Last Updated: 2024.04.05
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Fast Retailing strives to offer a healthy and safe work environment for every employee. The topic of healthy and safe working environments is covered in the Fast Retailing Code of Conduct, which states, "We shall not commit a wrongful act or act in bad faith at work and shall maintain a safe working environment."
Achieve Successful Health and Productivity Management―Occupational Health and Safety Initiatives
Inspired by the Fast Retailing Group Health and Safety Declaration, we care for the physical and mental health of each individual employee and are committed to provide safe and healthy working environments. We also strive to promote the health of people across society through our company products and activities. As a result of these efforts, the Fast Retailing Group was recognized as a Certified Health and Productivity Management Outstanding Organization (Large Enterprise Category) for three consecutive years in 2024 under the joint program operated by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Nippon Kenko Kaigi. The system rewards outstanding companies that consider employees' health and productivity management from a business-management perspective and strategically implement initiatives to help maintain and promote health.
Fast Retailing Group Health and Safety Declaration
Fast Retailing believes that it is our company's responsibility to ensure the physical and mental health and safety of each and every employee. With the aim of becoming the most respected company worldwide for health and safe in the workplace, we have adopted a Health and Safety Policy and Eight Health and Safety Principles.
Management Framework for Occupational Health and Safety - Fast Retailing Wellness Center
Fast Retailing established its Wellness Center in Japan in 2014, which offers initiatives, mental health care, and other support for our employees, and is staffed by more than 120 occupational health physicians, public health nurses and counselors, as well as relevant departments at Fast Retailing. The Wellness Center seeks to ensure health and productivity management within the Fast Retailing group, and works to promote health and workplace engagement by strengthening measures to keep employees physically and mentally well. We also have Health and Safety Managers in each country and region. The Wellness Center works with these managers to ensure uniform safety and health activities across the company's global network.
Roppongi Head Office Wellness Center
Ariake Head Office Wellness Center
Priority Health and Productivity Issues
Fast Retailing seeks to promote long-term employment and productivity, while also reducing medical costs through effective health management. With those aims, we prioritize three area: FR health issues (quitting smoking), improving health literacy, and enhancing mental health.
Initiatives Relating to Our Priority Issues
Priority issue 1: Reducing the smoking rate
- Fast Retailing aims to reduce the percentage of employees who smoke from 23.1% in Fiscal 2021 to 12.0% in Fiscal 2032.
- We develop various programs internally to help employees quit smoking through the Ascure Smoking Cessation Program, distributing nicotine gum at events such as our No Smoking Day, and offering collaborative measures at medical checkup venues.
- We actively convey information on ways to quit smoking, including one-minute quit smoking videos, regular emails, and internal poster displays.
Priority issue 2: Improving health literacy
- Fast Retailing implements measures to increase the ratio of employees taking health checks up to 100%. We monitor the rate of health checkups, and follow up with employees to increase the participation rate. We also have established a system to conduct medical examinations for those engaged in late-night work, including part-time workers.
- We distribute information on anemia and offer advice to people with anemia (C2 or above according to Fast Retailing standards), especially women, as part of our aim to achieve 100% ongoing checkups and prevent secondary accidents at work caused by anemia.
- We also offer health education at medical checkup venues in cooperation with the FR Health Insurance Organization. Surveys conducted at our Ariake and Roppongi head offices showed our employees were most interested in topics relating to diet, exercise, and sleep.
Priority issue 3: Enhancing mental health
- Fast Retailing conducts annual stress checks for all employees in Japan. Employees with results showing high stress levels can follow up with an occupational health physician. We also offer therapy sessions with a counsellor for any employee who prefers this option.
- The Wellness Center cooperates with the Human Resources Department to improve the workplace environment of departments identified as higher risk through the annual stress check results.
- Our Wellness Center cooperates with the Human Resources Department to enhance our mental health education through e-learning and other tailored information services that help employees manage their mental health.
- For employee taking medical leave, we offer special programs to support a smooth return to work.
| 2020/4～2021/3 | 2021/4～2022/3 | 2022/4～2023/3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of employees undergoing regular health checks | 97.9% | 97.0% | 96.3% | |
| Percentage of employees with anemia*¹ | Men | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.6% |
| Women | 20.5% | 19.1% | 21.0% | |
*¹Hemoglobin in blood: 13 mg/dl or less for men and 12 mg/dl or less for women
| Fiscal 2020 | Fiscal 2021 | Fiscal 2022 | Fiscal 2023 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of employees undergoing stress checks | 94.5% | 98.0% | 97.0% | 96.5% | |
Health education at medical checkup venues
Example of E-learning module
Measures for Promoting Occupational Health and Safety and Preventing Workplace Accidents
To consistently meet our commitments in the Fast Retailing Group Health and Safety Declaration, we expand our health and safety activities, not only in Japan, but also to other countries and regions, and we strive to prevent occupational accidents and reduce the lost-time injury frequency rate (LTIFR).
Example Health and Safety Activities
- Regular training on mental health and occupational accident prevention for new employees and newly-appointed managers.
- Regularly conduct online training for health officers to promote health and safety activities in stores.
- Hold monthly meetings of the Occupational Health and Safety Committee at each operational site to discuss and resolve specific issues in areas such as safety management, employee health management, and mental health care.
- Appoint Health and Safety Managers in each country and region. Health and Safety Managers of the global headquarters also proactively conduct site visits to survey the workplace environment, investigate onsite conditions, confirm onsite safety measures, and offer advice on health and safety.
Initiatives for Preventing Occupational Accidents
- Established an occupational accident prevention team across departments. Promote measures to prevent workplace incidents
-
Conduct assessments based on groupwide risk assessment standards, identify various risks, and implement appropriate countermeasures
High risk areas and risk mitigation measures- Risks associated with equipment used in our stores: Encourage the use of equipment and tools with safer design features. For example, introducing safer sewing machines and providing safety cutters for unpacking cardboard boxes.
- Risks associated with machinery used in our warehouses: Improve safety in warehouse environments by introducing automated machines equipped with safety features and setting up restricted-entry zones.
- Provide safety and health education for all employees, share cases of past accidents, and promote training on identifying risks.
- Share examples of near-miss accidents (cases where people felt there was a risk of accidents occurring) to improve working environments.
- Promptly report any occupational accidents to our head office. The head office will then analyze the cause of the accident, determine appropriate countermeasures, and share any decisions across the company.
Lost-time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) (Fast Retailing Group in Japan)*1
(The number of lost-time injuries in a workplace per million hours worked) *2
| Fiscal 2020 | Fiscal 2021 | Fiscal 2022 | Fiscal 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employees | 1.03 | 1.04 | 0.86 | 0.80 |
*1 LTIFR refers to the rate of accidents resulting in four or more days of lost work time.
*2 LTIFR data have been verified by SGS Japan Co., Ltd. since FY2019 to improve reliability.
There were no fatalities due to work-related injuries or illnesses during the above period at the Fast Retailing Group in Japan.
Reducing Working Hours
Fast Retailing respects international standards and national laws and regulations concerning maximum working hours, minimum breaks and rest periods. Team leaders in each division manage employees' working hours on a monthly basis. Fast Retailing pursues work styles that do not rely on overtime.
Monitoring and Corrective actions for Work-Hour Reduction at the Fast Retailing Group in Japan
- Strengthening management supervision of overtime by requiring consistent clocking in/out.
- Turning office lights out at 6:00 PM at Roppongi Head Office and Ariake Office to encourage employees to return home.
- Human Resources Department monitors individual employee working hours and paid leave at each department on a quarterly basis. Human Resources Division and Wellness Centers meet with employees (and their superiors) who chronically record excessive work hours, taking steps to reduce time worked. Supervisors are required to take and report action to review workload or re-prioritize tasks for employees with excessive work hours.
- Wellness Centers and Human Resource division conducts work style surveys and stress checks to identify any issues in working hours.
Improving Employee Satisfaction
Fast Retailing strives to create work environments and a culture that enables employees to grow and contribute over many years. Since January 2019, Fast Retailing has conducted employee satisfaction surveys to cover all companies in the Group as one measure to improve satisfaction.
Initiatives to Improve Employee Satisfaction
- Recognition for years of service: Employees receive recognition for years of service for every10, 20, and 30 years of employment.
- Special awards: Individuals and departments who deliver outstanding results receive special awards and recognition.
- Family Day: Each year the Fast Retailing Group holds a special event for families and employees at the Yamaguchi headquarters and Ariake office*.
- Benefit packages: The Fast Retailing Group Health Insurance Organization in Japan offers benefits to employees that include discounts for fitness club memberships, amusement parks, etc.
*The event has been temporarily suspended to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
