Promotion of Work-Life Balance

Work-Life Balance Promotion Initiatives

In order to realize both expanded business activities and lifestyles that offer personal fulfillment, we will proactively promote work-life balance that respects a wide range of values and lifestyles.

People can use the extra time created by increases in the quality and productivity of work in many different ways, which in doing so leads to the enhancement of the overall quality of life while energizing both body and mind. This energy can provide the power for new value creation while contributing to the enhancement of corporate value and the realization of an enriched personal life.

In addition, the Yamaha Group has established the Work-Life Balance Promotion Committee, which is jointly run by labor and management, to guide its efforts to reduce total working hours and establish and enhance work-life balance support systems as part of its drive to create workstyles that are self-directed and productive.

[Image] Basic Policy in Work-Life Balance

Prevention of Excessive Working Hours

The Yamaha Group aims to reduce overtime and weekend work, both causes of excessive working hours, while enhancing its leave systems and promoting their use.

To reduce total working hours, Yamaha Corporation established guidelines for overtime through a labor-management agreement. Based on these guidelines, monthly working hours are monitored, and prompt warnings are issued to divisions deemed to be at risk of surpassing the limits set in the guidelines. In addition, the limits for monthly working hours described in these guidelines are being reduced in a phased manner. In fiscal 2022, the Company set targets of less than 60 hours of average monthly overtime and less than 540 hours of average yearly overtime. Specific initiatives for reducing working hours include flextime systems, which have been in place for a number of years. In addition, the Company’s prior approach of arranging days in which everyone is encouraged to go home on-time every two weeks was revised in April 2022 to designate Saturday and Sunday as days on which employees are prohibited from sending internal emails after 6 p.m. or exceeding the defined working hours in order to encourage autonomous workstyles. In addition, we have set goals for the number of days of paid leave acquired each year and are encouraging systematic leave acquisition through a joint labor-management effort. To further encourage leave acquisition, we reach out to people who have not taken a sufficient number of days off as well as their supervisors and conduct follow-up monitoring while remaining considerate of individual work circumstances. We have also arranged days in which all employees are encouraged to take the day off to ensure that leave is taken. In addition to annual paid leave days, we are developing a system for assorted types of leave, including leave related to bereavement or celebration as well as consecutive days of leave given upon company transfers, reaching retirement age, or reaching an auspicious age for the objective of enhancing the personal lives of employees and supporting them during major life events. These initiatives for reducing working hours and encouraging leave are being sequentially deployed throughout domestic Group companies.

Fiscal 2023

Total working hours per person at Yamaha Corporation amounted to 1,937.7 hours in fiscal 2023. In addition, we have set a target of having an average of 15 or more days of paid leave a year acquired from fiscal 2017 onward. Leave acquisition rates are rising every year, and, as a result of these efforts, the average number of paid leave days used in fiscal 2023 surpassed this target at 16.3.

Data on total working hours and other data by year is shown on the ESG Data page.

Improvement of Motivation and Workplace Comfort

Yamaha Corporation is revising its systems and frameworks with the goal of realizing self-directed, highly productive workstyles while also improving employee motivation and workplace comfort. For example, we are enhancing our telework systems as well as our childcare and nursing care support systems for all employees. At the workplace level, efforts have included refining work processes and streamlining meetings. Through these efforts, we aim to develop flexible systems and workplace environments that are accommodating of the circumstances of individual employees. The hope is to allow our employees to exercise their skills while maintaining good physical and mental health and living enriching work and personal lives. Furthermore, a system was introduced in October 2021 that expanded the range of areas from which individuals can commute should they need to provide nursing care to family members and allowed employees to work in remote locations to accommodate individuals who would normally be forced to live away from their family for work purposes.

Information on Yamaha Corporation’s workstyle reform initiatives are communicated to Group companies through the intranet and other venues, and we have thus seen a rise in domestic Group companies implementing similar initiatives.

Establishment and Enhancement of Work-Life Balance Support Systems

The Yamaha Group is establishing and improving work-life balance support systems to respond to the varied circumstances of individual employees. The use of these systems is being promoted by spreading awareness among employees. In addition, Yamaha Corporation has formulated an action plan based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children. The advancement of this plan led to the Company receiving Platinum "Kurumin" certification* in 2016. As for our systems for supporting employees in working while raising children, a flextime system was introduced in June 2019 for employees working reduced hours for childcare purposes, who would have previously still had to work set, albeit shortened, hours. The scope of applicability for this system was then extended from until an employee’s child completes third grade in elementary school to until they finish sixth grade.

In addition, the Company introduced systems that allow employees to work fewer days a week or shorten hours for the purpose of receiving medical treatment in fiscal 2021 to support employees in balancing their work with their treatment, and we continue to expand the range of our support systems.

Information on the usage status of the childcare leave system is shown on the ESG Data page.

Childcare, Nursing, and Medical Treatment Systems (Comparison with legal standards)

System Legal standards Yamaha Corporation
Maternity leave 42 days before birth (98 days for multiple births), 56 days after birth 56 days before birth (98 days for multiple births), 56 days after birth
Difficult birth leave - Number of days instructed by physician during pregnancy or within one year of birth
Birth support leave - Five days within a period spanning from 14 days before spouse gives birth to 14 days after spouse gives birth
Childcare leave In principle, until child becomes one year old (in special circumstances, this may become one year and six months or two years) Until child becomes two years old (however, for children born in April, until the end of April after the child becomes two years old)
Child nursing leave Children not yet enrolled in elementary school Until the end of March of the child’s first year in elementary school
Reduced working hours for childcare Until the child becomes three years old Until the child completes sixth grade in elementary school
Exemption from overtime hours for childcare Overtime work limited until the child becomes three years old Exemption from required overtime work until the child completes third grade in elementary school
Life support leave - Leave that can be acquired in hour, half-day, or full-day increments for nursing care, childcare, infertility treatment, or other purposes
Scope of applicability for nursing care system Spouse, child, mother, father, spouse’s mother or father, grandparent, sibling, or grandchild Relative within two degrees of relation
Leave of absence for nursing care Up to a total of 93 days per applicable family member (possible to split into up to three leaves) Up to one year per applicable family member (possible to postpone for up to six months)
Reduced working hours for nursing care Two times or more within three years of start of use (separate from leave of absence for nursing care) Until end of nursing care duties
Shortened work week for nursing care - Exemption from one work day per week until end of nursing care duties
Leave for nursing care Five days per applicable family member; 10 days for two or more persons Five days per applicable family member
Reduced working hours for undergoing treatment - Until treatment is over
Shortened work week for undergoing treatment - Until treatment is over

Establishment of On-Site Daycare Facilities

Yamaha Corporation has established an on-site daycare facility (Oto no Ie) at its headquarters.

Since 2019, Yamaha Group employees have continued to use this facility, which is operated based on a unique program that is distinctive of Yamaha’s commitment to providing opportunities to encounter and engage with sound. Through this facility, the Company aims to make it even easier for employees to return to work, and, because their children are nearby, enable them to better focus on their work.

[Photo] On-site daycare facility (Oto no Ie)

On-site daycare facility (Oto no Ie)

Programs for Flexible Accommodation of Individual Circumstances

Yamaha Corporation offers an ever-growing range of programs that can be used to flexibly accommodate employee life events. We have in place the following rehiring programs, and a system was introduced in October 2021 that expanded the range of areas from which individuals can commute should they need to provide nursing care to family members and allowed employees to work in remote locations to accommodate individuals who would normally be forced to live away from their family for work purposes.

Rehiring Program for Family Members Accompanying Spouses on Overseas Assignment

Yamaha Corporation has in place a system to rehire employees who left the Company in order to accompany a spouse on an overseas assignment after returning to Japan. The scope of this system, which was previously limited to individuals whose spouses were Yamaha Corporation employees, was expanded in fiscal 2017 to include individuals whose spouses were working for Yamaha Group companies. In addition, this system is available for employees accompanying spouses who do not work for Yamaha Group companies on overseas assignments, with a limit of five years from their retirement. Since the program started in fiscal 2009, a total of 39 employees have submitted applications before retiring. Of that number, 23 (as of March 31, 2023) have been rehired after returning to Japan.

Rehiring Program for Workers Committed to Nursing Care

In July 2016, Yamaha Corporation introduced a system that allows an employee to be rehired if they retired to provide nursing care for a family member. In such cases, the valid re-employment period is within five years of said retirement date.

External Recognition

Yamaha Corporation has formulated an action plan based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children. Through the advancement of this plan, the Company was able to receive "Kurumin" certification in 2008 and Platinum "Kurumin" certification* in 2016.

In 2018, Yamaha Corporate Services Corporation (then Yamaha Business Support Corporation) received "Kurumin" certification, and this company went on to earn Platinum "Kurumin" certification* in 2020.

Acquisition of Certification Related to Support for Developing Future Generations*

Certification Date acquired Main measures implemented
"Kurumin" Aug. 2008
  • Extension of childcare leave period, etc.
  • Implementation of more flexible reduced working hours for childcare system
  • Mandatory Group paid leave program, etc.
Aug. 2014
  • Work-life balance seminar
  • Implementation of All Go Home at the Same Time Day, etc.
Platinum "Kurumin" Jun. 2016
  • Encouragement of male employees to take paternity leave
  • Shortening of working hours, etc.
  • * "Kurumin" is a Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare system for certifying companies based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children. Company action plans and performance are reviewed in accordance with the Act for Measures to Support the Development of the Next Generation. Certified companies are allowed to display the "Kurumin" mark. Platinum "Kurumin" is a system that certifies, among the companies that have acquired the "Kurumin" mark, companies that conduct initiatives to support work-life balance at or above a specific standard.
[Logo] Platinum "Kurumin" certification mark recognizing support for developing future generations

Platinum "Kurumin" certification mark recognizing support for developing future generations