Encouraging Work-Life Balance
Action Plan for Supporting Work-Life Balance and Nurturing the Next-Generation
Canon was one of the first Japanese companies to promote increased productivity in business operations through the introduction of such initiatives as a five-day workweek and shorter working hours.
Canon Inc. established the Work-Life Balance Committee when we opted to participate in the Work and Life Harmonization Project sponsored by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in 2008. This Committee is at the center of our efforts to encourage employees to adopt a healthy work-life balance.
In 2008, Canon Inc. launched an action plan with the slogan "Work hard, rest well - create an efficient workstyle within company hours." This plan forms the basis of our daily efforts to support employee work-life balance as well as nurture the next generation. Phase III of the action plan was launched in April 2010 and runs through March 31, 2012. Our 2011 efforts based on this plan are outlined in the table below. We initiated a new action plan in April 2012 that takes into account the results of the previous plan.
Awareness posters displayed at
Canon Inc.
| Action Plan | Measure | Results as of end of 2011 |
|---|---|---|
| (1)Set up a consultation structure for work-life balance with the goal of creating an environment conducive to understanding and use of work-life balance programs. |
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Confirmed that, in addition to female employees, who have made up the majority of those taking advantage of these programs, the trend for male use of these programs is on the upswing. Currently, the contact points for the consultation structure are the Human Resources Management & Organization Headquarters at corporate HQ, and General Affairs at each operational site. Since there are virtually no obstacles at any workplace to access to the programs, there are currently few cases of consultation. We will continue examining the in-house structures to establish a consultation structure. |
(2)Promote efficient work during regular working hours, and make efforts to firmly establish "no overtime days" and reduce overtime. |
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During the July 4 to September 22 period in which the Summertime system was in place, overtime was forbidden in principle, and we took that as an opportunity to revise work habits. As a result of our efforts to improve productivity and keep to regular working hours, we succeeded in cutting the cumulative overtime hours per employee companywide during the July-September period by half in comparison to the same period of the previous year. The prohibition of overtime was maintained after the conclusion of Summertime. |
(3)As a part of social contribution activities, carry out community contribution activities in which children- who are the future of our communities- can participate. |
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We continuously conducted throughout Japan the following community contribution activities in which children- who are the future of our communities- can participate. (1)Canon Cats School, a program for high school students who belong to the Kanagawa High School Athletic Federation dance club (2)Invited junior high school students in Yokohama City to Canon Cats Theater (3)Summer Vacation Canon Factory Kids' School for elementary school children in Oita Prefecture (4)Junior Photographers photography classes (5)Canon Cup Junior Soccer (6)Tag Rugby School, etc. |
Reducing Overtime
Canon Inc. is striving to cut back on overtime through strict adherence to such measures as "No Overtime Day." In 2011 approximately 80% of all employees left work at the designated time on "No Overtime Days", a positive indication that the idea has caught on.
Canon introduced the "Summertime" system in 2011 in response to calls from the Japanese government to reduce power consumption during daytime hours due to nuclear plant closures, and also as a means to increase employees' awareness of the importance of making full use of time after working hours by associating with friends and family as well as engaging in fitness activities.
From July 4 to September 22, the period designated as Summertime, overtime was forbidden in principle, and we continued to encourage the revision of work habits. As a result of our efforts to improve productivity and keep to regular working hours, we succeeded in cutting the cumulative overtime hours per employee companywide during the July-September period by half in comparison to the same period in the previous year, and we also made progress in reforming work-habit awareness.
The restriction on overtime was maintained after the conclusion of Summertime as a continuation of "No Overtime Days." As a result, the average annual overtime hours per employee in 2011 worked out to 145.6, a roughly 10% reduction compared to the previous year.
We have also taken other measures, such as encouraging employees to take their vacation time, which brought the total hours worked per employee in 2011 down to 1,768, 31 hours fewer than the previous year's average of 1,799. We will continue with our efforts to keep total hours worked per year to 1,800 or less.
Shift in annual total hours worked per employee (Canon Inc.)
Supporting the Dual Responsibilities of Work and Childcare
To enable employees to focus on childcare responsibilities with peace of mind, Canon Inc. offers an array of programs, including childcare leave for employees raising children up to the age of three, reduced work hours for parents with small children*1, and a childcare leave support
program*2, which go beyond the legally stipulated minimum requirements.
In 2007, Canon Inc. introduced various pregnancy-support systems, including maternity leave to protect the health of pregnant women, a fertility treatment cost-assistance program that covers 50% of related medical expenses, and a fertility treatment-leave system. Additionally, we revised our reduced work hour system in January 2010, lowering the basic work unit from one hour to 30 minutes, making it easier to use. We also made changes to our company regulations, creating a family care leave program in line with amendments to the Law Concerning the Welfare of Workers Who Take Care of Children or Other Family Members Including Child Care and Family Care Leave, which took effect in June 2010. We have set up consultation desks at our Tokyo Shimomaruko headquarters and each of our operational sites to handle employee questions about how to use these systems.
While female employees make up the majority of those taking advantage of these programs, the number of male employees doing so is on the increase.
Canon Inc. will continue to work with the Canon Group Workers' Union through the Work-Life Balance Committee and other groups to support the dual responsibilities of work and childcare.
- *1Reduced work hours for employees with small children
Employees raising children may reduce their workday by up to two hours, in units of 30 minutes, until the child has finished the third grade of primary school.
- *2Childcare leave support program
We provide support for the return to work of employees who have taken leave for childcare through our Himawari Club Internet portal site.
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employees taking childcare leave | 86（2） | 94（1） | 110（7） | 120（7） | 124（8） | 176（16） | 126（17） |
| Employees using system for reduced work hours for childcare | 73（0） | 74（0） | 75（0） | 111（1） | 116（0） | 137（4） | 144（3） |
| Employees taking maternity leave | － | － | 12 | 15 | 23 | 23 | 24 |
| Employees working reduced hours due to pregnancy | － | － | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Employees taking nursing care leave | 12 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 12 | 14 |
| Employees using system for reduced work hours for nursing care | 8 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 2 |
| Applicants for childbirth support | － | － | 132 | 275 | 266 | 215 | 225 |
- *1Number of employees in that year using the system for the first time
- *2( ) Number of the total who are male
Establishing an Authorized Day-Care Center
In order to support parents in the community with the dual responsibilities of work and childcare, Canon Inc. established Poppins Nursery School Tamagawa in January 2009 in cooperation with Poppins Corporation and under the authorization of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. This facility, located on company grounds adjacent to the Tokyo Shimomaruko headquarters, is open to local residents as well as Canon employees.
As of December 31, 2011, Poppins Nursery School Tamagawa was providing day-care services for 51 children in the community.
Poppins Nursery School Tamagawa
Adopting Leave System for Volunteer Activities
Canon Inc. adopted the Leave System for Volunteer Activities in November 1994, in recognition of the growing interest in volunteer activities within the community and among our employees.
Under this system, employees wishing to participate in volunteer activities certified by the company may take up to one year of leave (two years and four months in the case of JICA Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers).
Every year a number of employees make use of this opportunity, and as of the end of 2011 we had two employees taking leave for this purpose.
