Diversity and Inclusion

In line with our policy of promoting diversity & inclusion, we are striving to empower diverse human resources to remain highly motivated and fully realize their individual potential by upgrading our working environment and personnel systems. At the same time, we foster a corporate culture that embraces diversity and helps employees inspire one another to pursue personal growth.

Maximizing the Performance of Diverse Human Resources via
the Promotion of an Inclusive Working Environment and Human Resource Development

Empowering diverse human resources to remain highly motivated and fully realize their individual potential

Promoting women’s empowerment

Taking a constant approach to nurturing female managers, the Human Resources Department selects female manager candidates from nominations, put forward by the heads of each business unit, to register as “L-NEXT.” A total of 621 individuals were registered in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, and now receive this career development support. As we aim to create a robust human resource pool supported by a dual-ladder personnel system and thereby nurture individuals capable of embodying the Meiji Yasuda Philosophy, we have in place a “management course” and a “specialist course,” both designed to provide training opportunities for these candidates to acquire necessary skills and knowledge. Furthermore, for individuals who have already assumed managerial positions, we established “L-NEXT Advance,” a training program aimed at preparing them for even higher positions, such as officer and other senior manager positions. Reflecting the outcomes of our initiatives thus far, the ratio of women in managerial positions stood at 34.1% as of April 2022, surpassing our target of 30% for the third consecutive year.

Also, we are transitioning individuals who had been in term-employment contracts to permanent employees to stabilize their employment status and help them pursue career success in an even broader range of fields. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, we transitioned approximately 1,900 individuals, who met such requirements as the period of service, to permanent employees and assigned them to a variety of fields and duties. For these individuals, we also established “L-Academia,” a human resource development program aimed at raising their motivation for and otherwise helping them pursue career advancement.

Other career development assistance measures include a system in which employees are allowed to experience types of operations they wish to take on and, to this end, be temporarily transferred to relevant departments. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, a total of 247 individuals participated in this system. Moreover, we maintain a “Career Challenge System” designed to allow employees to apply for voluntary transfer to desired departments or assignments. As of April 2022, a total of 168 individuals are taking on the challenge of assuming fresh tasks.

(Left)
Included in “FY2014 Diversity Management Selection 100” published by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (March 2015)

(Middle)
Received an “Award from the Minister of State for Gender Equality” under a program titled “Leading Companies where Women Shine” sponsored by the Gender Equality Bureau of the Cabinet Office (December 2016)

(Right)
Received the “Grand Award” under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Women’s Participation Promotion Awards program (March 2021)

Promoting elderly employees to assume key positions

In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020, we lengthened the retirement age to 65 as part of our initiatives aimed at encouraging elderly employees to remain in the active workforce and, to this end, helping them take full advantage of their longstanding business experience and accumulated insights. Moreover, in April 2021 we raised the upper age limit for contract employees rehired after retirement to 70. Reflecting these moves, a number of elderly employees are currently fulfilling important roles, serving as managers or otherwise taking on tasks requiring highly specialized expertise.

To help elderly employees develop fulfilling careers and motivate them to do so, we established a career counseling desk while providing seminars and training sessions lectured by external specialists. We also provide training opportunities to help them raise their IT literacy and acquire robust IT skills in light of the advancing digital shift in society. In these and other ways, we assist each employee in their pursuit of self-innovation and personal growth.

In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, we introduced a “nationwide career-track course” for career-track employees aged 60 or older. This enables said employees to relocate and be transferred to regions across Japan, helping them meet a broad range of opportunities for career success.

A career design training session held online in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022

Creating a Workplace in Which
People with Disabilities Play Key Roles

With regard to the employment of people with disabilities, we are proactively offering a growing range of career opportunities at such workplaces as Meijiyasuda Business Plus Co., Ltd., a special-purpose subsidiary. As of April 2022, the number of employees with disabilities within our workforce totaled 1,197, and the ratio of employees with disabilities to the overall employee headcount was 2.38%.

As we aim to offer an inclusive workplace to employees with disabilities, we have taken such steps as establishing a dedicated in-house counseling desk while deploying tablet terminals equipped with a UD talk* app. In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, we began offering individuals in term-employment contracts a route for promotion to permanent employee. At the same time, we are pushing ahead with improving wages, updating evaluation systems and otherwise upgrading the working environment for people with disabilities. Looking ahead, we will continue to enhance measures aimed at assisting their pursuit of career development in a way that meets their differing needs based on the individual circumstances of their disabilities.

Fostering a Corporate Culture That Embraces Diversity and Helps Employees Inspire One Another

Corporate Culture Starts at the Top

As part of the Company’s efforts to disseminate the Meiji Yasuda Philosophy and promote diversity & inclusion, all officers and managers are being called to proactively play their role in fostering a corporate culture supportive of employees engaged in child rearing. In this regard, they are expected to: (1) facilitate employee action guided by the Meiji Yasuda Philosophy among individuals under their supervision as well as themselves; and (2) empower diverse human resources to pursue career success based on “work-life management.” They have also declared their commitment to practicing the above role in the course of day-to-day operations, and thus let their staff members know about such commitment.

President Hideki Nagashima holding a statement of declaration

Diversity Forum

To foster a corporate culture that embraces diversity & inclusion, we hold the annual Diversity Forum by convening individuals responsible for spearheading the promotion of diversity from business units across Japan. Through this event, we disseminate messages from the President while discussing measures to address relevant issues at each business unit.

Diversity Forum (held online in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022)

Supporting members of the LGBT community

At Meiji Yasuda, employees who have same sex partners are deemed legally married and eligible for rights for special paid leave (e.g. leave granted at the occurrence of life events). Also, those with same sex partners are now eligible to apply for employee benefit programs designed for married couples, including the use of company-furnished housing. Moreover, we have set up a dedicated in-house counseling desk while encouraging employees to become allies to such people and express support for them. In addition, each business unit is participating in LGBT-related events and implementing training sessions. In December 2021, three of Meiji Yasuda’s headquarters buildings (Marunouchi, Toyocho and Takadanobaba) began offering gender-neutral restrooms.

(Left)
Participants taking a photo after an LGBT-related event

(Right)
Obtained a “Gold” rating under the Pride Index rating program aimed at commending business corporations striving to create an inclusive workplace environment for members of the LGBT community, for the fifth consecutive year

Promoting flexible working styles

We promote “work-life management” initiatives that aim to empower each employee to pursue fulfillment in both careers and private lives, focusing on facilitating a virtuous cycle of improvement in two aspects of their lives to achieve higher productivity.

In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, we have introduced a work-from-home system that enables headquarters employees to continue their duties even as they live in regions other than the Tokyo metropolitan area. As part of the Company’s efforts to enable working styles without restrictions arising from commuting hours and working locations, this system is expected to help these employees pursue career success in a growing range of business fields while enabling them to better strike a balance between work and nursing care or other family duties. As of April 2022, a total of 42 employees living in 24 prefectures are utilizing this system.

In addition, we are encouraging eligible male employees to take childcare leave. To that end, we also reflect the status of childcare leave taken in the evaluation of senior managers. As a result, the ratio of male employees who took childcare leave to all eligible male employees amounted to 100% for the second consecutive year in the fiscal years ended March 31, 2021 and 2022.

Moreover, in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023 we expanded the content of “work-life management” initiatives by adding “addressing female-specific health issues” to the conventional categories of “child rearing,” “nursing care” and “disease treatment.” In these four categories, we will further promote the employee understanding of “work-life management” by, for example, holding seminars.

Acquired “Platinum Kurumin Certification” under the certification program in accordance with Japan’s Act on Promotion of Measures to Support the Development of the Next Generation (December 2015)