Sustainability - Human Rights
Since it was founded, the Meiden Group has created and supplied a variety of technologies, products, and services, with a focus on electrical equipment that supports social infrastructure, and contributed to the sustainable development of society.
Respect for human rights is the foundation of our business activities to realize our corporate philosophies of “illuminating a more affluent tomorrow” and “for customer peace of mind and satisfaction.” Through its business activities, the Meiden Group will create a joyful and sustainable society for everyone, and comply with international human rights norms as indicated by the Meiden Group Corporate Code of Conduct.
We will also identify, prevent, and mitigate risks and impacts relating to human rights throughout our activities, including in the supply chain, and endeavor to disclose our responses on an ongoing basis.
Meidensha has signed a statement of support for the United Nations Global Compact and is registered as a participating company.
Also, for the sake of both internal and external stakeholders, we have revised the Group’s Sustainable Procurement Guidelines, which include human rights considerations, to reduce risks to human rights in our supply chain, and distributed these to our business partners.
If a human rights violation occurs due to Meidensha’s businesses, employees are able to report to the Compliance Hotline, the Harassment Consultation Hotline, and the external Public Whistleblower System.
All stakeholders (including individuals, local residents, etc.) can make inquiries from outside the company using our external helpline. The Compliance Committee investigates information that is brought to the above points of contact, and, having confirmed the content, consults lawyers before resolving issues if necessary.
Furthermore, our system effectively manages information concerning whistleblowers’ names, etc., protects whistleblowers, and enables anonymous consultation, in accordance with national guidelines. We work to ensure that whistleblowers experience no disadvantage and improve the dependability of our whistleblower system.
Twice a year, human rights progress reports are presented to the Board of Directors and the Executive Officers’ Meeting as part of Meidensha’s framework for promoting sustainability management. In particular, incidents of harassment are reported at regular meetings of the Compliance Committee, which oversees our response to them, and the nature of such incidents is also reported to management.
Meidensha practices human rights due diligence to identify, manage, prevent, and mitigate human rights risks in our business activities for all stakeholders. We also investigate the state of human rights using a questionnaire for our stakeholder suppliers on their sustainability and environmental protection initiatives.
The entire Meiden Group understands international norms (Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Bill of Human Rights) and is working to conduct education activities focused on human rights with the aim of ensuring “respect for human rights,” which is listed in the Corporate Code of Conduct. We also comply with all relevant laws concerning the prohibition of forced labor and abolition of child labor. The Meiden Group Human Rights Policy is available in three languages (Japanese, English, and Chinese) to ensure that it becomes ingrained in all employees, and we conduct various types of training as educational activities to raise awareness of fundamental human rights.
We offer periodic group training and videos (in Japanese, English, and Chinese) on compliance and harassment to raise all Group employees’ awareness of these issues. We also increase understanding and awareness by providing opportunities for individuals to reconsider their workplace and ways of thinking. We have also expanded anger management training for managers to include all employees. Through the training, we raise awareness to respect the personalities and ideas of others.
To strengthen our efforts in mental health, we conduct self-care training in each region for each year of joining the company and each age bracket, as well as line-care training for managers and supervisors.
In fiscal 2022, we invited external instructors to conduct training concerning “business and human rights” required by companies for all officers of executive officer level or above and presidents of Japanese subsidiaries.
Regarding harassment, we have established an internal consultation system to respond promptly while adhering to the principles of protecting the privacy and confidentiality of the user. The system is available to Meiden Group employees as well as dispatch workers and contractors. Information obtained through the system is used to conduct surveys of the user and relevant parties, provide feedback after having understood the situation, and prevent recurrence. The system provides an opportunity to implement recurrence prevention measures and conduct individual education.
We have also included items concerning harassment in our employee awareness survey, which allows us to observe trends each year.
We value conversations between employee representatives and management to ensure that employees can engage in meaningful work. We have established a regular central labor-management conference and regional labor-management conferences, and we are working to improve the workplace environment according to the circumstances of each site.
The Meiden Group not only complies with minimum wage requirements in each prefecture in accordance with the Minimum Wages Act, but also is careful to pay at least a living wage.
We also provide a family allowance to support the lifestyles of employees who meet certain conditions such as having spouses and children to provide for. The Meiden Group Mutual Aid Association also provides various types of condolence, sympathy, and celebratory funds, as well as loans for financial assistance required for the mutual support and welfare of members. In addition, we have a home loan program to receive funding from financial institutions when those who have saved property accumulation residence funds eventually make a purchase.
In order to properly manage working hours and curb long working hours, our labor management system centrally monitors and manages PC log-ons and log-offs and employee ID card data stamps when employees arrive at and leave the office. If an employee works more than a certain number of hours, that employee and their supervisor are asked about the employee’s working conditions, and guidance is given to prevent long working hours and legal violations. Additionally, we hold briefings regularly on working hours and distribute manuals internally on working hours and attendance management to improve employee literacy on labor management. Furthermore, to encourage employees to take their annual paid leave, we established “My Plan Annual Leave” and “Recommended Days for Taking Annual Leave” to promote employee work–life balance.
The Meiden Group only hires senior high school graduates and up.
We present working conditions to employees when they are hired and we take action to prevent forced and involuntary labor.
