Achieving Diversity

Note: For details of the 14 human capital-related guiding principles see here.

Retention rate of all employees
Method of disclosure: 1- (Employee turnover (Number of people who left employment)) ÷ Number of employees as of April of the fiscal year)) ×100

Percentage of female managers to all managers

Ratio of female hired for both new graduates and Mid-career hires

Wage gap between men and women among all employees, regular full-time employees, and non-full-time employees.
Method of disclosure: Average annual wage for women ÷ average annual wage for men ×100

Percentage of male employees who took at least one day of childcare leave during the fiscal year
Method of disclosure: Male employees who took childcare leave during the relevant period^* ÷ Male employees whose spouse gave birth during the relevant fiscal year

Percentage of employees with disabilities to all employees
Method of disclosure: (Number of regular workers who have physical, intellectual, or mental disabilities ÷ Number of regular workers) ×100

Total actual hours worked during the year
Method of disclosure: Scheduled hours worked + Overtime hours worked - Paid leave hours taken

Percentage of employees who took a leave of absence for more than one month due to mental health problems during the year.

Based on SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group's Diversity Management Policy (see P.359), diversity is not only defined in terms of gender, age, and race, and other outward differences, but also in terms of careers, values, personality, and other factors. Likewise, we understand, recognize, and utilize the differences between each and every employee as strengths. In promoting diversity, we will foster an organizational culture in which all employees are able to work dynamically and make the most of their unique characteristics and talents. In order for diverse human resources to thrive, we will also nurture a culture of challenge and create an appropriate environment while promoting inclusion.

Aiming to employ diverse human resources, we are promoting the hiring of new graduates on a long-term basis to strengthen management’s ability to sustain business. We are also focusing on expanding career hiring to keep pace with changes in the business environment.
To promote the retention of a diverse workforce, including women, people with disabilities, and seniors, we have adopted flexible hours, working from home, and other systems that accommodate the diversity of work styles, and are providing support for balancing work with various life events such as nursing care, childcare, and illness.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group's efforts to promote women's empowerment are divided into four stages: Enhancement of the employment of women, Retention and active participation, Promotion to managerial positions, and follow-up training for promotion to post-managerial positions.
The Group has set its target for the ratio of female hired at 35% for fiscal 2025, the final year of the Medium-term Management Plan. In fiscal 2023, the ratio came in at 31.4% (up 3.3 percentage points compared with the previous fiscal year) on a non-consolidated basis. To achieve our recruitment activity targets, we have revamped our recruitment website and created a new page to introduce the Group’s diversity initiatives.
We have continued to conduct the Women's Career Development Program (CDP) to support the promotion of women to managerial positions since 2014. The purpose of this training is to motivate female employees to seek promotion to managerial positions, to gain a better perspective of what is required, and to acquire the skills necessary for promotion to managerial positions. Training is also provided to the supervisors of employees earmarked for potential promotion. Supervisors analyze the strengths of subordinates and areas for improvement and assign tasks that require employees to move outside their comfort zone. Working to improve the abilities of subordinate staff, women earmarked for potential promotion then take on these tasks as a work theme. To date, 410 employees have participated in this Program with 116 promoted to managerial positions. We have set a target ratio for female directors at 30% as part of our follow-up training for promotion to post-managerial positions.
In addition, as a Group-wide initiative aimed at empowering women, we hold seminars every year for all employees on a variety of topics. In fiscal 2023, we held a seminar on women's careers and new options (non-medical egg freezing) in conjunction with International Women's Day. Two experts in their field were invited to host lectures and to provide the latest information. Through these means, we are hoping to provide women with a better understanding of their own career design as well as various other topics.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group is promoting the active participation of people with disabilities from the two aspects of recruitment and retention.
From a recruitment perspective, we take into account the characteristics of each individual’s disability and determine the most appropriate assignment based on suitability for the position and workplace through multiple steps such as workplace tours, hands-on training, and recruitment training. In 2023, we launched a new farming model. Under this model, vegetables grown on the farm are provided to the cafeterias of business sites.
As far as retention is concerned, we hold information exchange meetings for the heads of human resources departments at each SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group company. We are working to promote the employment of people with disabilities while supporting their retention by sharing information on disability characteristics as well as points to consider when hiring.

SEKISUI CHEIMCAL Group provides training for employees who choose to extend their mandatory retirement age in order to encourage each and every one of them to play a leading role and continue to take on challenges regardless of age.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group hosts Vision Caravans for local executives and employees worldwide and conducts ongoing dialogue to promote an understanding of the Long-term Vision and to encourage employees to take on new challenges. In addition, we deploy human resources training programs that are firmly rooted in each area, thereby enabling employees to make the most of their unique characteristics and talents at their respective workplaces.
In Japan, we focus on hiring as well as retention support to non-Japanese employees.

In order to support working styles that accommodate such life events as childbirth and child rearing, SEKISUI CHEMICAL is working to develop systems and create an environment in which these systems are easy to adopt.
As far as the Group’s systems are concerned, employees can take childcare leave until their child reaches three years of age and can use the shortened working hours system until their child enters junior high school. We also provide a financial support system for employees on childcare leave, creating an environment in which employees can concentrate on childcare with peace of mind.
Moreover, and in addition to the head of the Human Resources Department sending out messages, e-learning courses are also provided to managers to create a corporate culture that is conducive to adopting these systems.
To encourage male employees to take childcare leave, we distribute information about the available systems to supervisors and male employees themselves. We also hold social events with experienced mothers and fathers in cooperation with the labor union, and publish interviews with employees who have taken childcare leave in our internal newsletter.

In addition to efforts aimed at reducing working hours, SEKISUI CHEMICAL is endeavoring to improve work productivity. To pursue a highly productive work style that maximizes results in a limited amount of time, it is important for employees to work autonomously and for supervisors to engage in self-directed support-type management. In order to instill this approach in our employees, we have rolled out the Work Style Reforms Guidelines and Work Style Reforms e-learning. In fiscal 2023, we continued to conduct training for managers to coach employees’ self-support.
To realize flexible work styles, we are upgrading and expanding Group-wide working from home/flexible hours and other systems. As a result, coexistence between going to an office and working remotely has steadily taken hold.
We will continue to maintain close communication between the Company and labor union, engage in constructive dialogue on issues common to labor and management, and promote system revisions related to flexible work styles through the Labor-Management Committee.

The Meeting with the President/Top Management initiative is a forum for dialogue between management and employees on a variety of themes.
Drawing on the theme, What is a good company full of vitality from an external perspective?, a meeting was held in fiscal 2023. Three female outside directors, including the Chair of the Diversity Promotion Committee, were invited as panelists, to a meeting attended by approximately 200 employees. In addition to imparting their thoughts on the Company’s strengths and potential for growth, outside directors drew on their experiences when replying to issues raised by employees and outlining management’s perspective. As such, the meeting was an opportunity for the frank exchange of opinions by not only employees, but also management to think about the future of SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group strives to improve its employees’ physical and mental health based on the idea that employees are valuable resources entrusted to the Group by society. In March 2019, we announce details of our Declaration of Health, and established the Basic Policy for Health and Productivity Management, with summarize our philosophy regarding our goals for health and productivity management^*1. We are also promoting health management using a Health and Productivity Management Strategy Map^*2.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group collaborates with the SEKISUI Health Insurance Society. We facilitate health and carry out uniform health checkups for all Group companies. In addition to introducing a health management system, we are also undertaking a variety of measures, including putting in place the SEKISUI Health Network (SHN), which can accommodate workplaces with less than 50 employees in a bid to promote better health Group-wide, including small work sites.

We have established high-risk values and confirmed that the health of employees who fall under this category is being properly managed (implementation rate of 100% in FY2022; implementation rate details for FY2023 scheduled for Web release in August 2024). Based on the aforementioned, the rate of high-risk employees （％） has gradually decreased (1.15 in FY2020, 0.97 in FY2021, and 0.92 in FY2022).

The Seven Health Habits Support Program using health support apps held four events. 92.7% of those who attended the walking event said they enjoyed the event. For the sleep event, there was a 19.5% improvement in the quality of sleep before and after the event. Work day presenteeism also increased by 5.3 points, from 64.4 to 69.7. Moreover, the rate of Seven Health Habits recognition increased from 75.3% in FY2022 to 83.4%.

SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group undertakes the following measures to support mental health.

There are a variety of existing factors at workplaces that may hinder health, including chemical substances, working posture, and noise. To counter these factors, we are undertaking activities across the Group through the utilization of an occupational health and safety management system. In addition, we are also striving to enhance a range of internal systems so that not only healthy employees, but also employees with illnesses can work with peace of mind in a caring environment.
In fiscal 2023, we conducted training on women's health for managers in an effort to solve women's health issues, with 76.7% of all managers attending. In addition, a seminar for female employees was held on the theme of Women's Health in the Event of a Disaster, with a participation rate of 67.7% of which 99.4% confirmed their understanding.

In order to promote health and productivity management in unison as a group, we are promoting use of the Group’s Health and Productivity Management Organization Recognition Program, in the large enterprise category. Group companies that are engaging in activities aimed at increasing the level of health through pre-assessment are covered under this use. We took steps to initiate information exchange meetings among applicable companies from fiscal 2019. Having established specific health and productivity management targets for each company and putting in place a mechanism to share details regarding the level of achievement, we are promoting activities on an integrated Group-wide basis. In addition, we have appointed people responsible for, and others in charge of health and productivity management at approximately 300 business sites. In this manner, we have established systems that ensure the definitive promotion of health and productivity management.
Attended by representatives of the labor union, the Health Up Working Group meets monthly with the SEKISUI Health Insurance Society to share information and deliberate on measures.

With the aim of establishing productivity indicators, we have identified a total of 29 KPIs, including seven major indicators, and are implementing various health-related measures for each.

In recognition of SEKISUI CHEMICAL's efforts to resolve employee health- and productivity-related issues from a Group-wide perspective, the Company was certified as a 2023 Health and Productivity Management Organization in the large enterprise category (White 500) for the eighth consecutive years together with 32 affiliated companies in Japan.