Mazda regards respect for human rights as fundamental to its corporate activities, and is actively and sincerely committed to human rights protection activities.
It is vital that people accept each other as individuals and respect each other' s human rights. Mazda regards human rights as fundamental to its corporate activities, and is actively and sincerely committed to human rights protection activities in the strong conviction that human rights violations are impermissible.
In addition to ensuring the swift resolution of problems involving human rights, Mazda has established principles, regulations, and systems to enable the creation of a friendly, productive working environment in which employees can fully harness their abilities. Training and educational activities are also in place to constantly raise employees' awareness of human rights.
The company is also engaged in human rights protection activities in Group companies both in Japan and overseas, based on the One Mazda concept. In the Mazda Group, we comply with regulations in all the countries where we are located, prohibiting child labor and forced labor and striving to improve the level of respect for human rights and employment opportunities by means of instructions and assistance from the Head Office.
We are also collaborating with local authorities, other corporations, and external organizations to develop our activities further, and are constantly making known our message of respect for human rights to local communities.
We hope these activities will also help to fulfill our social responsibility as a corporation.
In March 2008, Mazda was awarded the Human Rights Merit Award by Japan' s Ministry of Justice and the National Federation of Consultative Assemblies of Civil Liberties Commissioners, as the first corporation to receive this award.
Mazda will continue to expand and develop its human rights protection activities to the utmost extent, based on the concept that human rights are a limitless ideal.
To fully harness the capabilities of our employees and fully bring to bear our great strength as an organization, it is important to create friendly, productive workplaces in which employees respect the human rights of their colleagues. Mazda actively promotes human rights protection based on the basic concept that people are fundamental to corporate activities.
With this in mind, Mazda enacted the Guidelines on Eliminating Sexual Harassment in 1999 and formulated the Rules to Eliminate Human Rights Violations the following year. The company has also adopted a Human Rights Declaration stating that "Mazda should strive to become the leading company in Japan for respecting human rights and for the ethical treatment of its employees," declaring that it will work for the complete elimination of human rights violations both inside and outside the company.
Mazda will strive to become the leading company in Japan for respecting human rights and for the ethical treatment of its employees
- All employees are forbidden from all violations of human rights when conducting corporate activities, whether at the workplace or elsewhere, including rights related to race, nationality, creed, gender, social standing, origin, age, physical disability or sexual preference; from sexual harassment; and from other inappropriate actions.
- Furthermore, employees are obliged to report any legal violations and maintain strict confidentiality. Employees who report violations are immune from reprisal.
- Sexual harassment is never tolerated.
- Employees who breach the guidelines will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the Company's rules, and those who report violations will be immune from reprisal.
Mazda established a Human Rights Committee in 2000 to act as a Review Board for the company' s human rights protection activities.
The company has developed a system for promoting human rights with a view to resolving issues throughout the Group. The Human Rights Enlightenment Promotion Group is responsible for leadership of the Group' s overall human rights protection activities, and a Human Rights Protection Promotion Officer is appointed for each in-house division, while all offices and domestic Group companies also assign a Human Rights Officer.
Mazda has set up 24-hour counseling desks for human rights consultations.
The company established a Female Employee Counseling Desk in 1998 and a Human Rights Counseling and Investigation Desk in 2000, operated by the Human Rights Enlightenment Promotion Group.
In counseling, a relationship of trust between the company and its employees is vital. Mazda has set out regulations mandating strict confidentiality, guaranteeing immunity from reprisals, and ensuring that no disadvantage will accrue to employees who make consultations, and offers dedicated landline and mobile phone telephone numbers, a dedicated e-mail address, and face-to-face counseling, with the aim of promptly responding to and resolving human rights issues that occur both inside and outside the company.
Mazda holds obligatory human rights training programs for all employees who are promoted in rank or general position. Currently, over 20 training programs are in place, and we also hold event-based training including human rights lecturers, as well as concerts and film screenings to promote human rights.
The company is also engaged in a variety of educational activities, with our efforts currently focused on human rights meetings attended by all employees. At plants, production lines are stopped for ten minutes once every three months, and meetings are also held every six months in divisions not directly concerned with production. These Human Rights Meetings are also being extended to Group companies in Japan and overseas.
Other efforts include a human rights motto, human rights posters, a human rights panel display, human rights cards, e-learning, the presidents' message on human rights, and buses decorated with human rights slogans. In this way, all employees have the opportunity to think about human rights, even for a short time, at least once a year.
The score on the yearly employee awareness survey is regarded as a key performance indicator (KPI) for the estimated results of such training and educational activities. If this score declines or fails to improve, activities are reviewed and measures to improve them considered.
Based on the principle of One Mazda, Mazda is expanding its activities make the entire Mazda Group into a global organization that respects human rights. Group companies in Japan and overseas periodically exchange information in efforts to create an information network. Mazda itself acts as the hub of this network, reporting serious human rights issues to top management and developing a system to enable the resolution of such problems throughout the Group.
Mazda also offers guidance and support to enable all domestic and overseas Group companies to practice high-level human rights protection activities, and is also promoting Group-wide activities from the bottom up.
In practical terms, this means providing training tools, sending lecturers, and offering guidance and support should human rights issues arise. The increased number of companies participating in Mazda' s educational programs serves as one indication of our programs' effectiveness.
Mazda (China)
Business Management &
Consulting Co., Ltd.
CSR Team Specialist
Because employees' recognition of human rights varies widely, we are aiming to increase human rights awareness. We offer continuous training to new-graduate recruits and mid-career hires, and in 2009 teamed up with the Mazda Head Office (in Hiroshima) to hold our company' s first ever human rights protection seminar (by function). As part of our system for promoting human rights protection activities, we also set up a hotline for use by all employees, and are endeavoring to ensure that they are all aware of the basic principle and how to use it.
We will continue to improve human-rights-related regulations and mechanisms while further enhancing employees' awareness of human rights, with the aim of completely eliminating human rights violations.
Vice President of Human
Resources
Mazda North American
Operations
We are developing a variety of activities to prevent all types of human rights violation, based on the three fundamental policies of zero tolerance, non-harassment, and ethical standards.
In 2008 we replaced our online tools for harassment training, and provided training to all managers and supervisors. Ethical training is provided during all orientations, and we are also working to enhance internal controls.
We are also continuing to ensure that all employees are aware that human rights violations are absolutely unacceptable.
(held November 2008 with the
local Fuchu Town government)
Mazda is aware that, as a corporation, it is also a member of society, and is collaborating with local governments, other corporations, external organizations, and others to carry out human rights protection activities.
Mazda is also involved in holding a Human Rights Festival, participating in symposia, and sending speakers to give lectures or seminars, in order to convey the message of respect for human rights in the local community.
