Activities to Support Work-Life Balance
Activities to Support Work-Life Balance
Basic Concept
In line with its promotion of diversity, Sharp supports its employees by creating a rewarding workplace. Sharp gives employees a choice of work styles—allowing them to select the style that best suits them at various stages in their lives—thereby helping them achieve a work-life balance that will enable them to lead rich lives both at work and at home.
Specifically, Sharp is expanding support programs for childcare and nursing care and is distributing guidebooks and other information to promote use of these programs.
In addition, Sharp has established a support system for balancing work with medical treatment. Employees undergoing medical treatment are able to work comfortably without being pressed by time. An employee’s health and capacity for work are the key considerations in determining their work schedule and obligations.
On top of all this, Sharp is continuously implementing initiatives aimed at helping employees find a work style that is both efficient and satisfying, such as by establishing No Overtime Day and by actively encouraging employees to schedule and take their annual paid leave.
Work-Life Balance Guidebook and Nursing Care Guidebook
Promoting Childcare Leave for Men
To create a more employee-friendly workplace, Sharp has made efforts to establish a support system and environment in which both male and female employees can participate in child rearing. Japan is undergoing a low birth rate, diversifying work and life styles, and an increase in double-income households. In light of this, Sharp is expanding and improving its childcare leave system and encouraging more male employees to take part in child rearing. As a result, many male employees have taken childcare leave (36 people at Sharp Corporation in fiscal 2021).
Sharp will continue to support its employees’ active participation in childcare and in family life with their children.
Acquiring Kurumin Certification
In 2007, 2009, 2012, 2015, and 2020, Sharp Corporation was recognized by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare as a company supportive of childrearing based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children and received the “Kurumin” mark of certification.
Work-Life Balance Support Programs (Main Programs and Participation at Sharp Corporation)
(Person)
| Program Name | Description | Participation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal 2019 (usage rate) |
Fiscal 2020 (usage rate) |
Fiscal 2021 (usage rate) |
||
| Childcare Leave*1 |
Allows leave until the child turns two years old. (The 10-day period beginning at the start of the childcare leave is treated as a period with pay.) ＜Fiscal 2021＞ |
125 (42.8%) *3 Men: 85 (33.7%) Women: 40 (100%) |
74 (43.3%) *3 Men: 50 (34.0%) Women: 24 (100%) |
56 (44.4%) *3 Men: 36 (34.0%) Women: 20 (100%) |
| Reduced-Hours Employment during Childbearing/Childcare | A system by which an employee can reduce work time by up to three hours per day (in units of 30 minutes) during pregnancy. Also allows a female/male employee to work under the same reduced-hours employment system until March 31 after her/his child has reached the sixth year of elementary school. | 13 | 7 | 3 |
| Childcare Support Work Program | Allows flexible work schedules (work day start and end times) until March 31 after the child has reached the sixth year of elementary school. This allows an employee to shorten working hours up to an average of three hours per day in one-hour units. | 313 | 215 | 230 |
| Nursing Care Leave*1 | Allows an employee to take leave to care for a family member requiring nursing care for a total of two years (can be divided up). | 6 | 3 | 7 |
| Nursing Care Support Work Program | Allows flexible work schedules (work day start and end times) during a six-month period in order to carry out nursing care. (Can be changed if necessary.) This allows an employee to shorten working hours up to an average of three hours per day in one-hour units. | 9 | 7 | 10 |
| Other Programs | Multipurpose Leave, Multipurpose Leave Taken in One-Hour Units (or half-day units), Staggered Commuting Hours during Pregnancy, Guaranteed Reemployment after Childbearing/Childcare, Reemployment after Returning from a Spouse’s Overseas Transfer, Reemployment after Nursing Care, Reduced-Hours Employment or Reduced Weekly Working Days for Nursing Care, Support for Unmarried Employees with Family Nursing Care Obligations (commuting costs and other relevant expenses), Paternity Leave, Daycare Adaptation Leave, Nursing Care Leave (in one-hour units), Nursing Leave (in one-hour units), Home Helper Expense Subsidies, Leave of Absence or Annual Paid Holidays for Fertility Treatment, Fertility Treatment Financing System, Reduced-Hours Employment for Career Development Support, Volunteer Leave, Subsidy for Fees of Non-Registered Daycare Facilities, One-off Payments for Employees Making an Early Return from Childcare Leave, Subsidy for Fees for Sick Children Daycare and Extended Daycare | |||
- *1 Childcare leave or nursing care leave will never work against the employee in terms of personnel evaluations, pay raises, promotions, or bonuses.
- *2 Percentage of employees still working 12 months after returning to work.
- *3 The usage rate for fiscal 2019 is based on Sharp’s two-year childcare leave policy. The rate from fiscal 2020 is calculated in line with the Basic Survey of Gender Equality in Employment Management of Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.