Diversity and Inclusion

Curbing long working hours

With the aim of curbing long working hours from the viewpoint of overwork prevention and health management, Tosoh in principle prohibits employees from working after 8:00 p.m. If there are situations in which working past this time is unavoidable, we will review the work style with consideration for early morning starts. This is intended to reduce after-hours work, which contributes to long working hours, improve productivity by fostering a sense of time awareness, and realize a better balance between work and life away from the job by encouraging employees to return home early.

Moreover, we are confirming discrepancies between the actual log-on/log-off times of computers and employees’ work attendance applications using the working hour management system. Employees with discrepancies in excess of 20 hours per month are required to submit written justification, which leads to reduced working hours and the optimization of work attendance applications. All employees who work in excess of 80 hours of overtime per month are required to be interviewed by an occupational physician regardless of the nature of their request.

Through these interviews, we are attempting to prevent physical and mental health problems among employees.

Working hours per employee* (Tosoh non-consolidated)

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Overtime hours/month	16.2	16.4	16.3
Total actual working hours/year	1910.1	1887.9	1869.9

* Data on Supervisory and Responsible Positions

Improvement of annual paid leave utilization rate

Tosoh believes that taking annual paid leave helps employees refresh their minds and bodies through a more balanced work style, and that this in turn contributes to increased productivity. We have set a company-wide annual leave utilization rate target of at least 80 percent. Our efforts to improve the rate enabled us to achieve the target in fiscal 2023. We are focusing particularly on creating a workplace environment in which annual leave is easy to take. In addition to educational activities through a host of training programs, we share the dates when annual leave is due to be taken using a scheduler in each workplace, thereby visualizing the status of annual leave usage.

Paid annual leave taken (Tosoh non-consolildated)

	Breakdown	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Days acquired (per person)	Executives	12.2	13.1	13.7
	Nonexecutives	15.9	16.4	17.2
	Average	15.2	15.8	16.6
Utilization rate (%)	Executives	61.5	65.6	68.7
	Nonexecutives	83.5	86.3	88.6
	Average	79.2	82.4	85

Note: The aggregation period is from July of the current year to June of the following year.

Improved operational efficiency

Tosoh considers the improvement of operational efficiency to be a key initiative in creating a comfortable workplace. To this point, we have endeavored on a company-wide scale to improve productivity by reducing the use of paper and utilizing IT.

Paper elimination initiatives	IT utilization initiatives
Changing the workflow for various application procedures Changing the workflow for approval procedures Reducing internal documents Providing support for automated faxing of order confirmations, etc.	Computer remote operation systems Expanding work management systems Introducing electronic lab notebooks Introducing tablets in the Facility Management department Introducing cloud storage Introducing hot desking and other systems

Each workplace also reviews its own operations and offers encouragement in the form of improvement proposals as a measure to incentivize employees to improve operational efficiency. By encouraging employee creativity and ingenuity, promoting active participation in work, and developing new skills and honing existing ones, we create comfortable workplaces and a resilient corporate structure, leading to the further development of the company.

In addition to the “Working Style Reform Award” and “Work and Office Work Improvement Award,” which are aimed at improving operations that lead to work style reform, we have also established a “Group Award” and “Energy Saving Proposal Award” aimed at reducing CO₂ emissions to encourage improvement proposal activities. Tosoh's wholly-owned domestic group companies are also engaged in improvement proposals to further invigorate the Group overall.

Improvement proposals (Tosoh non-consolidated)

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
No. of proposals	11,485	10,581	14,550

Support system for balancing work and home life

In the interest of actively supporting diverse human resources in balancing work and family life, we aim to realize an environment in which employees can continue to work with peace of mind, by providing and encouraging the use of work styles and various systems that suit their individual lifestyles.

Childbirth and childcare systems

At Tosoh, we believe that enjoying child-rearing leads to personal growth for our employees in all aspects of their lives, including work. To this end, it is also important to create an atmosphere in which the entire workplace—including supervisors—understands and is comfortable with systems related to childbirth and childcare.

We have developed and posted on the intranet a publication outlining the systems related to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare for employees to review. The publication also includes a section specifically for supervisors, clearly stating what they should keep in mind and a checklist to encourage them to communicate appropriately on the subject. We open lines of communication between employees and superiors to ensure all employees who wish to take childcare leave are able to do so smoothly and to reduce anxiety upon returning to work.

We also believe that increasing the number of male employees taking childcare leave will positively impact the creation of comfortable workplaces. As a result of our establishment of a goal to boost the utilization rate, we have seen it increase each year, surpassing 40 percent for the first time in fiscal 2022. In fiscal 2023, we achieved 85.5 percent of employees taking childcare leave, far exceeding the 50 percent target, with an increase in the average number of days taken. In fiscal 2024, we will raise the target rate to at least 90 percent and continue encouraging male employees to be involved in childcare.

Moreover, employees who take and complete correspondence courses during childcare leave will receive an independent study allowance from Tosoh to cover all course costs and help them return to work smoothly.

Voice

After taking childcare leave

I took childcare leave for two and a half months after the birth of my first son and devoted myself to taking care of him. My wife had returned to her hometown to give birth to my first daughter, so this was the first time for me to take care of a newborn, even though it was my second child. It had been almost two years since I had cared for a baby. Although there were many things that had me at a loss, I was able to get an up-close-and-personal view of my son changing and growing every day.

There were times when I felt the mental hardship and adversity of childcare, like when I was carrying my son, feeding him, and putting him to bed while dealing with my eldest daughter. Still, it was really great to take childcare leave because it allowed me to spend this unique time in my family of four.

Childcare data (Tosoh Corporation employees)

	Male/Female	FY2021	FY2022	FY2023
Childcare leave recipients	Male	63	72	141
	Female	18	13	19
	Total	81	85	160
Childcare leave acquisition rate2 (%)	Male	35.2	40.4	85.5
	Female	100	100	100
Return rate3 (%)	Male	100	100	100
	Female	88.2	100	93.3
Retention rate of returnees4 (%)	Male	100	100	100
	Female	100	100	100
Male employees childcare/paternity leave recipients		171	174	161
Male employees childcare/paternity leave acquisition rate5 (%)		95.5	97.8	97.6
Employees taking advantage of reduced working hours to facilitate child care	Male	0	1	3
	Female	38	49	39
	Total	38	50	42

1. Includes employees seconded to Group companies.
2. Number of employees who took childcare leave/number of employees who welcomed a new child.
3. Number of employees who returned to work/number of employees who were scheduled to return.
4. Retention rate of employees 12 months after returning to work/number of employees who returned to work in the previous fiscal year.

Support system for balancing work and childbirth/childcare (Tosoh non-consolidated)

Work-related systems	Work exemption for safe motherhood	Exemption from working the required number of days and hours for reasons such as health guidance, medical examinations, and doctor’s orders
	Limited work for expectant mothers	Restrictions on working overtime, on days off, and night shifts
	Parental leave before and after childbirth	Female employees within six weeks before childbirth (or 14 weeks for multiple births) and eight weeks after childbirth (treated as paid)
	Maternity leave	Up to six days within eight weeks of the child’s birth (treated as paid, may be split over two uses)
	Childcare leave	Until the child is two years old (first seven days treated as paid leave)
	Postnatal childcare leave	Up to four weeks within eight weeks of birth (may be split over two uses)
	Reduced working hours	Up to two hours per day during pregnancy and through the end of the child’s third year of elementary school
	Leave to care for ill/injured child	Leave can be taken from five-minute increments when caring for a child (treated as paid leave) One child: Five days (40 hours) per year Two or more children: 10 days (80 hours) per year
	Using accumulated annual leave to care for sick/injured children	May use accumulated annual leave to care for a sick/injured child up to the third year of elementary school
	Using accumulated annual leave to receive fertility treatments	May use accumulated annual leave for fertility treatments
Benefit programs	Gift to celebrate birth	Paid upon childbirth
	Assistance for hospitalization expenses	Subsidy for expenses when an employee or spouse is hospitalized for procedures such as Cesarean section
	Assistance for room upgrade	Assistance to cover out-of-pocket expenses for upgrading beds when employees or their spouses are hospitalized for Caesarian sections or other procedures
	Family allowance	Monthly allowance based on number of dependents and children

Nursing care-related systems

In recent years, the number of people who have had to leave their jobs to care for family members has been on the rise in Japan. At some point, everyone faces the possibility of nursing care. That is why it is essential to create an environment in which employees can continue to work with peace of mind, and to create a culture in which the entire workplace understands and cooperates with each other to prevent employees from leaving the workforce to provide nursing care. Tosoh has published a nursing care guidebook to provide enhanced information for employees who care for family members while working and their colleagues in the workplace. It is more challenging for companies to ascertain the needs of their employees to provide nursing care than it is for childcare. As such, in 2022, we conducted a survey of all employees regarding nursing care. The results showed us that more than half of our employees may need to take care of a family member in the future. We will use the survey results to further enhance the system to allow employees to continue their work with peace of mind.

Nursing care-related data (Tosoh Corporation employees)

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Nursing care non-paid leave recipients	0	0	1
Nursing care paid leave recipients	14	15	33
Employees who work reduced hours due to nursing care	0	0	0

Support System for Balancing Work and Nursing Care (Tosoh non-consolidated)

Work-related systems	Nursing care non-paid leave	Up to 1 year (may be split over a maximum of three installments)
	Nursing care paid leave	When taking care of a family member, leave may be taken in increments of five minutes (treated as paid leave) One family member requiring care: Five days (40 hours) per year Two or more family members requiring care: 10 days (80 hours) per year
	Reduced working hours	Up to two hours per day for a total of 1,096 days (three years)
	Using accumulated annual leave to care for family members	When taking care of a family member, accumulated annual leave may be taken in half-day increments (treated as paid leave)
Benefit programs	Separation allowance	Monthly stipend to help compensate employees who live separately from their spouse to care for family members
	Subsidy to cover the cost of caregivers	Assistance provided when an employee or family member hires a housekeeper for care needs

Other welfare programs

Tosoh has established numerous benefit programs designed to support the livelihood of its employees, help them to build assets, and support them in realizing a better work-life balance.

Program name	Details
Refreshment support leave	Encourages employees to take at least five consecutive days of annual leave each year
Active leave	At the age of 50, employees receive 10 consecutive days of leave and a travel voucher worth 300,000 yen
Restart leave	Up to seven consecutive days of leave within one month of reemployment
Using accumulated annual leave for volunteer activities	Employees can use accumulated annual leave to participate in volunteer activities, including disaster recovery assistance and social welfare
Reemployment system	Support for returning to work for employees who resigned due to marriage, spouse relocation, childcare, or nursing care
Company housing and dormitories for single employees	Company housing and dormitories for single employees are provided at each complex
Personal housing allowance	Financial assistance for employees who acquire their own housing
Rental housing allowance	Financial assistance for employees who live in rental housing
Workplace social gathering expenses	Company subsidies for workplace social gatherings and events
Shareholding association	Facilitation of employees' acquisition of company stock and support for building of assets
Hospitalization expense assistance	Assistance with hospitalization expenses when an employee or spouse is hospitalized

Health management

Tosoh recognizes that the physical and mental health of its employees is the foundation for realizing its corporate philosophy and the Tosoh Group CSR Basic Policy. We are therefore actively undertaking health promotion activities so that our employees can realize their full potential.

Health declaration

Tosoh believes that the realization of our corporate philosophy is predicated upon the physical and mental health of our employees. As such, we actively work to maintain and improve their health and create comfortable work environments.

Health promotion activity policy

1. Continuously strive to maintain and improve the physical and mental health of our employees.

2. Focus on activities from the perspectives of prevention and early detection.

3. Aim to create a cheerful and energized workplace where all employees of Tosoh and the Tosoh Group are healthy people.

Promotional structure

To implement the Health Declaration, we have established a Health Promotion Committee chaired by a director involved in Human Resources to work on maintaining and promoting the health of our employees. Human Resources is responsible for implementing health promotion activities at each complex. The Tosoh Labor Union shares information on health issues between labor and management. The Tosoh Health Insurance Association is involved in finances for health activities, while the Health Management Center is staffed by specialists such as occupational physicians, public health nurses, and nurses. Together, they work to carry out various health promotion activities.

The Health Promotion Committee meets twice annually to establish numerical health promotion targets, manage progress, and report the results of initiatives at our complexes.

Health promotion initiatives

To support the physical and mental health of our employees, each complex plans and operates its own activities each year with unique ideas and approaches in addition to company-wide health promotion activities based on the three pillars of physical fitness, lifestyle improvement, and mental health.

Moreover, we have set company-wide numerical targets with fiscal 2025 as the year by which we will establish a system to implement the PDCA cycle for the purpose of further promoting health management. To achieve these targets, we will support good health through health promotion activities, and maintain and promote a comfortable work environment.

Health promotion activities

	Activities	Notes
Physical fitness	Company-wide walking event	Twice a year, for 3 months each, participatory events with the goal of walking 8,000 steps per day
	Walking events at complexes	Walks meant to encourage friendship as part of all locations’ recreation events
	Physical fitness test	Measure 6 items, including muscle strength, agility, and cardiopulmonary endurance, with the overall evaluation expressed as a “physical fitness age.” Conducted every 5 years to provide an opportunity to review employee physical fitness
Lifestyle improvement	Birth month health counseling	Employees can discuss lifestyle and mental health issues with occupational physicians, public health nurses, and registered nurses, while referring to data such as physical examination results
	Smoking cessation activities	Provides information on smoking cessation, offers financial support to those who wish to quit smoking
Mental health	Mental health education	Conducted training on basic knowledge of mental health for general employees Conducted training held for executive personnel on workplace and individual mental health

Health promotion activity numerical targets (Tosoh Corporation employees)

(%)		Fiscal 2022 results	Fiscal 2023 results	Fiscal 2025 targets
Physical	BMI ≧ 25 (obesity rate)	20.2	20.8	18.5 or less
Physical	Smoking rate	17.5	17.2	14.5 or less
Mental	People under extreme stress (conventional standard)	3.8	-	3.0 or less
Mental	People under extreme stress (new standard)	-	6.0	4.5 or less

Note: With the update of the survey company's criteria for determining high-stress individuals, the target value has been changed from the same level of 3.0% or below to 4.5% or below.

Periodic health examinations

All employees of the Tosoh Group are covered by health insurance under the Health Insurance Act. In accordance with the Industrial Safety and Health Act, we conduct periodic health examinations, and we have succeeded in ensuring physical examinations every year for 100 percent of our employees. In addition to general periodic checkups, we also provide lifestyle-related disease examinations, while colon, stomach, prostate cancer, and dental checkups are available for those who wish to receive them. In the regular health check-ups for the fiscal year 2023, the rate of employees who discovered a condition that required further investigation was 43.1% among all examinees, showing an improvement of 1.1 percentage points from the previous year. For employees identified with these findings, the results of the re-examination are submitted to the company doctor, contributing to the subsequent health management of the employees.

Moreover, we conduct specific medical examinations for employees aged 40 and over to prevent serious complications from lifestyle-related diseases—such as heart disease and stroke—caused by metabolic syndrome.

Subsidized health examinations (Tosoh non-consolidated)

Individual/Group	Name	Eligibility	How to get examinations	Out-of-pocket expenses	Examination restrictions
Individual	Complete physical examination	Insured employees and their dependent spouses	Employees visit the institution of their choice	10% for one-day/20% for overnight checkups (with a maximum insurance coverage of ¥100,000)	Once per fiscal year per item
	Gynecological checkup			10% as a general rule (with a maximum insurance coverage of ¥20,000)	Once per fiscal year per item
	Dental checkup (oral examinations)	Insured employees and their dependents (excluding preschool–high school students)		Amount exceeding ¥3,000 (maximum insurance coverage of ¥3,000)	Once per fiscal year
	Influenza vaccination	Insured employees and their dependents		¥1,000 per vaccination	Once per designated period (as a general rule) (twice for infants)
	Treatment for smoking cessation	Insured employees		Same amount as when covered by insurance (assistance for 70% of the cost)	Once per fiscal year
	Specific medical checkups	Dependents 40 years old and older		Free (using a medical examination voucher)
Group	Blood tests	Insured employees (if desired)	Group examinations by complex	Free
	Dental checkup (oral examinations)
	Colorectal examinations
	Gastric examinations (barium and fluoroscopy)
	Cancer markers			A portion of the complete medical checkup (10% out-of-pocket)

Stress test engagement survey

Stress tests and engagement surveys are conducted once each year. Stress checks are used as mental health examinations, leading to the identification of issues in the workplace as well as early detection and response to problems, by understanding the mental health condition of employees.

The examination rate in fiscal 2023 was 97.3 percent, and the share of people deemed to be under extreme stress was 6.0 percent. Tosoh saw an increase in the proportion of individuals under high stress compared with the preceding fiscal year, despite the figure remaining lower than the average of companies found by an external survey. In addition to working to reduce stress by encouraging employees with high levels and recommending the use of counseling, the results of workplace analysis are fed back to the heads of each department for organizational management purposes.

The engagement survey also confirms employees’ work ethic, as we believe that satisfaction with the company and enthusiasm for work are important for employees to maximize their potential. The results of the survey will be used to develop HR policies and initiatives to improve productivity, with the aim of further improving engagement and invigorating the organization.

Engagement survey results

Favorable elements	Problematic elements
Worker autonomy Perceived fit with the Company Satisfaction with evaluations	Demonstrating strengths Confidence in one’s work

Support program for employees returning from mental health leave

Tosoh has established a return-to-work support program for employees who have been absent from work due to mental health issues. We collaborate with occupational physicians and the Tosoh Labor Union during each step of the process, from the identification of the illness until after the employee returns to work, to help alleviate employee anxiety and facilitate a smooth return.

• Step 1: Identifying and responding to disorder
• Step 2: Submission of medical certificate (in event of inability to work)
• Step 3: Care during absence from work
• Step 4: Declaration of intent to return (determination of suitability for return by the attending physician)
• Step 5: Examination by occupational physician
• Step 6: Assistance in visualizing return to work
• Step 7: Decision on whether or not to reinstate the employee at a meeting of the Reinstatement Review Committee
• Step 8: Building structure for cooperation following return to work
• Step 9: Follow-up after return to work

Human resources system

Tosoh's basic philosophy for its personnel system is rooted in these three pillars: a creative organization that allows employees to maximize their capabilities, a challenging culture employing a point-based system for thorough evaluations, and fair treatment whereby those who work hard are truly rewarded. We aim to establish a systemic foundation that rewards those who act with a sense of ownership. With the aim of promoting employee skill and human resources development, we organically link four individual systems: the job classification system, the training interview system, the personnel evaluation system, and the wage system.

Basic philosophy of human resources system

• Creative organization that allows employees to maximize their capabilities
• Challenging culture employing a point-based system for thorough evaluations
• Fair treatment whereby those who work hard are truly rewarded

Employee evaluation and feedback

Tosoh organizes the job performance capabilities of its employees into job levels, job classifications, and career tracks. These help to clarify the requirements for each individual. This includes the role to be fulfilled and an image of the future as an objective, and serves as a set of guidelines for skill development and training objectives. Employees set annual work goals, short- and long-term career plans, and the skills they wish to acquire as they consider their own careers. Through these training interviews, employees and their supervisors mutually confirm the degree of progress and achievement of work goals, ability to perform duties over the short and long term, aptitude, and diagnosis and declaration of career development, while encouraging individual job development in addition to improving the employee's ability and motivation. Based on the results of the training interview, supervisors evaluate the employees in biannual personnel evaluations.

In addition, the main objective of personnel evaluation is “human resource development,” and effective skill development is achieved by providing feedback from supervisors on employees' strengths and weaknesses at training interviews, as well as guidance and advice regarding the execution of work objectives. Career tracks include comprehensive positions for employees who wish to develop their careers in a wide range of fields, with general positions for those who are seasoned experts. Employees in general positions who have been assessed as having the ability to perform duties suitable for career-track positions are converted to these through course change.

Wages and compensation

Tosoh discloses its salary and wage systems to employees. The salary structure is divided by job level, job classification, and job performance course, with the same structure applied to both men and women. Bonuses are determined through discussions between labor and management. The company has introduced a performance-based compensation system to increase transparency in the process of determining the amount to be paid and to boost employee satisfaction.

Starting wages in fiscal 2023 (Tosoh non-consolidated)

	Monthly salary (JPY)	Comparison with minimum wage* (%)
High school	189,137	114.9
Junior college	193,033	117.3
Technical college	211,111	128.2
University	231,146	140.4
Graduate school (Master’s degree)	248,501	151.0

Note: Calculated based on 1,072 yen per hour, the minimum wage in Tokyo, for a monthly work schedule of 20.25 days per month and 7 hours and 35 minutes per day.

Employee male/female wage ratio¹ in fiscal 2023 (Tosoh Corporation employees)

	Gender wage ratio2 (%)
Full-time employees	73.5
Fixed-term employees	70.6
Overall	72.6

1. Calculated in accordance with the provisions of the Act Promoting Women’s Active Participation in the Workforce.
2. Average annual salary for women/men. The same wage system applies regardless of gender. Differences depend on job performance.

Related Page: Respect for human rights/control of wages

Labor-management relations

Tosoh Corporation and the Tosoh Labor Union have concluded a collective agreement in the spirit of Japan’s Labor Union Act and Labor Standards Act. The two sides are bound to respect the other’s position, deepen understanding and trust between them, and confirm their mutual cooperation to contribute to the development of the company's business and the improvement of conditions for employees. The collective agreement includes the following matters: Labor-management committee, collective bargaining, human resources, working hours, days off and paid holidays, salaries, health and safety, welfare, accident compensation and assistance for work-related illness and injury, harassment, and education. Tosoh acts as a union-organized shop, and all employees are members of the Tosoh Labor Union, excluding certain staff in executive positions and those involved in management-related work.

The Tosoh Labor Union represents its members in labor-management negotiations, and through committees and councils conducted based on specific themes has built good, stable labor-management relations with a sense of trust for discussions that can be tense. The two sides will continue to communicate closely to respect each other's position and cooperate in the interest of contributing to the development of the company's business and the improvement of conditions for employees.

Tosoh Labor Union composition

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
No. of union members1	3,258	3,346	3,367
Union membership ratio2 (%)	70.4	71.8	70.5
No. of union representatives3	6	6	6

1. Number of employees (including those seconded to group companies), excluding executives and certain staff involved in management-related work.
2. Number of members/employees
3. Representatives elected by union members

Labor-management communication

The Central Management Council meets once a month to discuss the company's management situation, human resource systems, improvement of working conditions, and other issues with the aim of achieving a common understanding of the current situation and challenges. The discussions are disclosed in the form of minutes on the company intranet and are accessible to all employees. Tosoh Corporation provides advance notice to the Tosoh Labor Union and employees when implementing major changes in business operations that may significantly impact employees.

Additionally, all workplaces hold Health and Safety Committee meetings once per month to hear health and safety-related opinions from the Tosoh Labor Union and employees and to deliberate on measures to be taken.

Key content of the 2023 Central Management Council Meeting

• Explanation of management situation
• Recruitment plan
• Promoting the use of annual and childcare leave and related programs
• Safety and disaster prevention/occupational safety and health
• Measures to prevent excessive working hours
• Wage hikes and bonuses
• Revision of reemployment system
• Revision of leave system
• Reports, requests, etc. from labor union

History of system revisions through labor-management discussions

Fiscal year	Revisions
2021	Revised the paid leave rules and family allowance payment rules Introduced a reemployment system Introduced a remote work system
2022	Partially revised the paid leave rules Expanded the remote work system
2023	Revised the childcare leave rules Revised the childcare and nursing care leave rules Revised the rules on dual/secondary employment

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Human Resources Development

Basic concept

Based on our philosophy that “education is for developing the type of human resources envisioned by management, contributing to the self-realization of employees in the process,” Tosoh has systematically established various educational and training programs to help employees fully develop their personal potential and qualities, cultivate the ability to think independently, and acquire knowledge and skills related to safe and stable operations.

In fiscal 2022, the company formulated a new basic policy for human resources development. Tosoh believes that the growth of the company is led by the self-reliant growth of its employees, and as such aims to develop human resources who can think and act on their own.

Structure and management

The Human Resources general manager is responsible for the development and implementation of the education system and basic policies. The Education and Training Council—consisting of the head of the Human Resources department and the leaders of specialized departments responsible for implementing highly specialized training—supervises, promotes, and evaluates training content throughout the company. Moreover, the plan–do–check–act (PDCA)cycle is implemented by reporting and discussing the content of education conducted at each complex and reflecting the results in future content.

Each manufacturing complex conducts an annual Education and Training Council meeting based on the education and training conference to oversee, promote, and evaluate the education and training of the complex. Each department manager and supervisor formulates and implements training plans for their own department, and monitors and checks the status of training, in order to improve personal qualities and utilize available knowledge and skills in their work.

Career education system for self-reliant human resources

Self-reliant human resources are defined as people who can create their own tasks and roles and involve others to achieve results in any environment, whether inside or outside the organization.

Tosoh restructured its training system from a traditional focus on imparting skills to a sustainable learning program based on career education. Under the new program, we aim to develop self-reliant human resources through sustained learning in four areas: basic education (regulations and laws), acquisition of skills through self-development, learning through work experience and opportunities, and global human resources development. The company has clarified the five elements necessary to achieve this, and designed an educational program that enables each element to be achieved in a step-by-step manner.

Five elements necessary for Tosoh's self-reliant human resources

Required elements	Interpretation
Ability to involve and motivate others	Rather than just accepting others’ current involvement, recognize those with values different from yours and take the initiative to motivate them.
Ability to continually change oneself	Rather than accepting the status quo, look for what can change, formulate strategies, and actively influence behavior.
Determination to finish what one starts	Find alternatives even when facing challenges, believe the future can be better, and persist in achieving targets without giving up.
Ability to imagine and create	Look beyond merely solving the apparent problems, defining larger issues by imagining targets and the ideal outcome before seeking solutions.
Spirit of inquiry	Maintain an interest in a wide range of topics, creating innovations through combinations from disparate areas.

Career education

In this era of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity, to respond to changes in the environment it is necessary for employees to envision what they want to be, and to maintain a willingness to learn and work toward achieving that vision. We promote employee-led career development, by which employees consider what skills they need to develop for their jobs, encouraging all employees to generate significant added value and fuel Tosoh's competitiveness.

Career education is introduced in the rank-based training programs to take stock of one's career to date and to envision what one wants to be in the future. After having taken stock of their career to date and envisioning their future career path, all trainees have the opportunity to attend career counseling sessions with consultants. Through this approach, we clarify career goals, raise awareness of work targets, improve job satisfaction, and encourage personal growth. We are working to achieve a career counseling uptake of 70 percent or more among career-track employees by fiscal 2025.

Furthermore, we established a new Career Support Group in fiscal 2023 to provide an environment for all employees to discuss their careers with a nationally certified career consultant. We support our employees in thinking about their ideal careers and lifestyles, so they can flourish in various work styles, aptitudes, and circumstances. In addition to needing to be aware of their own roles and careers, executives also have the important responsibility of offering career support to their subordinates and junior staff, and Tosoh’s training for executives therefore incorporates this aspect.

Career-track employee training by rank in fiscal 2023 (non-consolidated)

Training	Target	Purpose of training	Main content of training	Training time per employee (hours)	No. of participants
New employee training	New employees	Solidify attitude toward work	Overview of the entire company (human resource sys tem, R&D, compliance, CSR, human rights, etc.) Explanation of each complex, division, and group company Groupwork (Theme: Tosoh's businesses, what is expected of new employees, etc.) Stance training (learning how to handle work as a member of society) Career training (Reflect on past experiences and identify sources of motivation; reflect on the experiences in which the most effort has been exerted; deepen and share ideas about what each employee hopes to gain from working; establish future "ideal vision" and clarify the actions they should take after attending the training)	187.5	87 (Male: 61, Female: 26)
Follow-up training	Year 2 with company	Provide opportunity for self-reflection and enlightenment through group discussions	Presentations within the assigned work groups Group discussion (Objectives: understanding personality traits and perspectives on being independent, practicing techniques to be more independent) (Theme: changing perspectives and giving advice on what can and cannot be changed/situations that lower motivation) Lectures and exercises (Aimed at employees who can think, judge and act independently)	12	111 (Male: 94, Female: 17)
Early career training	Years 3-4 with company	Clarify career direction	Career training (Self-understanding as a basis for job crafting, selection of target tasks for job crafting/ experiential learning, and planning for promotion of experiential learning) Career consulting	7.5	117 (Male: 94, Female: 24)
Mid-career training	Equivalent to 7 years with the company	Develop medium- to long-term career vision	Career training (Self-resources for autonomous career development, autonomous career development methods, and workplace-based realistic career development planning) Career consulting Compliance, harassment, CSR, human rights education	15	70 (Male: 65, Female: 5)
Senior leadership training	Senior leadership positions	Take inventory of career and understand role	Career training (Career review, clarify behavioral characteristics, consider senior leadership roles, set career vision, create action plan) Career consulting	12	40 (Male: 36, Female: 4)
New executive training	Newly appointed executives	Take inventory of career and understand role as an entry-level executive	Career training (Career review, role of first-time executive employee, ideal vision, and action plans) Career consulting Compliance, harassment, CSR, human rights education	22.5	59 (Male: 58, Female: 1)
Senior executive training	Senior executive positions	Reaffirm one's role and responsibilities as senior executive	Management improvement, compliance, internal control, management	15	39 (Male: 39, Female: 0)

Investment Amount in Education and Training (non-consolidated)

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Investments (millions of yen)	30.1	38.1	55.7

Support for independent learning

Tosoh has established a correspondence education system to aid employees in acquiring the basic knowledge and general education and skills required for their work, and to support their independent learning. Participants can take courses regardless of their own work duties. Fifty to eighty percent of the course fee is subsidized for those who complete such programs. The company pays for all courses taken during childcare leave, used as self-development during leave and as preparation for returning to the workplace.

Employees taking correspondence courses (non-consolidated)

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Attendees	260	374	267

Encouraging certification acquisition and skill testing

Tosoh supports its employees in taking examinations and courses to obtain various certifications and licenses. Employees who obtain qualifications and licenses designated by Tosoh are publicized in internal newsletters, and receive rewards divided into five categories according to the degree of difficulty. To improve the technical skills of general employees in the manufacturing and facilities management divisions, we have set the qualifications required for promotion to all positions.

Number of certification incentive payments (non-consolidated) 

	Fiscal 2021	Fiscal 2022	Fiscal 2023
Benefits provided	625	445	739

Global human resources development

Tosoh's overseas sales account for more than 50 percent of its total sales. The company expects further opportunities for involvement with overseas markets in the future, regardless of business or job classification. Reflecting this, in fiscal 2023 we have reviewed our global human resources development program. Tosoh defines global human resources as people who can use language as a tool to advance their work and expand Tosoh's business internationally. The company aims to raise the language capabilities of employees by providing support programs according to language level. In the future, we plan to raise the language ability level within the company and expand the programs we offer for learning about local business practices through overseas training. We will bolster our development of global human resources by expanding our programs to enable employees to increase their global knowledge and acquire the ability to grow our global business further.

New graduate and mid-career recruitment

In the interest of realizing sustainable growth, Tosoh is striving to secure the appropriate personnel, who have diverse values and can function effectively on the global stage. In hiring new graduates, the company seeks individuals with an inquiring and pioneering spirit, who are willing to work tirelessly to learn about things in depth, and who are adept at problem-solving with a diverse group of colleagues. To this end, through its recruitment website and pamphlets, the company provides information on its priority areas, technological trends, and human aspects.

Furthermore, Tosoh contacts students at an early stage through industry research seminars and one-day work experience programs. The objectives are to promote not only its corporate philosophy and management policies but also its corporate culture, through its senior employees. In fiscal 2024, Tosoh hired 99 people for career-track positions and 86 for general positions.

For mid-career hires, the company aims to secure personnel with expertise and experience to make an immediate impact in important areas of research and technology development.

Initiatives to ensure appropriate employee allocation

It is necessary to allocate employees according to their aptitudes and desire to invigorate the entire organization. To this end, Tosoh is building a talent management system that brings together the variety of employees needed for appropriate placement, and centrally manages the data. Tosoh employees register their specific work histories and knowledge in the system, and this information is managed and shared with the Human Resources department, other employees, and their supervisors. The company also intends to introduce an internal recruitment system, for transfers that reflect the will of employees. By promoting these measures, Tosoh will achieve appropriate allocations of employees to maximize their abilities more than ever.