Balancing Work and Family
- Specific Materiality
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Diversity and Equal Opportunity
405-1
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Principle and Outline
Osaka Gas strives to create a corporate climate where employees can balance a rewarding job with fulfilling personal life and involvement in society to maximize their talents. We have organized a Labor-Management Committee to Promote Work-Life Balance that is systemizing the support measures needed by employees at each stage of life and creating work environments that facilitate use of these systems.
In FY2017, Osaka Gas launched a company-wide committee to encourage employees to work efficiently. Measures to improve the Company's productivity and promote creative work styles are being studied through the committee.
Supporting Employees Balancing Work and Home
Supporting childcare by improving the systems and the workplace environment
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Logo of certification from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
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Osaka Gas has a number of systems to support employees both while they are working and taking care of their families. These systems are aimed at enabling employees to display their abilities to the full extent by creating a workplace environment whereby they can strike a balance between work and childcare. For example, we have a system allowing employees to take childcare leave up to the end of the month in which children reach their third birthday, as well as a system for shorter work hours until children finish their third year at elementary school. We also lend employees PCs so they can check the company intranet and email and thus keep in contact while they are on childcare leave. And we offer employees telephone counseling on matters of childcare. These are just some of the ways that Osaka Gas labor and management are cooperating to create a workplace conducive to balancing work and family duties. In addition, we have established a consultation desk in the Health Promotion Center so that employees and their families can seek advice on health during pregnancy and child-raising.
In recognition of these efforts, Osaka Gas was certified four times by Japan’s Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare as a company that actively supports childcare for its employees in accordance with the Act for Measures to Support the Development of the Next Generation. Osaka Gas intends to support employees in achieving a balance between work and childcare in line with its 6th Action Plan (from April 2021 to March 2025).
“Back-to-Work Support Program” includes advice from managers
Besides the childcare leave system, Osaka Gas has a “Back-to-Work Support Program,” which was introduced in FY2007, to allow employees to take leave with peace of mind and to ease their way back into the workplace. Employees, during the period from the time they take a maternity leave to when they return to work, meet with their superiors for support at fixed intervals.
Supporting nursing care through systems and the workplace environment
Osaka Gas has a number of systems to support employees both while they are working and taking care of their families. Osaka Gas's nursing care leave system allows an employee to take up to 366 days of nursing care time off per family member who needs care. For those who choose to continue working instead of using the nursing care leave system, the nursing care time system allows them to shorten each working day by up to 3 hours, 1,096 days. Both these systems give employees more time off than is required under Japanese labor laws.
Supporting employees receiving treatment while working
Osaka Gas introduced a shorter working hours system in April 2021 to support work balance for employees receiving medical treatment, mainly cancer treatment and dialysis. Normally, employees use paid leave, half-day paid leave, flextime, etc. when going to the hospital for outpatient treatment. However, if long-term continuous treatment is needed, paid leave, etc. may not be enough. For this reason, we have introduced a “shorter working hours system for outpatient treatment” to allow employees to reduce their working hours per day upon their application.
Efforts to Improve Productivity and Reduce Working Hours
Improving productivity through promotion of “Smart Work” initiatives
Osaka Gas implements "Smart Work" initiatives, of which aims are to improve value for employees through the realization of work-life balance, establish a workplace culture that promotes workforce diversity, and prevent health problems caused by overwork. By pushing forward with smart work initiatives, we will strive to improve productivity and reduce annual total working hours. "Smart Work" initiatives, which commenced in FY2010, are a company-wide effort to improve productivity. Specific activities are as follows:
- ・Promote paperless workplaces by using only electronic documents for in-house use (e.g., using projected images rather than printouts for in-house meetings, in principle)
- ・Improve the efficiency of organizing meetings (e.g. releasing documents via electronic boards in advance of meetings, and sharing the minutes of meetings)
- ・Establish a working environment to promote employees' creativity by changing office layouts (e.g., designing an office layout with no specifically-assigned desks so that employees can work more freely)
- ・Visualization of overtime work records and other data and improvement of work efficiency using IT (including information sharing on a corporate portal, use of smartphones to communicate for work, and automation of work using RPA)
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Satellite office set up inside the Grand Front Osaka
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To promote telecommuting, which will lead to flexible work styles, Osaka Gas has set up satellite offices, from which employees can work remotely, away from their usual office. Osaka Gas attempts to increase employee productivity by shortening commute and other travel times and helping employees concentrate on their work at remote offices. In addition to steadily increasing the number of work-from-home employees, Osaka Gas has introduced a system of online conferencing that can be attended even on smartphones, enabling diverse and flexible work styles that are not limited to working in the office. In addition, the Daigas Group has drawn up a code of conduct for “smart work,” which is a set of standards that employees, their superiors and other relevant parties are supposed to turn to in taking specific business-streamlining and energy-saving actions aimed at improving productivity even further.
Support for Community Activities Involvement
Supporting employees’ social participation through juror leave and other systems
Osaka Gas has leave systems that allow employees to perform their duties for society. For example, before Japan enacted the citizens' jury duty system in May 2009, Osaka Gas had already introduced (FY2009) its juror leave system giving employees chosen for jury duty the required number of paid leave days.
“Volunteer Leave Program,” “Community Leave Program”
Osaka Gas has introduced a variety of programs that allow employees to participate in company-approved volunteer and social contribution activities.
Employees utilizing the “Volunteer Leave Program” are regarded as being on leave while engaged in volunteer activities, and the impact of this leave on their length of service, salary, etc., will be handled in a special manner. Leave taken under the “Community Leave Program” will be counted as special leave, and this program was set up to support employees wishing to participate more actively in their communities.
- Sustainability of
the Daigas Group -
President's Commitment
- Values and Sustainability Promotion of the Daigas Group
- Daigas Group's Values Daigas Group Charter of Business Conduct and Management Policy Daigas Group Code of Business Conduct Sustainability Promotion System and Management Stakeholder Engagement Initiatives the Daigas Group Participates In Commendation from the Outside
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- Value Creation Process of the Daigas Group Long-Term Management Vision 2030 Medium-Term Management Plan 2023 Daigas Group Carbon Neutral Vision
- Actions on Materiality
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Materiality of the Daigas Group
Materiality Review Cycle
Customer Health and Safety
(FY2021 Report) Energy / Emissions
(FY2021 Report) Local Communities
(FY2021 Report) Customer Privacy
(FY2021 Report) Supplier Assessment
(FY2021 Report) Training and Education
(FY2021 Report) Diversity and Equal Opportunity
(FY2021 Report) Economic Performance
(FY2021 Report) Creating Value for Customers
(Charter I) Contributing to the Sustainability of the Environment and Society
(Charter Ⅱ) Engaging with and Contributing to Society (Charter Ⅲ) Respecting Human Rights
(Charter IV) Complying with Laws and Regulations (Charter V) Providing Work Environment That Supports Employees’ Personal Growth (Charter VI)
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- Daigas Group's Efforts for SDGs
- Special Features: Co-create Value for a Sustainable Future - Daigas Group×Stakeholders Achieving a Low Carbon / Carbon Neutral Society Establishing Lifestyles and Businesses Adjusted to the New Normal Enhancing Resilience of Customers and Society Back Numbers of Special Features
- FY2021 Activities Report
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- Creating Value for Customers (Charter I)
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Charter I Index
Management for Creating Value for Customers
Safety and Security 1:
Procurement Stage Safety and Security 2:
Processing Stage Safety and Security 3:
Distribution Stage Safety and Security 4:
Consumption Stage Incorporating Customer Opinions Proposing New Value
- Contributing to the Sustainability of the Environment and Society (Charter Ⅱ)
- Charter Ⅱ Index Management toward Contributing to the Sustainability of the Environment and Society Environmental Management Environmental Management: Indicators, Targets and Results Actions for Climate Change: Recognition of and Action on Risks and Opportunities Actions for Climate Change: Method to Evaluate Effects of CO2 Emissions Reduction Actions for Climate Change: Working to Reduce CO2 Emissions in Business Activities Actions for Climate Change: Working to Reduce CO2 Emissions at Customer Sites Efforts in Resource Recycling Conserving Biodiversity Developing Environmental Technologies Addressing Environmental Risk Promotion of Green Purchasing Environmental Communication
- Engaging with and Contributing to Society (Charter Ⅲ)
- Charter Ⅲ Index Management of Engagement with and Contribution to Society Social Contribution Activities Corporate Volunteering Activities under the Small Light Campaign Activities for Promoting Communication with Society Activities at Osaka Gas' Foundations
- Respecting Human Rights (Charter IV)
- Charter IV Index Status of Management regarding Respect for Human Rights Human Rights Due Diligence Action on Human Rights
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- Charter V Index Management for Complying with Laws and Regulations Compliance Promotion Efforts Efforts for Protection of Personal Information Information Security Consultations and Reports from Partner Companies
- Providing Work Environment That Supports Employees’ Personal Growth (Charter VI)
- Charter VI Index Status of Management to Support Employees' Personal Growth Employment Acceptance of Diversity Balancing Work and Family Human Resource Development and Rewards Communication Between Employees and Company Improving Occupational Health and Safety
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