine whether they need to be amended or adapted, and revises them if necessary. When the Policy was prepared and updated, the interests of our own workforce were taken into account through repeated consultation with selected employees. Besides the fundamental international human rights benchmarks, the Policy complies with the requirements of the EU anti-discrimination directives and applicable local laws in the countries in which we operate. Ultimate responsibility for implementing the Policy lies with the Board of Management department for Human Resources and Legal Affairs.

The DE&I Policy can be downloaded from Deutsche Telekom’s website.

In addition to the DE&I Policy, we actively promote accessibility, equality, and the inclusion of people with disabilities through a comprehensive portfolio of actions. Our aim is not just to provide them with a secure livelihood, but also to continuously promote their career advancement. To make our working environment even more inclusive and implement our DE&I Policy in the business units, we are developing both area-specific and cross-divisional action plans. These address all dimensions of diversity.

ESRS S1‑2 – Processes for engaging with own workforce and workers’ representatives about impacts

We pursue dialogue-oriented employee relations throughout the Group and engage in trust-based, constructive collaboration with employees’ representatives and trade unions. We manage co-determination matters locally. The Group Board of Management is generally involved in issues of particular importance.

Works councils, central works councils, and the Group Works Council represent the interests of employees in Germany. We also have executive staff representation committees and representatives of persons with disabilities at unit, company, and Group level. The workers’ representatives represent the employees in different committees, such as at the meetings of the Health and Safety Committee (HSC). Our social partner representing the employees’ interests on a European level is the European Works Council (EWC). Even in non-European nations like the United States, all of our employees enjoy the right to form and join trade unions.

The biennial employee survey and the biannual pulse survey (in each case for Deutsche Telekom excluding T‑Mobile US) are a key participation format and also an indicator of the relationship between the Company and our workforce. The results of the surveys help us to identify weak points and determine where there is room for improvement. We use the engagement score, which we determine based on the annual average of the findings of the surveys, as a benchmark for employee satisfaction (Deutsche Telekom excluding T‑Mobile US).

For further information on our non-financial performance indicator for employee satisfaction (engagement score), please refer to the section “Management of the Group.”

T‑Mobile US conducts its own employee survey (Our Voice Survey), which is sent at least annually to all employees. The Our Voice Survey measures sentiment/satisfaction across various key areas of employee engagement that span belonging, well-being, career development, culture, and leadership support.

We also involve our workforce – for example our employee networks – when preparing policies and guidelines and when developing learning and upskilling formats. We are working with our employee networks to identify and break down systemic barriers – for example, by asking how inclusive our recruitment processes are. This aims to ensure that all employees are continuously included in these processes. Furthermore, our employees are involved in numerous environmental and climate action initiatives.

Unless otherwise stated, we engage with people from our workforce on both an ongoing and an ad hoc basis.

ESRS S1‑3 – Processes to remediate negative impacts and channels for own workforce to raise concerns

To provide or contribute to remediation of negative impacts on people in our own workforce, we set up a complaints mechanism incorporated in our risk management system. As soon as a due diligence breach is identified in the recurring risk analysis, our processes provide for taking immediate remedial action, as outlined in the section “ESRS S1‑1.” The effectiveness of these actions is reviewed annually or on an ad hoc basis. If necessary, adjustments are made to the complaints mechanism or the action taken.

Company employees can report violations and risks anonymously over Deutsche Telekom’s TellMe whistleblower portal and the T‑Mobile US Integrity Line. Reports about human rights or environment-related risks can also be shared.

Risks of physical or mental violence among employees, in contact with customers, or in a private context can also be reported to the Threat Management unit. In addition, employees at our Germany sites can report grievances/complaints to the works council or to designated representatives. Other local channels are also available to our own workforce so that employees can raise their concerns or needs directly to Deutsche Telekom and have them addressed. A digital portal is available in Germany for reporting accidents and near misses, and we are currently evaluating whether this channel could be deployed throughout the entire Group. We diligently investigate all grievances/complaints and instigate suitable actions based on our findings.

The public can access the TellMe whistleblower portal through our website and via the websites of the Group companies. The Integrity Line can be reached via the T‑Mobile US website and offers toll-free international calling. This channel is accessible worldwide. The rules of procedure for the TellMe portal are currently available in twelve languages. To ensure that not only our employees but also business partners and third parties are able to access the complaints mechanism, we accept reports both by phone via a toll-free, international service number as well as via email, post, or online submission through the relevant portal. Employees can find information about the availability and use of the above-mentioned channels on the intranet.

Incoming tip-offs and grievances/complaints that relate to people from our own workforce are recorded dividing them into the topic areas “human rights” (including the right to freedom of association), “occupational health and safety,” and “discrimination.” The effectiveness of TellMe is reviewed once a year in line with the requirements of the LkSG. We also perform ad hoc reviews if the Company is expecting a significant change in or expansion of the risk situation in its own business area or at direct suppliers. This may be necessary, for example, when launching new products, projects, or a new business area. The effectiveness assessment includes the continuous evaluation of feedback from whistleblowers, the review of the implementation and accessibility of the complaints mechanism, and the risk-based evaluation of stakeholder engagement, e.g., through employee surveys. We also involve employees’ representatives and works councils when necessary in relation to our own business operations.

For further information on the way we track and monitor the grievances/complaints that have been raised and addressed, please refer to the section “ESRS G1‑1.” There, we also discuss how we inform individuals in our own workforce about the procedure if they wish to report concerns or needs and have them investigated. We also describe the strategy we have in place regarding the protection of individuals that report them against retaliation in this section.

ESRS S1‑4 – Taking action on material impacts on own workforce, and approaches to managing material risks and pursuing material opportunities related to own workforce, and effectiveness of those actions

Working conditions (social dialogue, freedom of association, the existence of works councils and the information, consultation, and participation rights of workers). We rely on close cooperation with employees’ representatives regardless of whether they are organized at a company level or unionized. Getting the social partners involved at the different levels ensures that employees’ interests are integrated into the decision-making processes. An important consideration here is that the right of employees to freedom of association is not restricted by the employer. Participation serves to balance the interests of both employer and employees.

We make our human rights training available in different languages to raise employee awareness of the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining, health and safety, and other matters. This training also addresses aspects of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The training sessions were also carried out in the reporting year. The human rights training is designed to do more than just impart basic knowledge to our employees. It enables them to apply their new knowledge in practical decision-making scenarios directly in the context of Deutsche Telekom. For example, employees are informed as part of their training that grievances, such as an infringement of the right to freedom of association, can be reported through the TellMe whistleblower portal, regardless of circumstances specific to a particular country. The overarching target of the human rights training is to empower employees to actively protect themselves and others in their own working environment. The training is available in fourteen languages on Deutsche Telekom’s online training platform. Employees of T‑Mobile US do not have access to the platform. They do receive annual training on the T‑Mobile US Code of Business Conduct, including how to report human rights-related complaints.

We monitor the effectiveness of the human rights training by measures such as recording the number of employees who have taken part in the training since it became available on a six-month basis. We also evaluate employee feedback and analyze participation rates, access options, and any language barriers.

As part of the LkSG management system, we (excluding T‑Mobile US) carry out annual risk analyses, also for the internal business units in the Group companies included. The analyses are designed to enable us to derive targeted follow-up actions and therefore effectively eradicate or mitigate risks. T‑Mobile US conducts a risk assessment using its own methodology.

For further information on the risk analysis under the LkSG and T‑Mobile US’ entity-specific approach, please refer to the section “ESRS S2‑4.”

The processes for monitoring our LkSG management system described under “ESRS S2‑1” apply to ensure compliance with our due diligence obligations. No specific budget is allocated for managing the material potential impacts on social dialogue and freedom of association. In general, the actions described in this topical standard do not require any significant operating or capital expenditure.

Working conditions (health and safety). Our focus in the area of health and safety is on providing and implementing mitigation and prevention measures. If it is not possible to avoid or eliminate sources of danger, we follow the hierarchy of occupational safety and health measures. This hierarchy is structured as follows:

1. Safety-related actions to ensure physical separation between the source of danger and our workforce (e.g., barriers or covers on machines)
2. Organizational measures (e.g., restricting or prohibiting access to the danger zone)
3. Use of personal protective equipment (e.g., helmets, safety shoes, or hearing protection)
4. Behavior-related actions (e.g., instructions, for example in connection with fire safety or the use of ladders, or operating instructions. In Germany, for example, we use the SOS Connect app, which can also be used to report hazardous situations digitally).

A range of occupational health and safety standards apply across the Group. They govern the safe and ergonomic configuration of buildings and vehicles, among other aspects. In addition to services available to all employees, there are also target group-specific actions for occupational health and safety. These include driver safety training for certain areas of work or special safety training for employees who are deployed to work at cell tower sites. In addition to preventing accidents, these actions aim at promoting the health and productivity of employees.

We also have an extensive range of options available for our employees in offices to counteract lack of movement. For many years, our offices in Germany, for example, have been equipped exclusively with height-adjustable desks to create an ergonomic working environment. In addition, our health program in Germany includes course options for regular exercise. The health promotion program also includes courses on nutrition, stress prevention, and mindfulness. The programs are generally open to all employees. Furthermore, our Employee and Executive Advisory Service provides support in the area of psychosocial health. Offered in different languages, the service extends to advice in cases of discrimination and other misconduct, overwhelming situations in life and extreme events as well as crisis prevention. This offering is available in nearly all countries in which the Group has a presence.

In the reporting year, we continued to advance the digitalization of health products to promote physical and mental health by making app-based solutions to support health and well-being available to all employees across the Group, regardless of location or time. We also tested AI-powered applications in different pilot groups. Our activities to promote health awareness and health literacy among our employees not only help the individual employees and safeguard long-term business success, they also have a positive impact beyond the boundaries of the Company. For example, we also make selected preventive healthcare services available to the families of our employees.

For further information on our actions to mitigate negative impacts on both our own workforce and the workers in the value chain, please refer to the section on civil engineering work related to network development activities in the section “ESRS S2‑4.”

We determine risks to health and safety on a regular basis. To enable a safe working environment, we prepare risk assessments for all types of jobs and derive appropriate measures from them. The PDCA cycle (plan, do, check, act) is a key tool for continuously improving our systematic approach to health and safety. In this spirit, we systematically review and measure the effectiveness of our actions with a view to continually enhancing them. We regularly investigate how occupational health and safety are integrated into management and leadership activities and derive improvement actions as needed. To do so, we review the results of our employee survey, evaluating stress prevention measures under collective agreements, competitor benchmarks, and other relevant indicators. External experts check that mandatory actions such as fire safety instructions or risk assessments are carried out regularly and successfully. In addition, we receive monthly reports from our service providers regarding which and how many occupational health and safety services, products, and programs are being made use of, and we use this information to manage our actions.

In the Group companies, health & safety managers are responsible for specific processes and offerings that take into account legal requirements and conditions at operational level. The budget for occupational health and safety at the individual companies is calculated based on the employees’ working hours. We use this data to predict the minimum amount we expect to need for the coming year. We also provide financial resources for in-depth actions or voluntary services to promote health in the workplace. However, the actions described above do not require significant operating or capital expenditure.

Equal treatment and opportunities for all (diversity; gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value). We provide our employees with competitive, performance-related remuneration that is aligned with the overall conditions of the relevant national labor markets. With our Global Compensation Guideline for executives, collective agreements, and other provisions under collective and works agreements, we aim to ensure a transparent and gender-neutral pay structure and remuneration at Deutsche Telekom (excluding T‑Mobile US). These arrangements are designed to ensure that remuneration at Deutsche Telekom is based on the type and scope of the work performed and the requirements of the relevant position, irrespective of the diversity characteristics described in the section “ESRS S1‑1.”

This aims to counteract the potential material negative impacts on our own workforce in connection with the gender-specific pay gap in the ICT industry. T‑Mobile US is implementing the following measures, among others, to ensure gender-neutral remuneration: equitable pay for performance (irrespective of gender or origin), regular review of salary packages, and legal salary transparency through disclosure in job advertisements.

We compiled a report on equal pay and equality for the first time for 2016 in order to comply with the legal requirements of the Act to Promote Transparency of Wage Structures among Women and Men in Germany. The report is updated every five years. The most recent report was annexed to the management report for the 2021 financial year and has been published in the Company Register. We have agreed action plans with our segment heads to increase the proportion of women in management positions, with the aim of supporting the work-life balance by means such as flexible working hours, hybrid working models, or part-time employment. We also want to support the cultural transformation with regard to work-life balance through training and workshops, to improve chances for equal participation of women in the labor market.

We describe our goal of increasing the proportion of women in management positions in the section “ESRS S1‑5.”

We constantly monitor the increasing demand for skilled workers, particularly IT and tech experts, and compete for the best talents. We continuously evaluate experience reports and feedback to obtain a better understanding of the well-being of our talents and to assess how they rate us as a company. To prevent potential staff shortages in the ICT industry, we (excluding T‑Mobile US) respond to rising expectations for equal treatment and diversity by organizing targeted recruitment initiatives emphasizing diversity, equity, and inclusion. We use partnerships and events to specifically address female talent. We promote generational change between male managers who will soon be retiring and female junior managers (mentoring), and increasingly fill management positions with female talents. We also work closely with universities and service providers to find joint ways of providing even more support for women in technical professions. We evaluate the quality of our programs in feedback sessions and on the basis of the results of our employee survey, and we regularly review how we can further advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in dialogue with our partners. T‑Mobile US did not carry out comparable recruitment initiatives in the reporting year. In the reporting year, we examined the recruitment process in Germany together with members of the Neurodiversity Employee Network and used the feedback they provided to develop actions for inclusive talent recruitment. The increasing demands of employees on employers are identified by operational risk management and considered by the competent HR department: To address these challenges, we are continuously strengthening Deutsche Telekom and T‑Mobile US as attractive employer brands and proactively seeking out new specialist staff and talent worldwide. All aspects outlined above are part of operational risk management.

By offering a wide variety of training options, we also aim to promote a common understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion and to raise awareness for unconscious bias among employees of Deutsche Telekom (excluding T‑Mobile US). We also endeavor to break down barriers that exist in the use of products and technology. In 2024, we rolled out our first entirely barrier-free training, the “DE&I Baseline” e-learning. We developed the training program together with external experts and our employee networks. It includes personal stories of employees linked to all relevant diversity dimensions and is available to all employees in eleven languages on Deutsche Telekom’s online training platform. In addition, we developed an additional barrier-free training course for our managers in the reporting year. This addresses unconscious bias in key management decisions and discusses possible measures for overcoming it. A diversity glossary comprising over 100 terms related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, published both internally and externally, complements the training. T‑Mobile US employees do not have access to Deutsche Telekom’s training platform, but they are given learning opportunities that integrate equity and inclusion.

In the reporting year, we (excluding T‑Mobile US) additionally continued to place a special focus on promoting multipliers for diversity, equity, and inclusion within our own workforce. To do so, we increased the involvement of our employee networks, among other aspects. They play an important role in raising awareness among our employees of the diversity dimensions referred to in the section “ESRS S1‑1.” Among other things, we teamed up with an international working group in the reporting year to develop a Neurodiversity Awareness Guide for managers and made this available internally. This Guide is intended to support neurodivergent employees and their managers. T‑Mobile US did not pursue this focus in the reporting year.

We measure the effectiveness of our initiatives to advance material positive impacts on diversity, equity, and inclusion within our own workforce using the employee surveys described in the section “ESRS S1‑2” and other resources.

We use the processes of risk analysis under the LkSG to determine which actions are necessary and appropriate to manage certain actual or potential negative impacts on our own workforce.

For further information on our LkSG management system, please refer to the section “ESRS S2‑4.”

The central diversity team of Deutsche Telekom (excluding T‑Mobile US) is responsible for managing the material impacts relating to our work to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion. Area-specific contact persons were also appointed for the individual segments and countries. A central budget for Group-wide actions and local budgets for country-specific actions are available to implement the individual actions. The Human Resources Management (HRM) department is responsible for implementing actions to manage material negative impacts in connection with gender equality and equal pay. The actions described above do not require additional significant operating or capital expenditure. Unless specified otherwise, all actions described in connection with this standard to mitigate negative impacts and advance positive impacts are ongoing and have no defined end date.

ESRS S1‑5 – Targets related to managing material negative impacts, advancing positive impacts, and managing material risks and opportunities

We carry out actions designed to steadily increase the proportion of women in management positions at Deutsche Telekom. In this way, we address the main impacts and risks that arise for us in connection with gender equality within our workforce. In 2021, the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG had set itself the goal of increasing the proportion of women in management positions to 30 % by 2025.

We map the percentages for the current reporting year and the prior year in the section “ESRS S1‑9.”

The target was not reached by the stated deadline. Our internal analyses show that this is primarily due to persistent structural challenges in the ICT industry, which are hampering faster development. The deadline for achieving the target has been extended until the end of 2027. The actions described above will be continued.

We did not directly take the interests and views of our workforce into account when setting the targets and when identifying findings or potential improvements arising from the analysis of the metrics.

We have not set any further specific time-bound or outcome-oriented targets for mitigating the negative and advancing the positive impacts on our employees. We review the effectiveness of our policies and actions related to our own workforce in the context of the LkSG risk process and regularly report the results to the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG.

ESRS S1‑6 – Characteristics of the undertaking’s employees

The figures in the “Other” and “Not reported” categories are identical because our HR master data system currently cannot distinguish between these two categories. To ensure that the totals are added up correctly, the corresponding figure is therefore only shown in the “Other” column.

A total of 23,757 employees left the Company during the reporting period (2024: 26,617). Employee turnover was at 12.5 % (2024: 13.3 %).

For further information on the development of personnel costs and the average headcount, please refer to note 25 “Average number of employees and personnel costs” in the notes to the consolidated financial statements.

ESRS S1‑8 – Collective bargaining coverage and social dialogue

The Group-wide coverage rate in 2025 was 41.2 % (2024: 45.8 %). We have collective agreements in place in the European Economic Area (EEA).

In 2004, an agreement was concluded for the first time on the establishment of the European Works Council (last amended in 2019). It represents the interests of our employees within the countries of the EU and the EEA.

ESRS S1‑9 – Diversity metrics

The combined categories “Other” and “Not reported” were also included in the query, but are not relevant to determine the composition of upper management.

ESRS S1‑14 – Health and safety metrics

99.6 % of Deutsche Telekom employees are covered by health and safety management systems (2024: 96.7 %). In 2025, there was one fatality attributable to work-related injuries (2024: 0). The number and rate of recordable work-related injuries was 877 (2024: 890) and 2.5 % (2024: 2.5 %), respectively. The number of days lost to work-related injuries and fatalities from work-related accidents was 9,968 (2024: 13,944).

ESRS S1‑16 – Remuneration metrics (pay gap and total remuneration)

The average unadjusted gender pay gap between female and male employees in 2025 was 15.7 % (2024: 14.5 %). The average adjusted gender pay gap was 8.1 % (2024: 7.7 %). We determined the average unadjusted gender pay gap as the weighted average of the unadjusted pay gap of the Group companies included in this report. For the average adjusted gender pay gap, we first determined the pay gap for each pay group for each Group company (as per the applicable definition in the company concerned) and then calculated the weighted average.

The annual total remuneration ratio of the highest-paid individual to the median annual total remuneration for all employees (excluding the highest-paid individual) is 589 to 1 (2024: 491 to 1).

In addition to their total remuneration, the highest-paid individual received one-time payments and shares from the early maturity of stock option plans under a severance agreement concluded in 2025. Including this additional income, the annual total remuneration ratio of the highest-paid individual to the median annual total remuneration for all employees (excluding the highest-paid individual) is 1,821 to 1.

For these remuneration metrics, we calculated the individual total remuneration of the employees as the sum of the fixed and variable (short- and long-term) gross cash remuneration received in the reporting period. To calculate the gender pay gap, it was converted into hourly pay, and for the total annual remuneration ratio, it was converted into a full-time annual equivalent.

In addition to the gross cash remuneration, we included all and any relevant remuneration in kind, share-based payments, and pension commitments in the total remuneration of the highest-paid individual. By contrast, the total remuneration of the other employees does not include remuneration in kind, share-based payments, or pension commitments. This simplification does not materially impact the reportable remuneration metrics.

ESRS S1‑17 – Incidents, complaints, and severe human rights impacts

In the reporting year, 36 incidents of discrimination, including harassment, within our own workforce were reported through the TellMe and Integrity Line channels described in the section “ESRS S1‑3” (2024: 15). In addition, 131 complaints related to other social factors or aspects were received through these channels from our own employees (2024: 7). As in the prior year, we have not paid any fines, penalties or damages in connection with the aforementioned incidents and complaints. Likewise, no severe human rights incidents connected to our own workforce (e.g., forced labor, human trafficking, or child labor) were reported in 2025.