Sojitz Corporation

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Health Management

Basic Concept

At Sojitz, we consider our employees to be our greatest asset. We feel it is our responsibility to create a safe, flexible, and rewarding work environment that promotes the mental and physical well-being of our staff and to support the health of their families. In March 2018, we established the "Sojitz Healthy Value" charter to protect and improve employee health, which is based on our belief that when highly-motivated employees are able to exercise their full potential, Sojitz is able to expand its capabilities as an organization, as well as our commitment to create "value and prosperity." Various plans under this initiative are currently underway, and Sojitz will continue its efforts to strengthen health management activities at the company.

Our Commitment to "Sojitz Healthy Value"


✓We believe that the physical and mental health of employees and a sound working environment are the keys to creating "value and prosperity," as set forth in our corporate statement.

✓Sojitz Group supports the individual efforts employees and their families make towards maintaining and improving their health, striving for a work environment in which each and Every employee is able to fully exercise their abilities.

 

Health Strategy Map

New Initiatives Under Medium-term Management Plan 2023

Sojitz has seen a rise in employees with adult-onset diseases in recent years, as well as an increase in employees receiving ongoing treatment for cancer or other illnesses. We are strengthening our Health Support Office’s capability to not only prevent illnesses and promote health, but enable employees to continue working during their treatment by implementing the following policies.

Standard medical checkups and follow-ups for all employees

All employees are provided with the opportunity to receive a standard annual medical checkup and gynecological checkup. Striving to increase this percentage, we advise employees that do not undergo a checkup at this time to receive a checkup separately at their convenience. Moving forward, we will continue to actively encourage employees to take any additional recommended medical tests in order to prevent illness through early detection and treatment. We will continue to strengthen our ability to make recommendations to those who are eligible for secondary health checkups, leading to the prevention through early detection, and cure of diseases. Since FY2021 we have been monitoring the rate of employees taking secondary health checkup as a human resource KPI.

FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Percentage of employees participating in annual health checks
100%
100%
100%

Cancer screenings

Sojitz is partnering with a well-known cancer research hospital to not only offer the usual cancer-related screenings in the health check, but also conduct examinations such as endoscopies, colonoscopies, chest CTs, and tumor marker tests. These additional screenings are held once every three years, targeting employees aged 40 years or older. In this way, we strive to detect cancer at an early stage and ensure employees are provided with the appropriate treatment. Alongside these cancer tests, we hold a cancer seminar to inform employees about basic cancer information and provide them with an explanation of the exams. Sojitz provides compensation for advanced cancer treatment (recognized as advance treatment by the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare) to its employees and their families to ensure that health treatments can be prioritized.

As of FY2022, all female employees are eligible for routine cervical and breast cancer screenings, and Sojitz is strengthening its efforts to support women’s health. Sojitz also invites medical specialists to hold seminars on maintaining good health including self-care techniques to reduce health risks specific to women and address physical changes due to aging.

An implemented health management system

In June 2019, the Health Support Office introduced a health management system to better monitor changes in employee health. Regular medical checkups (annual physicals, health exams for lifestyle-related diseases, cancer screenings) and stress assessments are carried out routinely for all employees. If changes are observed in an employee’s health, the Health Support Office now has a system in place with dedicated staff to reach out to these individual employees and provide support services that include a place to discuss work-related stress.

Passive smoking measures

In order to maintain the health of our employees, we have set a goal to reduce the smoking rate from 22% (FY2019) to 12% by the end of FY2023. To aid in this we closed the smoking booths at both the Tokyo Headquarters and Kansai Office at the end of March 2023. We will continue to implement the smoking cessation program and seminars on smoking cessation, which have been implemented since FY2020, and aim to achieve our goal by the end of FY2023.

FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
FY2023 Target
Percentage of employees who smoke
20%
18%
17%
12%

Support for healthy lifestyles

We are aiming to reduce the percentage of employees over 35-year-old with BMI higher than 30 to less than one percent by the end of the FY2023. In order to achieve this target, we have not only set up a health counseling services, but also provide nutritional guidance to those with pre-diabetes and other lifestyle-related diseases, as well as offering nutritious, low-sugar boxed lunches to employees. We also hold seminars on women's health support and other health issues.

Mental health measures

With the help of our industrial psychiatrist, we have been conducting various programs for prevention of onset, early detection, early treatment and recurrence prevention from the FY2020. Also, we conduct annual stress assessments, as called for by Japan’s Industrial Safety & Health Act, and strive to improve the working environment by having occupational psychologists provide counseling to employees experiencing high levels of stress, in addition to conducting group analyses of each organization within the company. With mental health specialists and a clinical psychologist on site, we have established a system whereby employees can receive counseling at any time. Additionally, we work to increase awareness of mental health management by holding seminars for management-level staff who are in a position to communicate closely with their staff. Through these programs, we are aiming to reduce the percentage of employees taking a temporary leave due to mental illness by half by the end of the FY2023.

Preventing the spread of infection

As part of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Sojitz provided workplace vaccinations for Group company employees and their families in order to ensure that all Sojitz Group members can work in a safe environment. Sojitz also conducts COVID-19 antigen testing of employees (approximately JPY 17 million was allocated for antigen tests in FY2022). Sojitz’s Safety & Sanitation Committee cooperates with the industrial physicians at Tokyo HQ and the Kansai Office to share the latest updates and information relating to COVID-19. Other prevention measures include placing hand sanitizer on every floor and monitoring the status of all individuals reporting a fever. Sojitz also encourages employees to receive the flu vaccine each year and provides subsidies to cover the cost of vaccination (approximately JPY 3.3 million has been provided in subsidies since FY2019).

Workplace vaccination (total doses)
Antigen testing
FY2021
10,359 doses
38,957 tests

Healthcare

At both Tokyo HQ and the Kansai Office, Sojitz has a health Care Room where employees can receive massages to help them recover from work-related fatigue and stress. In order to promote the health of employees and proper work-life management, Sojitz offers a service that allows employees to use fitness clubs at a discount.

FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Number of employees using Health Care Rooms
888
1,080
1,341
2,168

Progress of Health Management Initiatives

Initiatives
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Participation in annual health checks 100% 100% 100%
Participation in detailed (follow-up) examinations 24% 49% 67%
Obesity rates (individuals with a BMI of 30 or above) 2.3%
2.3% 3.4%
Employees for whom the company supports ongoing medical treatment 100% 100% 100%
Employees receiving specialized healthcare guidance 21% 20% 20%
Smoking rates 20% 18% 17%
Employees who exercise regularly1 17% 22% 33%
Walking Campaign participants 638 691 751
Participation in the annual stress check 94% 91% 95%
Employees experiencing high stress levels 4.8% 6.3% 6.4%
Employees on leave of absence due to illness/injury 0.2% 0.3% 0.2%
Absenteeism 0.2 days 0.8 days 0.7 days
Satisfaction with health-related initiatives 84%
Health literacy 83%

1: Percentage of employees who responded “Yes” to either of the following survey questions: 1) “Do you perform 30 minutes of exercise (in which you break a sweat) twice a week or more, and have you maintained this habit for a year or longer?” and, 2) “On average, do you perform a moderate physical activity like walking for an hour or longer per day?”


Presenteeism (WHO Health and Work Performance Questionnaire): 39% (first measured in FY2022)

Overall evaluation:
The percent of employees undergoing follow-up examinations is improving, but we intend to work with our occupational physicians to continue to increase this figure. The percent of employees that report regularly exercising is increasing along with the number of Walking Campaign participants, and the percent of employees who smoke is also decreasing. Moving forward, we will implement measures for improving employee habits and lifestyles in order to decrease the obesity rate. We aim to continue to enhance collaboration with our occupational psychiatrist as we strive to decrease the percent of employees taking leave for mental health reasons and reduce absenteeism.

Support for employees and family members undergoing treatments

Sojitz has measures in place which aim to gradually help employees acclimate to work after extended absence for treatment by limiting working hours as necessary. We also enable employees to balance treatment with work by encouraging them to utilize remote work and the super flextime system that has eliminated core time. Sojitz is also focusing its efforts on supporting the health of employees’ families, such as through a counseling service available to employees and their family members.

 

Work Style Reforms

Sojitz is coordinating its health-related initiatives in conjunction with work-style reforms, which include measures to reduce long working hours, encourage employees to take paid leave and utilize the flextime system, and provide special vacation time for long-term employees.

Link

Health Support System

To promote and protect the health of employees, the President, as the head of occupational health and safety for the company, has created the following system through discussion and collaboration with the HR Dept., Corporate Sustainability Dept., the Sojitz Health Insurance Society, and the Sojitz Labor Union.

Organization

Organization

1. In accordance with the aims of the Industrial Safety and Health Law, which includes approaches to mental health and the prevention and reduction of stress, Sojitz has established safety and sanitation management regulations to prevent work-related accidents and employee illness, promote health, and encourage the development of workplace infrastructure. We manage employee health through a clinic(which is staffed by occupational physicians and nurses), the HR Dept., and Corporate Sustainability Dept.

2. As part of our initiatives based on these regulations, Sojitz also has its Safety and Sanitation Committee convene every month to monitor safety and sanitation activities (through reports on safety and sanitation activities, discussion of improvement plans, etc.). The results of these meetings are then posted internally for all employees to view.

The Safety and Sanitation Committee is comprised of members from the Human Resources Dept., occupational physicians, and members of the labor union. There are 9 members in Tokyo (5 on the company side + 4 from the labor union) and 6 members in Osaka (3 from the company side + 3 from the labor union).

Safety and Sanitation Management Regulations

In accordance with the aims of the Industrial Safety and Health Law, Sojitz has set safety and sanitation management regulations to prevent work-related accidents and employee illness, promote health, and encourage the development of workplace infrastructure. These regulations establish the management structure, the Safety and Sanitation Committee, and mandate medical checkups and stress assessments.

Corporate Sustainability Dept./Clinic

In addition to employee health management and health checkups conducted by the Corporate Sustainability Dept., both Tokyo HQ and the Kansai Office are equipped with Health Care Rooms that employ specialists in a variety of fields. Tokyo HQ has an occupational physician, internists (cardiology, endocrinology, gastroenterology), specialist psychiatrist, one occupational nurse, and four nurses on site at all times. The Kansai Office also has an occupational physician, internist, psychosomatic medicine specialist, and one nurse on location. These medical professionals are on site to discuss daily health-related concerns and provide medical treatments.

Employee Usage of On-Site Health Services

FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Total number of users
1,711
1,436
1,808

Sojitz Group Initiatives

Based on the Sojitz Group’s Commitment to "Sojitz Healthy Value," we are involved in protecting and improving employee health through initiatives for Sojitz Group companies. More specifically, these services include medical referrals for cancer screenings, second opinions offered by on site occupational physicians, overseas pre-dispatch trainings, and provide support by partnering with treatment providers overseas. Educational information is shared at the regularly-held liaison meetings for Group companies, including updates on health management activities, lectures by psychiatrists and work-style reform initiatives. Information sessions were organized with guest lecturers to explain Japan’s work-style reform laws.

Awards & Recognition

As a corporation that proactively promotes the health of its employees and practices excellent health management, we were recognized for the fourth time as a 「White 500 Corporation for Excellent Health Management 2023 (Large Corporation Division)」 (a certification system for corporations with excellent health management organized by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Japan Institute of Public Health). The certification was given in recognition of the company's efforts to promote health management as an important theme for management, the involvement of managers, the degree of buy in among employees, and the verification and improvement of the effectiveness of its measures.

Also, in June 2018, the DBJ Health Management (Health Management) Rating by the Development Bank of Japan (DBJ) also recognized the company's excellent efforts to provide health considerations to employees.

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