Sustainability / Social Report / Creating Attractive WorkplacesFoster a Corporate Culture That Meets Employee Needs

Basic Approach

The Daicel Group aims to be “a company where employees can feel fulfilled through their work,” and implements human resource practices based on Daicel Group’s Human Resource Policy and Human Resource Guideline. We believe that the happiness of each employee and his/her family is the prerequisite for the overall happiness of society.
We make efforts to enable employees to achieve personal fulfillment by adhering to “human-centered business management” that values each and every employee, so that all Group employees will contribute to the realization of a sustainable society.

My Action Declaration

Each employee contains within himself or herself the driving force to bring about Daicel’s future as laid out in the company’s Long-Term Vision and Mid-Term Management Strategy.
Based on the principle of Human-Centered Management, labor and management are working together on a variety of policies in order to enable diverse employees to grow while enjoying a sense of their own presence and accomplishment.
They also intend to devise a corporate culture that creates an employee-friendly working environment. Diverse work styles and values exist among our employees, and each employee’s idea of happiness is different. The decision to create an environment in which employees can exercise their individuality and have both labor and management support employees in exercising their individuality was announced in “My Action Declaration.”
“My Action Declaration” states that it will be the common basis for action of both workers and managers and identifies what individual employees want to do in various situations in their lives and how they want to bring it about. The task set out for each employee is to state what he or she wants to do in the four fields of work style, life, wellness, and society and to make a declaration to that effect.

My Action Declaration

We will fully support the aspirations of each individual.

The message expressed by labor and management in the declaration

It is important for each Daicel employee to not only focus on their working life but also to place value on their private life and time with family and friends, to think about the kind of life they want and how they should work while having a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment, and also to reap rewards in the context of the life they envisage.
We will fully support the aspirations of each individual so they are driven with the mindset that, “My life is mine alone, so I will strive to make it better.” Let’s take the first step in that direction.

Work Style

Using individual means to achieve a sense of accomplishment and self-fulfillment

  1. (1)I want to create a safe, comfortable workplace where colleagues help one another
  2. (2)I want to work in a flexible and efficient manner
  3. (3)I want to challenge myself to become the person I aspire to be
  4. (4)I want to enjoy a sense of purpose and accomplishment

Wellness

I want to improve my health now in order to remain healthy all my life

  1. (5)I want to eat nutritionally balanced meals
  2. (6)I want to sleep enough to allow my body to rest properly
  3. (7)I want to make exercise a part of my everyday life
  4. (8)I want to maintain a cheerful mood

Life

A fulfilling everyday life and preparation for the future

  1. (9)I want to consider my own way of life and how to plan my life
  2. (10)I want to build assets for the future
  3. (11)I want to value time spent with my friends and family
  4. (12)I want to spend my time off in a fulfilling manner

Society

I want to contribute to society as I am able

  1. (13)I want to help people through volunteer work
  2. (14)I want to create an abundant and healthy environment
  3. (15)I want to raise the next generation of children
  4. (16)I want to promote the welfare of the region

Management Structure

The Human Resources Division supervised by the director responsible for this area leads the Company’s human resources management, in which a CAPD* cycle is applied for planning and implementing specific measures. The measures important from a management perspective are submitted for deliberation in major meetings such as the Management Meeting and the Strategy Meeting.
The Company engages in continuous dialogue with the labor union, primarily through various committees as outlined in the section titled “Sound Labor-Management Relations,” as we seek to foster a worker-friendly corporate culture in a united effort of labor and management. We will strive to change mindsets and reform our systems toward becoming a company that meets the needs of its diverse workforce.

*Instead of a Plan, Do, Check, and Act (PDCA) cycle, the most widely known approach to continuous improvement, Daicel has adopted a CAPD improvement cycle to avoid the risk of overlooking crucial facts and realities that often lie hidden in the initial planning stage.

Enhancing Work-Life Balance

In order to improve the work-life balance of all our employees and create work environments that meet their individual needs, Daicel is seeking to shorten the prescribed working hours.

Measures to Shorten Working Hours

Timing Description
April 2017 Reached an agreement with the labor union in regard to shortening mandatory working hours and increasing the number of holidays.
April 2018 Mandatory working hours for full-time employees, other than shift workers, was reduced from 8 to 7.5 hours per business day.
Achieved a decrease of approximately 120 hours, or about 6.2%, in mandatory annual working hours.
April 2020 Increased the annual holidays for shift workers by 10 days.
April 2022 Annual days off was increased to 122 days.

Visualizing Working Hours

Daicel visualizes actual working hours by including the log-on and log-off times of workers’ computers in the attendance reports. By creating this system, we seek to maintain and manage our employees’ health amid the ongoing expansion of remote work.

Reducing Extended Working Hours

Daicel endeavors to reduce extended working hours by prohibiting overtime work exceeding 75 hours a month through an agreement with the labor union. In addition to operating a system for visualizing actual working hours, the Higher Productivity Promotion Committee, which comprises labor and management, seeks to reduce extended working hours by monitoring the status of applications for overtime by each department, determining the causes of overtime work, conducting interviews in the relevant department, and discussing concrete measures for improvement. Moreover, to follow up on employees who could not avoid extended work, we hold consultations with industrial doctors and corporate health nurses for employees whose monthly overtime exceeds 60 hours and for those whose monthly overtime exceeds 45 hours for three consecutive months.

Initiatives for Realizing Flexible Work Styles

Helping Employees Manage Their Work-Life Balance

At Daicel, we are focused on implementing measures that offer diverse and flexible working arrangements to our employees to help them better manage their work-life balance.

“Work × Work Challenge System” for Side Jobs

Daicel has introduced a system that enables employees to undertake side jobs to foster independence, consider one’s own career, and encourage further growth. As of March 31, 2023, 29 employees are taking advantage of this system.

Daicel’s Human Resources Programs

Daicel’s Human Resources Programs

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Program/Policy Full-Time Employee Contract Employee
Post-Retirement Employee Contract Employee
Support for Child-Rearing and Nursing Care
Prenatal leave
6 weeks prior to childbirth
14 weeks in case of multiple pregnancies
 ○ ○ ○
Postpartum leave
8 weeks following childbirth
Employees can return to work after 6 weeks from childbirth based on their own wishes and their doctor’s approval
 ○ ○ ○
Child-rearing leave
Until the day before the child has reached the age of one
In certain cases, until the day before the child has reached the age of two
This program also covers employees with fixed terms of service (contract employees), and there are no restrictions based on length of service.
 ○ ○ ○
Nursing care leave
Up to 5 days per year
In cases where employees need to engage in the nursing care of two or more family members whose conditions meet such criteria, up to 10 days per year
This program also covers employees with fixed terms of service (contract employees), and there are no restrictions based on length of service.
 ○ ○ ○
Extended nursing-care leave*
Up to 365 calendar days
 ○ ○ ○
Family care leave
In cases where employees need to care for their preschool-age children, they are entitled to special leave of up to 5 days per year aside from their annual paid leave (if raising more than two preschool-age children, up to 10 days per year)
 ○ ○ ○
Special leave due to non-work accidents or illness*
Employees are entitled to take special leave of up to 20 days per year aside from their annual paid leave, in the event they have a non-work accident or are sick and must be absent from work for over 3 consecutive working days.
 ○ ○ ○
Special paid leave for employees whose spouse has given birth*
Male employees are entitled to special paid leave of up to 3 days when their wife gives birth.
 ○ ○ ○
Mental and Physical Health
Annual paid leave*
Employees are entitled to a fixed number of annual paid leave days based on years of service from the first day of their employment.
 ○ ○ ○
Promotion of annual paid leave usage*
In conjunction with the formulation of annual operational schedules, each worksite designates multiple dates on which employees are encouraged to take annual paid leave.
 ○ ○ ○
Health Day*
Employees are entitled to special paid leave for the purpose of health management during the month of their birthday or the previous or following month.
 ○ ○ ○
Work-Life Balance
Reduced work hour system*
Employees who meet the criteria (pregnant, childbirth, child rearing, nursing care) are allowed to reduce their working hours by up to 135 minutes per day. They can also use flextime in combination with this program.
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Flextime*
Employees are allowed to work under a flexible work schedule that meets a set of criteria without defining the core hours.
 ○ ○ ○
Remote work program (work from home or from a satellite office)*
All employees are entitled to work from home on an as-needed basis.
Employees can also work at locations that are not their designated business sites for the purpose of work efficiency and productivity (no limitations on frequency per month).
 ○ ○ ○
Work × Work Challenge System for side jobs*
Employees are entitled to engage in work other than Daicel operations for the purpose of enhancing their knowledge and skills.
 ○ ○ ○

*A program or policy adopted by Daicel that is beyond its statutory obligations.

ESG DataNumerical Data on Work-Life Balance

Promoting Usage of Annual Paid Leave (“Thanks Holidays”)

One of the goals in our action plan based on the Act on Promotion of Women’s Participation and Advancement in the Workplace, is “Ensure that all employees take a five-day vacation once a year using paid leave and designated national holidays.” We are promoting paid leave usage under the name “Thanks Holidays.”

In our action plan based on the Act for the Advancement of Measures to Support Raising the Next Generation’s Children, we formulated a goal of raising our paid leave usage rate to 80% or more. We have undertaken a program to both help all employees achieve a full work-life balance and to set up a system in which team members support one another’s work in the usage of long-term leave. For FY2023/3, the paid leave usage rate was 56.3%.

ESG DataRate of employees taking annual paid leave

Promoting Remote Work (Work from Home or a Satellite Office)

Daicel is promoting remote work to advance efficient work styles not restricted by time or location.

The Company has concluded a contract with a satellite office operator to provide a convenient work environment for employees in transit or on business trips, allowing them to do their jobs without having to return to their offices. We have also deployed the necessary devices and networking for remote work.

So that as many employees as possible can spend more time with their families, we eliminate unaccompanied transfers when the situation allows and allow the employee to do their work remotely from home or other locations.

Encouraging Childcare Leave for Male Employees

From the perspective of improving the work-life balance and creating a workplace that encourages male employees to take childcare leave, the Company introduced a paid portion (five days) to this type of leave in FY2018/3. The percentage of eligible male employees taking the leave in FY2023/3 was 97.9%.

Percentage of Male Employees Taking Childcare Leave

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FY2018/3 FY2019/3 FY2020/3 FY2021/3 FY2022/3 FY2023/3
29.4% 52.6% 57.8% 77.6% 77.5% 97.9%
TOPICSEmployee’s Voice: Childcare Leave Was a Good Opportunity for Changing My Mindset
Hisayuki Kosaka
Hisayuki Kosaka (Corporate Support Headquarters, Human Resources Group)
Childcare Leave from July 20, 2021 to August 18, 2021 (about one month)

Before I took Childcare Leave, I left meal preparation for the child up to my partner, but during the leave, I fed my baby his first solid food and milk. He didn’t eat it as I thought he would, so that aspect of it was quite a challenge. I also tried my hand at making baby food, and when he eagerly ate it, I couldn’t have been happier.
In addition, I did things like taking him on walks, going to the park, reading him stories, and just spending as much time as possible together. Taking care of my child like this further deepened my love for him.
Taking Childcare Leave and becoming involved in childcare increased the time we spent together and furthermore, I was able to reduce the burden on my partner. Since children grow from day to day, the time when I was able to support and encourage his growth was truly precious. I hope that men don’t hesitate to take Childcare Leave so that they can have this kind of valuable experience.

Working Environments that Provide Flexibility for Employees

Daicel is focused on creating working environments that enable employees to perform to the best of their capabilities, thus contributing to higher productivity.

Post-COVID Work Styles

The prevalence of remote work and the use of the online environment over the past three years during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a learning experience in matters such as how to communicate both in-person and online. We have renovated the office at our Tokyo headquarters so that we can apply what we have learned to our own work styles and further enhance job satisfaction for a unified Daicel Group.

Remodeling concept

  • The office/workplace is the most important place for employees to interact and create value
  • The office/workplace is a place where teams share their enthusiasm and practice a more results- and productivity-oriented work style while flexibly incorporating remote work as a work option.

Guidance on Reward Standards and Transparent Decision-Making on Compensation

At Daicel, we believe that providing secure rewards is an important element of an employee-friendly corporate culture. As part of our process of human rights due diligence, we check whether Daicel Group companies are paying salaries in compliance with the laws and regulations of each country or region, including paying salaries above the statutory minimum wage and providing extra payment for overtime work. As a result, all the Daicel Group companies are in compliance with the law, and there have been no cases requiring corrective and remedial actions. While such legal compliance is a given, the Daicel Group’s Human Resource Guidelines also request each Group company to “conduct verification of company compensation levels and salary items against external benchmarks regularly” to maintain the competitive level of reward standards based on the labor market.
Decisions on compensation are left to the discretion of each Group company, but we also pay due consideration to ensuring a transparent decision-making process for compensation. The Human Resource Guidelines state that we must “establish rules for wage structure and salary details, and disclose them to employees.” For example, Daicel Corporation discloses its salary scale to applicable employees in addition to its salary-related rules.

Employee Benefits and Welfare

Yu Ai Kai Mutual Aid Association

This association was created in accordance with the welfare policies defined by Daicel’s labor union and management in order to leverage the mutual aid of members for their improved well-being and nurture self-motivation and the spirit of friendship. Its members are employees of Daicel and Daicel Group companies.

Benefits and Welfare of Yu Ai Kai Mutual Aid Association

Item Description
Congratulatory stipend for weddings The stipend is paid when a member gets married.
Congratulatory stipend for childbirth The stipend is paid when a member or their spouse gives birth.
Congratulatory gifts when a member’s child enters school A gift is presented when a member’s child has entered elementary, junior high, or high school (Recipients choose a gift from a catalogue).
Stipend for members at the passing of a family member The stipend is paid when a family member of a member has passed away. The amount depends on the degree of kinship.
Consolatory stipend for injuries and illness The stipend is paid when a member takes a leave of absence due to a work-related injury or illness. The amount depends on the number of days of leave required.
Consolatory stipend for damage attributable to disasters The stipend is paid when a member’s dwelling is damaged by a fire, storm, flood, earthquake, or other disaster. The amount depends on the degree of damage.
Stipend for members on leave of absence The stipend is paid when a member takes a leave of absence due to a non-work accident or illness, provided that the reasons for such leave meet the in-house criteria stipulated by the entities for which they work. The amount depends on the number of days of leave required.
Stipend for subsidizing hospitalization expenses The stipend is paid when a member or family member is hospitalized at a medical institution where health insurance is applied due to the accidents or illness being non-work related. The stipend is paid per day of hospitalization, and the amount depends on the type of injury or illness.
Stipend for nursing care support The stipend is paid when a member applies for the nursing care leave program in place at their respective entity. The amount depends on the length of nursing care leave applied for.
Orphanage education annuity Following a death, an annuity is paid to a member’s dependent child(ren). The annuity is paid monthly for each child attending elementary, junior high, or high school.
Refund upon withdrawal from membership A refund is paid to members withdrawing from the association, with the sliding amount determined by the period of membership.
Survivor’s benefits Benefits are paid to the survivor when either the member or registered spouse passes away.
Social contribution activity awards A cash award is given to commend individual (or a group of) members deemed to have made a significant contribution to society.
GLTD insurance Group Long-Term Disability insurance is in place to provide coverage for members who are unable to work for an extended period of time due to disabilities resulting from an injury or illness and who are not fully insured by the public insurance system or conventional disability income insurance.

Employee Benefits and Welfare Program for Diverse Lifestyles

In addition to the employee benefits and welfare program provided by the fraternal association, Daicel has adopted a benefits and welfare program that can be used by employees according to their lifestyles as part of its efforts to improve the work-life balance.

Cafeteria Plan

Daicel provides employees with the Cafeteria Plan, an optional benefits and welfare program that allows employees to choose from menus that meet their personal needs, such as career development, healthy living, childcare and nursing care, and travel.

Use of Company-Sponsored Babysitter Dispatch Services

We subsidize part of the cost when an employee hires a babysitter through the Company-sponsored babysitter dispatch service launched by Japan’s Cabinet Office in November 2020. We will continue to consider various programs and measures to help employees balance work and life with a sense of security. In FY2023/3, a total of 101 employees used these services.

Daicel Group Employee Stock Ownership Association

To help employees build their wealth by holding shares acquired from contributions, which enhance their sense of unity with the Company, Daicel Group established the Daicel Group Employee Stock Ownership Association. As of March 2023, 2,572 members of the Daicel Group Employee Stock Ownership Association hold 5.972 million company shares.

Daicel Group Employee Stock Ownership Association (as of March 31 of each fiscal year)

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FY2019/3 FT2020/3 FY2021/3 FY2022/3 FY2023/3
Number of members 1,986 2,223 2,279 2,503 2,572
Number of shares owned 4.08 million 4.647 million 5.048 million 5.245 million 5.972 million

Communication with Employees

Sound Labor-Management Relations

Summary of the Labor and Management Charter

  • The Company and the union shall understand each other’s position and make decisions through negotiations and discussions based on respect for human life and dignity.
  • The Company shall give latitude to union activities and will not discriminate against its employees due to such activities.
  • The Company and the union shall eliminate excessive control and respect the humanity of employees. Employees shall of their own free will contribute to the Company’s business through their efforts to enhance productivity.
  • The Company shall treat employees in a fair and appropriate manner with the aim of making the maximum use of the capabilities of each employee.

Daicel considers its employees to be important stakeholders. Accordingly, it has established the Labor and Management Charter, which has been signed by representatives of the labor unions and management. Both parties respect each other’s standpoints and discuss issues in good faith in order to best develop the Company’s business. Through these efforts, we are maintaining and reinforcing a healthy relationship between labor and management. In addition, labor and management committees are set up at each workplace. The Daicel Group undertakes a variety of measures covering a wide range of areas. This includes discussions between labor and management regarding such issues as working conditions, productivity improvement, personnel systems, working hours, and health management.

Major Labor-Management Committees

Name Purpose
Central Management Council
  • Issues requiring negotiation
  • Issues requiring consultation
  • Issues requiring reports or briefing (All of the above are important.)
Central Healthcare Committee Support the mental and physical well-being of employees to raise individual productivity and create vibrant and healthy work environments.
Central Productivity Promotion Committee
  • Promote work-life balance, and formulate policies on work style reform
  • Monitor initiatives and activities aimed at reducing total working hours
  • Share good practices related to reducing total working hours
  • Monitor applications for overtime exemptions by each business site
Liaison Meeting on Labor-Management Issues Discuss issues related to corporate management

ESG DataLabor Union Membership and Composition

Employee Engagement Survey

Since the Daicel Group is composed of companies that provide value to society, it listens to its employees’ unfettered opinions, and it aims to initiate specific actions on that basis. For that reason, Daicel administered an Employee Engagement Survey of its Group employees worldwide in December 2021. As we move forward with improvements based on the results of the survey, each employee will understand and accept how the company’s goals support the sustainable growth of its business. We aim to create an environment where employees can exercise their will and capabilities to the greatest extent possible as they strive to achieve those objectives.
In FY2023/3, each workplace and department used the results of the survey to formulate action plans, and we have been promoting activities to improve operational efficiency.
The next employee engagement survey is scheduled for FY2024/3.

Summary of the Engagement Survey

Number of employees surveyed 10,678
Number of employees who responded (response rate) 9,299 (87%)
Number of questions 84 questions in 17 categories
Survey language 11 languages
Administration method Internet -based questionnaire
Categories that scored high Quality & Customer-Focus Confidence in Leadership, Performance Management
Categories that scored low Work Process, Authority & Empowerment, Pay and Benefits

Fostering a Sense of Unity Across the Daicel Group

Disseminating the Daicel Group’s Long-Term Vision and Mid-Term Management Strategy

We provide opportunities for Daicel Group employees to gather and discuss the Group’s Long-Term Vision and Mid-Term Management Strategy so that they can feel a personal connection to these ideas and how they are connected to their individual duties, and take steps toward realizing those visions.
In FY2023/3, workshops utilizing Lego were held at each business site. Participants built Lego items to understand each other’s work and gain mutual understanding of what others are trying to accomplish.

Internal Communication

Recognizing employees as important stakeholders, we are constantly developing systems to meet their expectations and needs while also maintaining dialogue and other forms of communications through the labor union.

We also utilize various internal communication tools to regularly share information with all Group employees in multiple languages. This is done to foster a sense of unity across the Daicel Group by stimulating internal exchanges.