RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Mazda views human rights as fundamental to its corporate activities. The Company does not tolerate human rights violations of any kind in its corporate activities, both inside and outside the Company, including discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, nationality, faith, gender, social status, family origin, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Based on this policy, in August 2023 the Company established the Mazda Human Rights Policy. In formulating this policy, the Company prepared a draft through discussion with domestic and overseas Group companies, and this draft was reported to and approved by the Board of Directors. Going forward, the Company will continue to pursue coordination and update this policy as necessary. It will also strive to spread awareness and understanding of the policy.

Mazda Human Rights Policy

Even prior to formulating the Mazda Human Rights Policy, Mazda had defined its policy in this area and the standards of behavior it expected of its employees and promoted related initiatives based on fundamental international principles. The rules and guidelines are revised as needed according to amendments made to laws as well as circumstances inside and outside the Company. 

■1999: The Guidelines for Eliminating Sexual Harassment was established (name later changed to Guidelines to Eliminate Human Rights Violations)

■2000: The Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations, which prohibit any activities that may infringe on an employee’s human rights in corporate activities inside or outside the Company were established and included the provisions prohibiting discrimination against homosexual individuals included from the start. 

■2012: The Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations were revised to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or other traits. 

■2017: The Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations were revised to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity along with sexual orientation. 

■2020: Mazda working regulations were revised to ensure that employees are treated fairly in terms of holidays, allowances, and other conditions regardless of legal marriage or marriage without registration, whether it be same gender or opposite gender. Also, the Guidelines to Eliminate Human Rights Violations were revised according to revisions to harassment-related laws. 

■2021: The Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations were revised according to revisions to harassment-related laws so that the definition of power harassment conforms to the definition in the relevant laws. 

The Guidelines to Eliminate Human Rights Violations and the Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations are posted on the Company’s intranet and are made known to employees through educational and training programs.

The Human Rights Committee, comprising executive officers and division general managers, deliberates on human rights activities, and based on their decisions the Human Resources Division promotes human rights protection activities and resolves issues throughout the Group. Each division manager leads the division’s activities as the human rights promotion officer at Mazda, while the person in charge of human rights leads activities at each Mazda business location as well as at Group companies in Japan and overseas. At Group companies in Japan, a network has been established to exchange opinions on a regular basis. Serious human rights violations identified through the network are reported to executive officers and other management-level members of Mazda, providing a framework that enables the implementation of Groupwide solutions. Moreover, twice a year, the Global Employee survey is conducted to check the progress in human rights protection activities in each region around the world and confirm whether there is any problem to be addressed or not. The results of the survey are fed back to each management and improvement measures are taken as needed.

In regard to suppliers, Mazda seeks to establish a supply chain in which suppliers are also required to fulfill their social responsibilities in the area of respect for human rights based on the Mazda Supplier Sustainability Guidelines. Furthermore, the Company actively collaborates with local governments, companies, and other external organizations to implement human rights protection activities for local communities. Such activities include participation in community human rights events and exchanges of opinion with human rights organizations.

Human Rights Promotion Framework 

In line with its One Mazda concept, Mazda is committed to promoting human rights activities in its Group companies. Based on the basic principles stated in the Mazda Human Rights Declaration and with reference to the Rules for Eliminating Human Rights Violations and the Guidelines to Eliminate Human Rights Violations, Group companies in Japan and overseas are maintaining a set of rules and guidelines that take into account the conditions in each country where they are applied. Through these efforts, the Company strives to protect human rights at all companies throughout the Group. There is also regular information exchange between human rights officers at Mazda and each Group company. Depending on the circumstances of the particular company, the Company may also take steps such as providing training/education tools or dispatching instructors. Since FY March 2017, the Company has been supporting Group companies in establishing a system for human rights training and providing materials of Mazda’s Human Rights Meetings to Group companies. The Company also responds to human rights consultations from employees of Group companies via the Human Rights Counseling Desk, the Female Employee Counseling Desk, and the Mazda Global Hotline. 

Mazda has established a Human Rights Counseling Desk and a Female Employee Counseling Desk to appropriately respond to human rights consultations from employees, through providing advice and supporting early relief from human rights violations. For more than 10 years, the counseling desks have responded to consultations from sexual minority (LGBTQ+) employees and, working with workplaces, have continued to provide support. Mazda has set out regulations mandating strict confidentiality, guaranteeing immunity from reprisals, and ensuring that no disadvantage will accrue to employees who request consultations. Counseling is offered in various forms, such as face-to-face, by telephone, or by email. The Company promptly responds to consultations, with the goal of rapidly improving the work environment for the affected employee, while taking any necessary measures against the relevant violator based on factual inquiry. The Company also offers the necessary support to ensure respect for human rights throughout the entire workplace, through the abovementioned counseling desks. For example, these desks offer advice on workplace culture improvement to the employee’s supervisor and provide counseling and advice for the employees and other persons concerned.

Mazda carries out various initiatives to eliminate human rights violations. In case a problem involving human rights violations occurs, the Company discloses the case on its intranet as an example of disciplinary action, and conducts educational and awareness-raising activities in order to prevent a recurrence. The Company records the results of handling these cases and manages in accordance with the stipulated procedure and reports to the Human Rights Committee. These records are used to formulate more effective Companywide policies and to prevent the recurrence of similar problems. 

Mazda proactively and regularly provides awareness-raising activities and education on human rights, targeting all executive officers and employees. In March 2008, recognized for these initiatives and other human rights protection activities, the Company became the first corporation in Japan to be awarded the Human Rights Merit Award by Japan’s Ministry of Justice and the National Federation of Consultative Assemblies of Civil Liberties Commissioners. 

Human Rights Training*
■Collective training

Mazda conducts mandatory human rights training programs for employees when they newly join the company and when they are promoted in rank or position. The Company also conducts event-based training such as human rights lectures for executive officers and senior managers. In addition, the Company conducts training programs that are customized to each department in response to its specific needs. 

■ In-house awareness training for sexual minority issues

In FY March 2017, Mazda started to organize training programs and lectures to promote understanding of sexual minority issues. In 2017, in-house lectures were held by experts invited from outside the Group, while in 2020, Mazda informed all employees about its internal systems, procedures, and consultation desks related to sexual minorities.

■ Human rights mini-lectures and other information offered via the Company's intranet 

Mazda seeks to raise human rights awareness via human rights mini-lectures through intranet and e-learning programs to ensure that all employees have a shared understanding regarding power harassment and sexual harassment. In addition, management is provided with training on avoiding harassment. 

Examples of Human Rights Mini-Lecture Topics

Senior Management’s Message During Human Rights Week*

The Company’s senior management sends a message to all employees every year during Human Rights Week, in conjunction with Human Rights Day on December 10, to remind them of the importance of respecting human rights.

Human Rights Meetings*

Mazda holds regular meetings (four times a year) at each workplace on familiar topics to help employees think for themselves about human rights and form their own insights. 

Other Human Rights Education Activities*

Mazda has held human rights slogan competitions and established a special website on its human rights protection activities.

* These activities are only conducted at Mazda Motor Corporation.

From the perspective of human rights due diligence* and in accordance with the Mazda Human Rights Policy, Mazda recognizes that it must identify factors that could negatively affect human rights in its business activities, introduce systems that assign priority levels to these factors, and continuously work to prevent, reduce, rectify, or remedy these issues. The Company works to this end and is expanding the scope of its initiatives to include Group companies and suppliers both in Japan and elsewhere. 

* Human rights due diligence involves continuous implementation of a cycle of procedures to identify, prevent, and reduce adverse impacts on human rights in a company’s business activities.

In FY March 2024, Mazda began partnering with third-party non-profit organization Caux Round Table (CRT) Japan to advance human rights due diligence initiatives and refine its corrective and remediation measures for responding to human rights issues in line with the value chain. Groupwide coordination is being practiced globally as part of these initiatives. In addition, the Company is advancing phased human rights due diligence activities and corrective and remediation processes based on the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and with emphasis placed on engagement with rights holders.*  The Company is thereby developing a human rights management system that incorporates with the board members. Progress on the above processes will be disclosed appropriately on Mazda’s corporate website. 

In March 2024, Mazda invited CRT Japan’s Hiroshi Ishida to lead a lecture for executive officers on the theme of business and human rights. This lecture served as an opportunity to re-realize the importance of human rights initiatives given recent changes to the operating environment for companies. Moreover, Mazda arranged a human rights due diligence risk assessment workshop on the theme of business and human rights in April 2024 with the facilitation of CRT Japan. This workshop was attended by managements from various areas of the Company, with a total of 40 participants from 33 internal departments and the Group companies additionally. Based on discussions among the workshop attendees, the Company identified potential human rights themes in the Mazda Group and its supply chain. During FY March 2025, the Company will carry out human rights impact assessments, with the cooperation of CRT Japan, to verify risks and assess the impacts in relation to the identified material human rights themes base on the direct communication with the rights-holders. The necessary measures will be taken based on these assessments. 

* To building trust with people who have human rights through direct engagement. 

Overview of Human Rights Due Diligence Activities 

Source: CRT lecture materials

Identification of Human Rights Issues

Human rights issues connected to suppliers* are clearly specified in the Mazda Supplier Sustainability Guidelines, and Mazda requires all business partners to adhere to its efforts to respect human rights.

* Mazda has identified nine human rights issues suppliers should work on: abolition of discrimination, respect for human rights, prohibition of child labor, prohibition of forced labor, non-use of conflict minerals or any other raw materials that may cause social issues, wages, working hours, dialogue with employees, and safe and healthy working environments.

Mazda Supplier Sustainability Guidelines

Initiative Self-Diagnosis and Questionnaire

In the Mazda Supplier Sustainability Guidelines, all suppliers are asked to diagnose their own efforts from the perspective of tracking of conditions, systems, impact prevention measures, in-house awareness raising, and regular monitoring. From the perspective of remediation, the guidelines also clearly detail the Mazda Global Hotline, which has been set up for whistleblowing if an issue is discovered or as a communications hotline to discuss responses. In terms of evaluations of the effectiveness of such initiatives, the yearly questionnaire for suppliers verifies that they are appropriately carrying out the self-diagnosis described above.

【Statistics from FY March 2024】

No identified issues related to human rights initiatives or other matters

Responsible Mineral Procurement Efforts

Mazda understands that conflict minerals* are among the most serious social issues in its supply chains. This is especially true given how these minerals can result in human rights violations and illegal mining in conflict-affected regions as well as funding of armed groups. The Company therefore aims not to use conflict minerals or any other raw materials that may cause social issues. This commitment is clearly defined in the Mazda Supplier Sustainability Guidelines, which all suppliers are instructed to follow. In addition, based on requests from companies to which Mazda supplies vehicles, the Company conducts conflict minerals surveys of suppliers from which the Company orders components or materials used in the finished supplied vehicles. For the surveys, the Company uses the format designated by the Responsible Business Alliance (Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition).

【Statistics from FY March 2024】

Conflict minerals surveys administered to approx. 300 suppliers.

* Conflict minerals are defined as minerals and derivative metals designated by the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Section 1502) that are sourced from and used as financial sources for armed groups in conflict-affected regions in the Democratic Republic of Congo or adjoining countries (regulated minerals: tantalum, tin, tungsten, and gold). Under this act, listed U.S. companies are obliged to report that no conflict materials are used in their products.