SUSTAINABILITY
Human Rights and Labor Practice Initiatives
Human Rights
Basic Stance on Human rights
In addition to the aforementioned “management that respects human dignity based on care and trust,” another foundation of the EKK Group Management Philosophy is “open management with a firm solidarity without factions.” In accord with these principles, we strive to develop our human resources and create fulfilling workplaces so that all employees can demonstrate their respective capabilities, as we work to maintain an attitude of “respect for human dignity” in all aspects of management.
To realize this, we have established the EKK Charter of Corporate Behavior, in which we declare, “We will carry out management that respects the human rights of all people,” and will conduct business accordingly.
EKK Employee Corporate Behavior
To put the EKK Group Management Philosophy into practice, we have established the 11 Principles of Corporate Behavior as part of the EKK Charter of Corporate Behavior. One of these principles is to carry out management that respects the human rights of all people.
EKK Employee Compliance Code of Conduct
The EKK Employee Compliance Code of Conduct stipulates in its “Respect for Employees and Prohibition of Discrimination and Harassment” section that diverse values, individuality and personality must be respected, and discriminatory behavior based on race, skin color, creed, religion, nationality, age, gender, place of birth, physical characteristics, mental or physical disability, etc., is prohibited. It also states that harassment is forbidden.
EKK Human Rights Policy
We have established the EKK Human Rights Policy to ensure respect for human rights throughout the supply chain, and are taking actions to ensure human rights are respected in all countries and regions where we conduct our business.
Major Human Rights Initiatives
Human Rights Educational and Awareness Activities for Employees
To help employees learn the practicalities of respect for human rights more concretely, we conduct trainings that utilize case studies of human rights violations such as sexual and power harassment. We also distribute a compliance booklet to all employees to promote mass awareness of our compliance policies. We are especially educating employees, including those working at subsidiaries, about various kinds of harassment as a matter of priority.
Counseling Hotlines for Human Rights Compliance
We offer counseling hotlines, including an internal reporting hotline based on our reporting system and an external reporting hotline that is staffed by attorneys at law. These counseling hotlines are also available to our Group companies, and corrective actions are taken if we confirm a compliance violation from a report received.
Labor practices
Respect for Basic Rights and Labor–Management Relations
Putting into practice the EKK Group Management Philosophy of respect for human dignity also means respecting and protecting the rights of our employees. To this end, we are working to create workplaces where employees can work with peace of mind by promoting dialogue both among employees and between companies and employees, based on sound labor–management relations and compliance with all labor-related laws.
Compliance with Labor-Related Laws
We issue direction to all Group companies in Japan with regard to compliance with the Labor Standards Act, Labor Union Act and all other labor-related laws. We similarly direct our overseas Group companies with regard to the labor-related laws and regulations of their respective countries. Furthermore, we carry out checks with domestic sites accepting foreign technical intern trainees for compliance with the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, as well as for the status of their work environments, living environments and actual working conditions.
Building Sound Labor–Management Relations
Dialogue between management and employees is essential in order for us to practice “management that respects human dignity based on care and trust” and for the company to develop in a sound manner. At the EKK Group, we respect the rights of workers, including the rights to organize and collectively bargain, and build sound labor–management relations based on this respect.
Members of management attend regularly held labor–management meetings, covering not only working conditions but also presenting on business conditions and management issues, as well as discussing important company measures. At these meetings, labor and management aim to work together to maintain and improve medium- and long-term business development and working conditions for employees as we facilitate dialogue.
Labor practices
Human Resource Development
Employee education is conducted mostly by the Education & HR Development Department. Our training programs use curricula tailored to employees’ career stage, including basic education, management training, advanced skill acquisition training, new-hire training, new-manager training and follow-up management training. All employees are educated on the EKK Group Management Philosophy also. Employees in overseas management roles receive global management training to learn about management fundamentals and staffing, among other subjects.
Additionally, managers periodically meet one-on-one with their subordinates, including in the third and fourth years of employees’ tenure. Such meetings aim to develop human resources more effectively by rectifying mismatches between employees’ assigned jobs and personal preferences and by making sure employees are upgrading their skillsets.
We have also set up a self-assessment system for permanent full-time employees. Every November, employees report to their HR department on matters such as their job satisfaction, communication with superiors and career aspirations.
Their feedback is used to improve human resource deployment/development and the workplace environment.
Human Resource and Employee Benefit Systems
As one facet of management that respects human dignity, we are working to create working environments in which employees can enjoy a full personal life in addition to a fulfilling job. When it comes to helping employees have both a fulfilling job and self-fulfillment in their personal lives, we are exploring and implementing further measures with a view to promoting workstyle reforms, beyond the initiatives we have taken so far. We have implemented a number of initiatives in this area to help achieve flexible and diverse workstyles, including establishing and enhancing flex-time schedules and childcare and family care leave systems, setting overtime limits to reduce working hours and encouraging employees to take paid leave.
| Work-Life Balance | Initiatives to Reduce Working Hours and Encourage Employees to Take Paid Leave | Self-Assessment System |
|---|---|---|
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To facilitate employees working in a way that fits their circumstances, we have established support systems exceeding some statutory requirements, including our childcare and family care leave systems, and we strive to operate these systems appropriately, helping employees more easily utilize these benefits through awareness-raising and advice.
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In order to create a comfortable work environment where employees can prosper, we have been reducing total actual work hours for some time, and a committee of labor and management representatives meets annually to formulate each year’s initiatives and check results. | Each year, EKK provides employees an opportunity to report on their current work situation and future career aspirations. Depending on what an employee reports about topics like their future career aspirations, they will then have interviews with a supervisor as necessary. This offers employees a chance to directly communicate with supervisors about topics important to them. The results of this self-assessment process are used to develop and utilize human resources, assign the right personnel to the right positions, and improve the workplace environment. |
Diversity
Our fundamental stance is to practice hiring and promotion of a diverse workforce regardless of gender, race, nationality or other factors. Currently, the EKK Group employs approximately 6,000 people around the world. We promote management that respects human dignity by raising awareness of this fact with leadership personnel at all of our overseas locations, as well as those in Japan, so that they can also practice this under their respective local conditions.
| Promotion of Equal Opportunity for Woman | Employment of Disabled Workers | Senior Employee System (Reemployment of Mandatory Retirees) |
|---|---|---|
| We are promoting greater workforce participation by women at the EKK Group by assigning female employees to a wider range of roles in accord with their skills and desires and mentoring them. We are actively reassigning women from clerical to career-track positions and promoting them into management roles. We aim to inject fresh vitality into our organization and increase productivity by continuing to foster workplaces that allow everyone irrespective of gender to give full play to their abilities. |
The EKK Group actively hires disabled individuals and is endeavoring to better retain disabled workers and broaden their available job opportunities. As of March 2022, disabled workers accounted for 3.13% of the Group’s workforce, exceeding the statutory target of 2.3%. Since May 2018, the Group has been running an indoor horticulture business that provides rewarding jobs to disabled workers. |
In FY2006, we introduced a system for reemploying those who have reached the mandatory retirement age, working to build a system thatallows those who are highly motivated to work after this age to fully demonstrate the richness of their careers and their advanced techniques, passing on their knowledge and skills to the next generation while they maintain a stable lifestyle. In FY2016, we made employment styles more flexible and revised working conditions, and we have been reviewing working conditions on an adhoc basis since then. In addition, we are implementing measures on an ongoing basis to enhance opportunities and job satisfaction forsenior employees, such as holding life planning seminars to help them plan for their post-mandatory retirement lives. |