Social Initiatives
Creating a Comfortable Workplace Environment
Work Style Reform
Encouraging Employees to Take Paid Leave
Sodick has designated several days as payed leave day to encourage employees to take paid leaves. This creates a virtuous cycle as they can be fully refreshed and work hard with renewed motivation.
Reducing Overtime Work
To address reduction of overtime work, we have tightened our controls on working hours through operational streamlining and systems, and provided trainings for managers.
Encouraging Employees to Take Parental Leave
We are working to create an environment in which employees can balance work and child rearing. We are also expanding measures to support the return to work of employees who have taken parental leave. We have maintained a 100% return-to-work rate for the past five years.
In addition to promoting women’s active participation, we are also implementing reforms that make it easier for male employees to work, including promoting the use of parental leave. With a target of having 100% of male employees take parental leave by 2027, we will create a structure that reduces the daily tasks performed by one single individual and allows team members to support each other, with the aim of having employees feel comfortable at work while also increasing the productivity of the organization.
Promoting Reduced Working Hours Scheme
Sodick has adopted a reduced working hours scheme to enable employees to undertake childcare or nursing care. This allows employees to alter their working hours as needed. In recent years, a number of employees have taken advantage of this scheme, and we continue to make it available.
Data on work flexibility
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| 12/2019 FY | 12/2020 FY | 12/2021 FY | 12/2022 FY | 12/2023 FY | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average number of days of paid leave taken | 12.0 | 11.5 | 11.6 | 14.1 | 13.3 | |
| Annual average overtime hours | 252 | 250 | 296 | 299 | 253 | |
| Number of employees taking parental leave | Women | 8 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 10 |
| Men | 2 | 3 | 11 | 13 | 14 | |
| Number of employees working reduced hours | 8 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 13 | |
Well-Rounded Benefits Packages
Sodick makes efforts to fully round out our benefits packages and relevant facilities so that our employees can attend to their duties without worrying about their daily lives or health. As part of this, the company offers financial incentives of 20% from its employee stock ownership association system, provides regular health examinations, and offers financial assistance for cancer examinations using positron emission tomography (PET), which is a treatment technique that has recently been much talked about, among other benefits. Also, in terms of facilities for employees to refresh themselves, Sodick has resort houses in Yatsugatake and Miyazaki, and has concluded corporate contracts that allow for preferential treatment at designated theme parks and similar facilities.
Club activities are also actively carried out, including clubs for tennis, marathon running, cycling, futsal, badminton, and golf, which are useful for stimulating interactions with employees from other departments.
Promoting Digital Transformation
Traditionally, we have been working on work style reforms, creating an environment that is independent of working hours and places, and improving work efficiency by utilizing RPA. Since 2020, these activities have accelerated.
Company-wide acceleration of DX
| Until now | Increased selection of work styles | |
|---|---|---|
| Work location | Fixed seating / some work from home | Free addressing, working at home |
| Meetings with remote locations | Business trip | Internet teleconferences |
| Communications | PHS | Communication via internet, chat |
| Data entry/paperwork | Input by hand | RPA |
| Applications | Stamp approval | Workflow approval |
| Exhibitions | Run booths at events | Virtual exhibitions, create YouTube channels |
| Maintenance service | Business trip on site | Use tablets and other remote tools |
Maintaining and Improving the Office Environment
Since 2018, we have renovated our office environment, including refurbishing the office, dining hall and cafeteria at the Head Office, and completing a second Head Office building and the Kaga multi-factory.
The provision of a new office environment has increased our employees’ motivation.
Carrying Out Employee Satisfaction Survey
At Sodick, we aim to create a corporate culture where every employee can grow together with the Company and play an active role. Following 2022, we carried out an employee satisfaction survey in 2023 for all employees, including loaned employees and expatriate employees. The questionnaire consisted of eight categories each from a Company-wide perspective and from a workplace perspective, and employees rated their own work, work style, and organizational culture on a five-point scale.
The survey can be seen as a diagnosis of the Company’s health. From the results, we identify issues as an organization that will lead to improvements in the culture and systems, to increase the satisfaction of each employee and create an environment that encourages them to approach their work proactively.