The Hodogaya Chemical Group is steadily implementing the personnel planning linked to enhancement of corporate value as shown in the above diagram. Which is, the process of:
(1) Recruiting personnel who can learn, think, and act on their own:
(2) Placing and transferring the right person to the right place:
(3) Education and training that leads to ability and skills improvement and career development:
(4) Fairness and a sense of job satisfaction for the personnel:
To preserve the corporate value of the Hodogaya Chemical Group, the occurrence of human risks (violation of labor laws, harassment, outflow of personnel, individual troubles, etc.) is a serious obstacle to the continued and stable growth of the Hodogaya Chemical Group. Recognizing that there is a risk, we strive to appropriately and adequately manage human risk, prevent, avoid, and mitigate future losses.
The Hodogaya Chemical Group hires those who can strategically utilize their ability, skills, and experience for enhancing corporate value—in other words, those who are willing to grow, keen to take on new challenges, possess the spirit to make innovation happen, and can learn and act at the same time. We aggressively hire mid-career workers in addition to new graduates, with the former accounting for 35% (disaggregated data) of all new hires in FY2022.
For improving corporate value, the Hodogaya Chemical Group, practicing a “right people in the right place” attitude, ensures that each employee is assigned to a department where they can fully exercise their ability, skills, and experience, and gives consideration to their career direction, need for ability development, and other conditions when placing or transferring them.
For improving corporate value, the Hodogaya Chemical Group provides personnel with ability/skill improvement support as well as career development support, and offers various learning opportunities, including regular training programs at the workplace and training courses not directly related to the daily work, to cultivate a corporate culture that encourages personnel to learn.
| Programs | |
|---|---|
| Training on globalization | Regular language training and an overseas study program (English, Chinese, and Korean speaking countries) to prepare personnel for globalization |
| Training by job capacity | Training at promotion for managers to provide knowledge required for new posts |
| Training by grade | Educational training to improve abilities to perform duties, such as management training |
| Training by job description | Job-specific educational training (sales, development, manufacturing, etc.) to improve abilities to perform duties, such as engineering training |
| Basic training | Training on compliance, sustainability, diversity, etc., to provide basic knowledge required for all personnel at the Hodogaya Chemical Group and increase practical level abilities |
| Support for self enlightenment | A correspondence course and web-based e-learning program to support qualification/license acquisition and active learning |
The Hodogaya Chemical Group aims to conduct a fair and credible performance appraisal based on each employee’s ability, skills, and experience. We will consider introducing a new performance appraisal system as specified in the mid‑term management plan SPEED 25/30.
The Hodogaya Chemical Group recognizes that the purpose of promoting diversity is to enhance corporate value by promoting innovation in a highly competitive environment, flexibly reconfiguring businesses, and strengthening the ability to respond to change. We actively appoint women, non-Japanese people, and mid-career hires into management positions as described in (1) and (2) below.
(1) This report discloses the objectives and history of hiring female managers.
(2) This report discloses the ratio of non-Japanese personnel and mid-career hires. We intend to maintain or increase this ratio and hire personnel based on an overall judgment of their experience, abilities, and skills without any difference between Japanese and non-Japanese and new hires and mid-career hires.
At the same time, we are working to create an environment in which each person can maximize his or her individual talents and skills. In June 2023, we approved our first outside female director at the General Meeting of Shareholders. In addition, promoting diversity will increase the number of personnel with diverse personalities and values to help expand the diversity of the organization; hence, it is important to unify the organization and human resources. We believe that the Hodogaya Chemical Group’s PURPOSE (Management Philosophy) and VISION (Target Corporate Image) can fully unite them.
The Group expects both male and female personnel to actively participate in all positions including management and supervisory positions based on individual capabilities, skills and experience.
In FY2022-2025, we set the following targets: (1) the percentage of female employment to be 20% or greater; and (2) the percentage of female managers to be 13% or greater.
We have more female managers working as general managers of departments and heads of the administration department of our plants, and the number of female managers accounted for 11.0% of the total management personnel as of March 31, 2023.
Non-Japanese employees are active in the Hodogaya Chemical Group in Japan and overseas in areas including production, R&D, sales, and management. As of March 31, 2023, there were 272 non-Japanese employees (31%/consolidated) in the Group.
In order to acquire personnel with diverse values and specialized expertise, we actively strive to hire mid‑career professionals.
Our (non‑consolidated) ratio of mid‑career hires in FY2022 was 35%, with these professionals contributing to manufacturing, R&D, sales, management and other areas.
Our target for employment rate of workers with disabilities is 2.3%, and in order to achieve this goal, we select candidates through recruitment activities by visiting schools in the vicinity of the offices, exchanging information with Hello Work (public employment security office) and private support institutions, and receiving referrals from staffing firms. We then establish probationary periods and conduct internship programs at the offices. As of March 31, 2023, employment rate of workers with disabilities reached 2.6%, thereby achieving the target for employment rate.
The Hodogaya Chemical Group has in place the Reemployment Program for retired personnel—under it, a senior employee system for those considering re-employment is available. Also, senior personnel can continue to work on a contractual basis even after the age of 65, so long as their departments need them and they themselves are willing and able. Many middle-aged and older personnel play important roles in different fields by fully utilizing their accumulated knowledge and skills as well as the professional networks they have built.
| FY2018 | FY2019 | FY2020 | FY2021 | FY2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of employees (persons) | 731 | 739 | 789 | 834 | 890 |
| Percentage of female managers (%) | 11.0 | 10.8 | 11.2 | 10.8 | 11.0 |
| Percentage of female employees (%) | 17.9 | 18.4 | 18.6 | 18.0 | 19.5 |
| Percentage of non-Japanese employees (%) | 18 | 21 | 23 | 26 | 31 |
| Percentage of mid‑career hires (%) | 33 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 |
| Percentageof disability employment (%) | 1.5 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 2.6 |
The Hodogaya Chemical Group considers the physical and mental health of its executives a top priority. We consider initiatives to improve health as a management issue. Therefore, we strategically implement health management. The President is Hodogaya Chemical Group’s Health Management Supervisor and the executive officer in charge of the Personnel Department is the Health Management Supervisor Representative. They work with the Hodogaya Chemical Health Insurance Society to actively provide instruction and education to improve health. We work to achieve 100% consultation rates for health checkups, a 99% or higher consultation rate for stress checkups, and we have our industrial physicians share the health conditions of personnel with the Company in order to improve health conditions or prevent them from deteriorating.
The Group further conducts health enhancement training and health events for all personnel and provides health literacy information to partner companies with the aim of deepening their understanding of health management.
These activities were evaluated, and in FY2023, we were certified as a 2024 Certified Health & Productivity Management Outstanding Organization (fourth consecutive year). Going forward, one of our targets is to continue improving our evaluation in this area.
The Hodogaya Chemical Group considers the physical and mental health of its employees a top priority. As a way to increase engagement, we consider initiatives to improve health as a management issue. Therefore, we actively promote health management. The President is the Group’s Health Management Supervisor and the executive officer in charge of the Personnel Department is the Health Management Supervisor Representative. They work with the Hodogaya Chemical Health Insurance Society to actively contribute to instruction and education to promote health.
With an aim to achieve“ further growth of the Hodogaya Chemical Group” and“ improvement of job satisfaction of employees” at the same time, we respect the diverse lifestyles and work to create a motivating workplace environment. To this end, we implement various programs and policies to enable employees to achieve a highly productive work style and successfully combine work and daily living (work-life balance).
In FY2022, we made remote work permanent due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and even if employees come to work, we aim to create a more comfortable work environment by encouraging necktie-free business casual year-round.
As initiatives to reduce work hours, we set “no overtime days” on Wednesdays and Fridays every week and instruct employees to leave work on time. In addition, the Head Office promotes to leave the office by 9 p.m., and although it is not an official rule, we aim to ensure a 12-hour interval between shifts.
The flextime working system has also been expanded starting to include some of the administrative departments at the Head Office. It was proven to be effective in reducing overtime labor and improving work efficiency, and we are considering expanding the system to other departments in the future.
In promoting these initiatives, each department is able to manage overtime labor with the implementation of the attendance management system.
In 2020, we established “Work from Home Regulations” to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic; these were revised to the permanent “Telework Regulations” on the occasion of the relocation of the head office in May 2022. Under the revised regulations, up-to-four-days-a-week telework, including working from home or in a shared office is allowed—the aim is to (1) improve employees’ workstyles and engagement by helping them achieve a work-life balance, (2) make them use their time effectively to improve productivity at the workplace, and (3) ensure business operations remain unaffected in the event of large-scale earthquakes, water and wind-related hazards, infectious diseases, and other disasters.
Annual paid holidays can also be used on a half-day basis and an hourly basis. The rate of usage of paid holidays is 60% or greater and all Group personnel took five days or more of holiday. Going forward, we will continue to review various systems to achieve further improvements.
Annual paid holidays that were not used can be accumulated as “Separately accumulated annual leave” up to a maximum of 5 days/year. Separately accumulated annual leave may be used for purposes such as nursing care and volunteer activities in addition to personal injuries.
Refreshment leave is a system in which personnel are eligible to take five consecutive business days off in addition to the annual paid holidays. This leave is aimed to freshen up the mind and body, and by combining it with Saturdays and Sundays, personnel can enjoy a longer vacation.
personnel are required to use a certain number of annual paid holidays prior to taking the refreshment leave in order to achieve a good balance between annual paid holidays and refreshment leaves.
The Group implements various programs to support childcare, including short working hours during pregnancy and childraising period, long-term childcare leave, and nursing leave when to care for a sick child. For better understanding and use of such programs, we also conduct briefings to publicize the corporate programs, financial aids, and necessary procedures related to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare that are available. personnel are also entitled to a congratulatory leave upon childbirth by their spouse. In FY2022, a total of 11 personnel made use of long-term childcare leave: one personnel (acquisition rate 100%) who gave birth themselves, and 10 of the 12 personnel (acquisition rate 83%) whose spouses had given birth.
The Group also implements nursing care programs including long-term and short-term nursing care leaves.
In FY2018, we introduced a reemployment applicants registration system named Come-back Entry Program for personnel who terminated their employment voluntarily due to reasons such as childcare and nursing care.
This system allows employees to use the Shinkansen and charged limited express trains for commuting, aiming to alleviate the commuting time of long-distance commuters, allow effective utilization of their time, and offer more choices of where to live. There are certain requirements such as commuting time and commuting distance to be eligible, but the system is utilized as one measure to enhance work-life balance.
| Programs | |
|---|---|
| Long-term childcare leave | Until a child turns one year old, in principle, but extendable until the child turns two under special circumstances |
| Long-term nursing care leave | Up to 180 days per family member requiring care |
| Childbirth leave | Six weeks before childbirth/eight weeks after childbirth |
| Spousal maternity | Three days in case of spousal maternity |
| Short working hours | Up to 180 days until a child reaches the 3rd grade (childcare) or within three years (nursing care) |
| Nursing leave | Five days/year (a max. of ten days) per child until he/she reaches the 3rd grade |
| Short-term nursing care leave | Five days/year per family member requiring care |
| Separately accumulated annual leave | Annual paid leave that expired at the end of the previous fiscal year is accumulated separately up to 5 days per year and apply it to time off for such uses as personal illness/injury, nursing care, and voluntary services |
| Half-day leave | Paid leave on a half-day basis (four times/month, up to 24 times/year [a max of 12 days]) |
| An hourly leave | Paid leave on an hourly basis (up to five days/year) |
| Telework | Telecommuting, shared office work up to 4 days a week |
| Flextime | Only in applicable departments |
| “Come-back” entry | Reemployment Applicants Registration System for persons who resigned for unavoidable reasons such as childcare and nursing care. |
| FY2018 | FY2019 | FY2020 | FY2021 | FY2022 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of usage of childcare leave(%) | Male | 0 | 24 | 14 | 56 | 83 |
| Female | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | |
| Average monthly overtime per employee(hours) | 11.9 | 12.0 | 10.3 | 11.6 | 11.3 | |
| Percentage of usage of paid holidays (Hodogaya non-consolidated)(%) | 68 | 68 | 65 | 69 | 70.8 | |
| Percentage of usage of refreshment leave (Hodogaya non-consolidated)(%) | 95 | 94 | 93 | 93 | 93.4 | |
To preserve the corporate value of the Hodogaya Chemical Group, the occurrence of human risks (violation of labor laws, harassment, outflow of personnel, individual troubles, etc.) is a serious obstacle to the continued and stable growth of the Hodogaya Chemical Group. Recognizing that there is a risk, we strive to appropriately and adequately manage human risk, prevent, avoid, and mitigate future losses.
Hodogaya Chemical and Hodogaya Chemical Labor Union hold the labor-management consultation meeting once a month, where the company discusses the Group’s financial conditions, regulation revision, and the current status of employees’ overtime, among other things. To deepen the discussion on the revision of work conditions required by the Union, the meeting is held almost every week in March and April every year.
In FY2022 we discussed the advancement of the mid-term management plan SPEED 25/30, a wage system based on economic conditions, and the optimization of work hours in addition to the regular items on the agenda.
Also, a session for labor-management consultation is held at each office too every month, and work environment issues, work hour management, and other things are discussed.
The Hodogaya Chemical Group ended its measures on May 8, 2023, with COVID-19 being legally repositioned as one of the five infectious diseases.
We will be prepared for future pandemics, and we are aware that taking the necessary measures to prevent the spread of infection not only helps us fulfill our supply responsibilities as a manufacturer but also helps prevent the spread of infection across society as a whole.
Managing Executive Officer Shinichi Sato
Labor market conditions led by work styles are changing significantly amid major structural changes worldwide, including the first inflation seen in almost 40 years, instability in the international political order, and changes in people’s behavior following COVID-19. Against this backdrop, human capital management is in the spotlight as it regards human resources as capital for creating corporate value. Traditionally, the Hodogaya Chemical Group has been deeply aware that human resources are indeed the driving force behind value creation. We will work to achieve the Mid-term Management Plan SPEED 25/30 by engaging in human resources investment and initiatives
From the standpoint of maximizing the use of human resources, who are the driving forces behind value creation, we believe it is important to enhance human capital in order to increase corporate value over the medium to long term. Specifically, the Hodogaya Chemical Group is steadily implementing the personnel planning linked to enhancement of corporate value as shown in the following diagram to promote the hiring and development of personnel who can learn, think and act on their own with a desire to grow, take on challenges, and innovate. We have set the goal of improving engagement, also shown in the diagram that follows. Our strategic goal in the SPEED 25/30 is to ensure that all officers and personnel are provided with a greater sense of fulfillment in their work.
As mentioned above, the Hodogaya Chemical Group has set enhancement of engagement that: all executives and personnel can feel job satisfaction as a strategic goal and are planning measures to tackle it. Amid major global structural changes, however, it is possible that values regarding human resources will change. By keeping our antennas high to collect information, we can grasp changes in human resource management trends in a timely manner, and respond to changes based on the Hodogaya Chemical Group’s PURPOSE (Management Philosophy) and VISION (Target Corporate Image).
The Human Resources department is the driving force behind these measures. They carefully grasp the operational issues of each department and company of the Hodogaya Chemical Group, the characteristics of the organization, and the engagement status of officers and personnel. We recognize that it is necessary to provide solutions and support for solving problems in the field. As the Human Resources department, we will work together with each department and company to meet these expectations.
General Affairs Department
Kazumi Omae
Using the head office relocation in 2022 as an opportunity, Hodogaya Chemical is implementing various measures to improve the feeling of motivation and ease of work. Among a host of initiatives, we consolidated all departments (including officers) to a single floor, introduced an office system where employees are free to change desks at all work stations, eliminated fixed-line phones, and made telework a regular practice. This approach to workplaces and work styles directly enables those in their child-rearing years and female employees to play an active role. With this in mind, we believe a bright and open atmosphere is also very important. The new head office features minimal walls and pillars, large open spaces and a lounge area, and a system that allows personnel to connect with anyone at any time. However, there are still many issues to consider, such as better communication and the appropriate scale for each area. I want to continue helping to improve engagement from a woman’s perspective.
Yokohama Plant
Administration Manager
Chikako Katsuyama
Hodogaya Chemical implements various programs and policies to enable personnel to achieve a highly productive work style and successfully combine work and daily life (work-life balance). Due to the revision of the Child Care and Family Care Leave Act (enforced on April 1, 2022), a consulting service for childcare leave was established to facilitate the acquisition of childcare leave. To avoid the anxiety caused by availing the childcare leave, I value communication and will strive to make use of my experience as a coordinator. In addition, through education, we will work to create a workplace that is easy to work in, where personnel can reduce their workload and deepen their knowledge, improve their work efficiency, and play an active role. Remember “the next step of the process is the customer”.
Nanyo Plant
Takuro Fujii
It felt like the month went by very quickly, but I was able to take advantage of our childcare leave program. The reason I utilized the childcare leave was because I wanted to increase the amount of time I spend with my wife and child and I wanted to try helping with the housework and childrearing that I usually leave to my wife.
I was glad that I used this program since it let me have more freedom in my schedule, allowed me to prepare meals and baby food (which were two things I had not been able to do well), and made it easier for me to tend to the baby in the middle of the night.
I am not sure that I was of much help, but I think it lessened the mental and physical burdens on my wife. I hope that our society will become better at accepting and accommodating both men and women who are working while taking care of household chores and childrearing.
Yokohama Plant
Tomoya Murakami
My first child was born in January 2019, and in May 2019 I took one month’s long-term childcare leave. When I took the leave, I had all sorts of reservations, wondering whether I might have no place to return to in the Company, or whether people would look at me disapprovingly. But the colleagues I work with supported me, and my manager was understanding, so I was able to focus on looking after my child. And, needless to say, they gave me a warm welcome when I returned to work. During this long-term childcare leave, I was able to experience my child’s growth at first hand, and my interest in parenting and enthusiasm for it increased. What is more, my wife told me how grateful she was—not only to me, but also to the Company—so I felt truly fortunate to have been able to take the leave. It is just my own subjective impression, but I feel that my day-to-day work efficiency has improved because I want to get back home where my cute little child is waiting for me as early as possible.
Deputy General Manager of Intellectual Property Dept. Research & Development Department
Chen Jin
My job is patent practice. It requires highly specialized knowledge and a strong sense of responsibility. In doing my job, I am required to master the legal knowledge on intellectual properties inside and outside of Japan and technical knowledge on areas in charge. In such environment, the responsibilities and pressure of being a female manager of a foreign nationality are not small, but I try to handle the domestic and international patent practices by utilizing the unique sense I have as a woman and language skills I have as a foreigner in the practical management of intellectual propertyrelated activities.
Also, my husband and I are a working couple with elementary school kids, so there are many challenges in balancing my career and housework. However, I think I am able to work full-time by using the various programs that support childcare and thanks to the support of my colleagues.
I wish to continue contributing to the development of the Company on my own without being conscious about gender or nationality.
HODOGAYA (SHANGHAI) TRADING CO., LTD.
Toshiki Konoshita
I spent one year from April 2015, my fifth year with the Company, in Shanghai to participate in the overseas language training (trainee program), and now I am based in Shanghai engaging mainly in sales operations of our dyestuff products within China. Three and a half years have already gone by since I began living in Shanghai.
Back then, I was bewildered by my first experience living abroad, and I had to study Chinese almost from zero. But thanks to all the support, the environment to focus on studying the language was already there, and I was able to dive straight into my Chinese studies, which I feel became the foundation of the greater ability I have now.
China is growing with such speed that I am often perplexed by the speed of things changing. But with the support of my colleagues and local staff, I am able to do my job in a foreign country.
I am truly grateful for this valuable opportunity to gain work experience abroad while I am still young. Meeting such people whom I could rarely meet in Japan is a real pleasure of working abroad, so I will continue to work hard on what I can do where I am.
Head of Administration
Department, Nanyo Plant
Noriko Miura
At the plant I work, the majority of employees are male. In such an environment, I sometimes feel the pressure of being a female manager, but in carrying out my job, I always try to think what I need to do and what I am expected to do while using my sensibilities as a woman. My husband and I are a working couple, so it was difficult to balance my career and housework when the children were young. I couldn’t have continued working without the support of my family.
The Company has many programs for female employees to actively participate, and I think they could be improved with ideas from a female perspective, which should lead to improving the quality of our business. Looking forward, I hope that there will be more opportunities for female employees to participate actively, with the recognition that male and female are working partners.