Dealing with Human Rights and Labor Issues

Initiatives for dialogue between employee representatives and management, engagement targets

Among the Orion Group companies, Orion Breweries, Ltd. has a labor union that rank-and-file employees can join.

The Orion Brewery Labor Union and management hold regular labor-management council meetings, approximately 10 to 20 times a year, to exchange opinions on proposals and themes raised by union members, such as working conditions and the working environment for employees. The union and management identify and implement improvement measures.

With the goal of achieving an employee engagement score of 70 points on average across the three Group companies by fiscal 2028, management and employees of the Orion Group are making a concerted effort to have close two-way communication and deepen the relationship of trust between management and employees so as to enhance corporate value.

Efforts to reduce excessive working  hours

In order to realize a rewarding and comfortable working environment, we strive to prevent long working hours and encourage employees to take paid leave so that they can maintain physical and mental health conducive to fulfillment in both work and personal life. Specifically, we provide alerts to employees whose working hours for a month approach the statutory limit and report overtime hours at management meetings. Employees who work long hours are required to meet with an industrial physician, and we have introduced the use of IT to ensure objective attendance records.

Moreover, we encourage employees, especially back-office employees, to work from home and have introduced a flextime system with no core time so that employees can work in a way that suits their workload and needs. In addition to leave systems catering to needs associated with childcare, nursing care, and other life events, we also provide birthday leave and other leaves in addition to legally mandated leaves.

Occupational health and safety and well-being

Approach 

Acting on the conviction that ensuring occupational health and safety and well-being of our employees is of paramount importance, the Orion Group has established the following three guidelines. Based on assessments of occupational health and safety risks in existing and new businesses, we continuously strive to reduce such risks and promote management that fully considers the physical and mental well-being of employees. This approach is also applied to partner companies to which production operations are contracted.

1. Create a safe and comfortable working environment for employees and create a pleasant workplace.
2. Eliminate or reduce hazards through risk assessment, hazard prediction training (KYT), and by other means.
3. Provide health care and mental health care to help employees lead healthy and secure lives, both physically and mentally.

Goal

In order to enhance the effectiveness of the above initiatives, our target is to have all employees attend training on occupational health and safety once a year and interview with a public health nurse at least once a year. We will continue to implement these initiatives. 
As a company involved in the alcoholic beverage industry, Orion Breweries, Ltd. pays particular attention to the health of its employees. The body mass index, BMI, expresses the degree of obesity calculated based on weight and height. The Company’s target is to increase the percentage of employees with an appropriate BMI to 66% by fiscal 2027. To achieve this target, the Company is implementing specific health & productivity management measures.

Moreover, we strive to maintain and improve a safe and hygienic environment in accordance with the Health and Safety Management Regulations. Each business site has established a Health and Safety Committee to oversee and manage occupational health and safety, which identifies problems and areas for improvement at each workplace and implements countermeasures. Chaired by the Senior General Manager of the Production Division and the Senior General Manager of the Human Resources and General Affairs Division, the Occupational Health and Safety Committee  holds discussions once a month with union members and worker representatives who are members of the Occupational Health and Safety Committee.

Regulations related to occupational health and safety

The Orion Group will continuously implement engage in activities to ensure the safety of its employees in the workplace and vigorously promote initiatives to promote their health.

Equal Employment Opportunity and Equal Pay for Equal Work

Approach

Orion Group is committed to increasing the diversity of its employees providing equal opportunity based on the the two ILO core conventions. We strive to create a working environment that is attractive to everyone all employees and regardless of ethnicity, skin color, belief, national origin, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, mental or physical condition, medical condition and so forth.
With regards to the equal employment commitment, it not only includes the following   recruitment activities, termination, individual development, promotion, training of employee but all process with the employee employment.

Promoting diversity and a good working environment

Efforts

The Orion Group believes that an enterprise grows when diverse human resources with different values and perspectives can fully demonstrate their individuality and capabilities. We do not tolerate exclusion from our organization because of gender or sexual orientation. We promote the cultivation of an organizational culture that is inclusive, making it easy for anyone to work, regardless of gender, whether they come from Okinawa Prefecture, elsewhere in Japan, or overseas, and regardless of their family structure. In hiring and promotions, we evaluate our employees according to their abilities.

Creating a workplace environment that is easy to work in regardless of gender

We aim to be a company where people want to work for many years regardless of gender. Specifically, we are engaged in the following activities.

Re-employment system after a fixed age

The Orion Group has introduced a reemployment system for employees so that employees who have reached the mandatory retirement age of 60 can continue to work, making use of their wealth of experience, expertise, and capabilities.

Employees approaching retirement age are interviewed individually by the Human Resources Department, which gives them information about employment opportunities, taking into account their wishes and the company’s needs, while also taking advantage of group synergies.

Holding of “HR Day” to consider LGBTQ understanding and community contribution

As stated in both the Orion Group Human Rights Policy and the Orion Way—Employees, we respect one another’s individuality and differences. In order to deepen understanding of LGBTQ sexual minorities, in 2021 we held HR Day for 15 officers of the Orion Group companies in May, for 23 managers and supervisors of Orion Breweries in August, and for 300 employees in October, encouraging all of them to think about diversity in society, involvement in community contribution, etc.

Addressing bullying and/or harassment

In the event that it becomes clear that the Orion Group caused or was directly involved in a violation of compliance or harassment, we will assists the victim by following appropriate procedures. A whistleblower system has been established and is available to all officers and employees of the Orion Group as a contact point for internal reporting, which also allows consultation on human rights issues including compliance violations and harassment. Consultations and opinions are treated as confidential and anonymity is guaranteed.

In addition to the internal contact point, an external contact point is also available for consultation and reporting to outside attorneys.

We investigate the content of reports by whistleblowers and take corrective actions for all confirmed compliance violations.

Data on employees and diversity

Number of employees, average age, and average years of service, Orion Breweries, Ltd.

Percentage of female workers in managerial positions

Percentage of male workers taking childcare leave

differences in wages between male and female workers

Human Resource Development

In accordance with the Orion Way, we are committed to “providing employees with fair opportunities for their education and fair evaluation of their performance.” Our basic principles for human resources development are as stated below.

Basic Philosophy of Human Resource Development

1. We increase employee engagement through organizational and human capital development. We nurture our employees with care so that their “attachment to the organization” will deepen and sustainable growth of the organization will be achieved.
2. We provide educational support that leads to the “autonomy” and “growth” of each individual. We actively support employees who have an evident willingness to learn and aspire to continuous growth.
3. We provide fair educational opportunities for our employees. The training we offer is not piecemeal but has a rationale, and we vigorously provide training opportunities to employees who can be expected to fully benefit from the training.
4. We provide support based on each individual’s job design reflecting their preferences. This support respects the individual’s intention and goals in light of their current duties and roles.
5. We cultivate a culture that nurtures human resources (systematic, long-term human resources development system) and maintain it.

We cultivate an organizational culture where daily work provides continuous opportunities for all employees to grow and develop.

Training and Human Resource Development Programs

Based on the above policy, we are mainly implementing the following programs.

1. Executive development program: Designed to develop next-generation executives. Trainees are nominated by executives. Held every other year
2. Manager development program: Designed to foster management skills. Open to all managers. Held annually
3. Next-generation leader development program: Designed to quickly develop next-generation managers and business leaders
4. Program for non-managerial personnel: Designed to develop basic business and communication skills
5. Various skills training programs: Designed to equip the trainees with logical thinking, presentation skills, and other skills necessary for business

Through these programs, we aim to improve organizational productivity through the support of individuals’ “growth” and “autonomy,” establish a strong organization supported by sophisticated expertise cultivated through continuous implementation of a human resources development system, and create a behavioral culture that prioritizes “learning.”