We consider employees to be one of the key capitals (human capital) at the source of value creation for the SuMi TRUST Group. We also believe them to be the stakeholders to whom the Group delivers direct impacts. In line with the Group's Basic Policy for Personnel Affairs Management and driven by the two-pronged approach of bolstering human resources and maintaining workplace environments based on our principles of diversity, equity and inclusion, we aim to improve the skills of our workforce to deliver total solutions and contribute to the enhancement of corporate value.

Basic Policy for Personnel Affairs Management
Status of the Group of Personnel that Provides Comprehensive Solutions Bolster Human Resources Maintaining Workplace Environments

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Guided by the SuMi TRUST Group's management principles (mission), we seek to harness the diversity and creativity of each and every individual - the very concept behind diversity, equity and inclusion - and our Basic Policy for Personnel Affairs Management aims to add value to the organization by making full use of the diversity and creativity of all employees. The business model of a trust bank group should aim to offer added value to its clients by leveraging the breadth of diversity throughout the organization. While we have always believed in respecting diversity as an organization, we consider it vital that our employees reaffirm the strengths of the Group so that we can continue to enhance our diversity. SuMi TRUST Holdings and SuMi TRUST Bank have each established a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Office (D& Office) within the Human Resources Department. SuMi TRUST Bank's DE&I Office comprises dedicated employees from the Human Resources Department and business supervising departments. In addition to promoting the diversification of work styles for individual employees, the DE&I Office implements measures that best suit the situation of each business with the aim of enhancing corporate value.

Bolstering Human Resource

The SuMi TRUST Group Human Resources Development Policy
HR development No.1 + HR participation No.1

(1) Skill-Raising Human Resource Assignment and OJT*

The SuMi TRUST Group views OJT as the foundation for human resource development. We also focus on assigning employees to roles that awaken their passion for growth and allow them to display their abilities to the maximum extent. In fiscal year 2018, SuMi TRUST Bank introduced a program that enables younger employees to experience multiple work domains within a fixed period. We are also advancing initiatives such as a trust internship program aimed at developing human resources who possess a "high degree of expert knowledge in trust operations" and a "deep understanding of the fiduciary spirit."

*OJT: On-the-Job Training. OJT is a process whereby workplace supervisors and senior employees teach subordinates the knowledge, skills, and duties required of them via their daily tasks.

(2) Enhancing Training and Other Off-JT* Programs

The SuMi TRUST Group has established the SuMiTRUST University to offer group training with the objective of improving employee business skills and management abilities. In addition, many opportunities in the self-development programs encourage employees to continue improving their skills. The company's president serves as the dean of SuMiTRUST University, while the executive officer in charge of the Human Resources Department and an external expert serve as vice deans. The university is a group-wide program that also receives advice regarding management from the graduate school of Hitotsubashi University. From FY2020 we plan to turn SuMiTRUST University into a platform through which employees can discover their own appetite for learning, connect with others around them, and learn from each other. We also intend to enhance the content offered and strengthen the university's infrastructure so that it is more user-friendly.

*Off-the-job training: Workshops, training, and other methods are utilized to provide employees with the knowledge and skills that cannot be acquired through OJT.

(3) Enhancing Leadership

SuMi TRUST Bank offers a program to develop next-generation executive candidates in cooperation with Hitotsubashi University's Graduate Programs. Candidates receive instruction on the values, general liberal arts knowledge, and MBA elements they need for management, and through sessions and courses, they complete the program by presenting a proposal to senior executives. The Bank also provides a leadership development program for female employees to step up to management through various rank-based training. After the employees complete their training, operations are conducted such as providing them with opportunities to practice what they have learned during training in a variety of environments, primarily through promotion and job rotation.

(4) Fair Evaluations and Treatment

Fair and just evaluations and treatment in accordance with abilities, roles, and results form the basis of SuMi TRUST Bank's performance evaluation system. The system used is based on a participatory model, in which employees communicate closely with their supervisors on a daily basis to establish and review specific goals. The process focuses not only issues related to the performance of duties, but formulates and provides feedback on future career development. Also, as a means of obtaining a multifaceted view of personnel, we have introduced an anonymous survey through which subordinates and others can rate the day-to-day management actions of line managers (general managers, deputy general managers, section managers, etc.). By conducting this survey, we can encourage management action reform and foster a culture of interactive communication.

Upholding Positive Workplace Environments

Declaration on Work Style Reform

The SuMi TRUST Group hereby declares it a top commitment to offer a workplace where the diversity and creativity of its employees are more fully utilized to add value to the organization and where employees can have pride and be highly motivated in fulfilling their missions. The Group as a whole will work towards the following goals.

  • 1.
    Achieving diverse work styles and work-life balance
  • 2.
    Supporting health improvement through measures such as boosting health awareness and appropriately managing work hours
  • 3.
    Providing opportunities for all employees to grow while participating actively with motivation

Through the enthusiastic work of each individual employee, we will continue to be a corporate group that contributes to the benefit of clients and is useful to society.

(1) Optimizing Work Styles

With the aim of achieving diverse work styles and work-life balance, SuMi TRUST Holdings actively develops workplace environments in which employees can work at ease and still maintain a good balance between work and personal life. In addition to enhancing its various systems related to childbirth and childcare, including encouraging male employees to take childcare leave (103.2% of eligible male employees took childcare leave in FY2019), SuMi TRUST Bank introduced a new leave system in FY2019 to help employees balance cancer treatment and work.

This fiscal year too we will continue to reduce the volume of work at our branches mainly by expanding the functionality of our internal systems. A reduction in work volume means we can reassign employees with the capacity for an increase in workload to strategic areas and further broaden client interaction by streamlining functions across multiple branches.

(2) Health Management

The SuMi TRUST Group's active initiatives to promote better physical and mental health of all Group employees have been recognized for the sixth year running with our selection in the White 500 as an organization having outstanding health and productivity management. With regard to physical health, we provide health examinations every year and make reexaminations mandatory. The Human Resources Department and others follow up on every individual to ensure that everyone who requires treatment at a healthcare institution receives it. From FY2020 we plan to focus our efforts more than ever before on health guidance and with the establishment of health promotion centers and other pieces of infrastructure, we will endeavor to engage in a style of health and productivity management befitting of the age of 100-year life. With regard to mental health, we provide line management-based care and carry out stress checks once a year. Group results are provided to the employees' union, and we discuss improvements in workplace environments and make efforts to further improve them.

Specific initiatives

  • Establish and adhere to rules for taking breaks between work shifts
  • Thoroughly implement attendance management and prevent overwork among all Group employees
  • Prohibit smoking in all buildings

(3) A Culture that Fosters Motivation and Job Satisfaction

The SuMi TRUST Group has always encouraged activities that create opportunities for learning, such as circles formed by groups both in-house and outside, and has regularly held lectures by outside instructors. SuMi TRUST Bank encourages employees to independently and voluntarily shape their own careers through changes in job position or through an internal job-posting system. Since fiscal year 2018, we have promoted activities for employees to shape their own futures, which solicit ideas from employees for the creation of new businesses and services. We received a total of 267 ideas from 499 employees group-wide in fiscal year 2019, which has helped improve employee motivation. In order to spread and maintain this culture, it is essential to have good bi-directional dialogue between executives and employees. SuMi TRUST Bank held 31 consultation meetings and informal meetings between union and management in fiscal year 2019. The Bank also uses occasions when employees gather, such as rank-based training, as opportunities for discussion and questions about management policies, leadership, and other topics by the president and other executives.

Human Rights

(1) Human Rights Management

Basic philosophy

The SuMi TRUST Group's human rights management is based on the "Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights," which was adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council in June 2011. We have established the Human Rights Policy along with the Basic Policy on the Social Responsibility of Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group (Sustainability Policy) to respect the human rights of all stakeholders.

Human rights management system based on the guiding principles for business and human rights

The SuMi TRUST Group works to improve the quality of its human rights management in a PDCA cycle, in order to foster a corporate culture and workplace environment that respects the basic human rights of all stakeholders, by respecting individual human rights and diverse values, while eliminating discrimination. The SuMi TRUST Group has not had any cases of infringement of human rights in the past three years.

Commitment Establishment of the Human Rights Policy.
Implementation of human rights due diligence*1 Once a year, the Human Rights Due Diligence Self-check List*2 is distributed to all branches, departments, and affiliates both at home and abroad as a tool to check the status of respect for human rights at each unit.
Access to redress The Personnel Consultation Desk in the Human Resources Department serves as a contact point.
  • *1Human rights due diligence refers to a series of initiatives to identify actual or potential impacts on human rights, resulting from the activities of the Group or related outside parties, to develop measures for the prevention or mitigation of such impacts, and to continuously verify and disclose the effectiveness of such measures.
  • *2A check list serves to verify the progress in each department concerned with the Human Rights Management System, such as the status of implementation of human rights due diligence, compliance with the Human Rights Policy, and occurrence of human rights violations.

Human Rights Due Diligence Liaison Committee

The Human Rights Due Diligence Liaison Committee, chaired by the head of the Sustainability Management Department of the Corporate Planning Department, was established as a joint organization by SuMi TRUST Holdings and SuMi TRUST Bank. The committee investigates how human rights are being addressed at all Group companies, including overseas entities, identifies issues and risks that need to be addressed, and discusses and implements measures for improvement. Based on discussions by the committee, the Corporate Planning Department formulates objectives and plans for the development and reinforcement of the framework of initiatives, and the Human Rights Education Committee chaired by the Head of Human Resources engages in the formulation and implementation of various training programs and education activities concerning human rights issues at all Group companies, branches, and departments.

Training aimed at raising awareness about human rights was held at 261 departments in FY2019. Together with lectures delivered during rank-based training sessions, 403 hours in total were dedicated to human rights, reaching 24,177 participants.

*Refer to pages 160-161 in our 2019/2020 ESG Report for more information on human rights due diligence.

(2) Protecting Various Human Rights

Initiatives to address Dowa and foreign residents issues

The SuMi TRUST Group regards tackling discrimination against the Dowa caste as a particularly important theme in the promotion of human rights education, and has worked to completely eliminate prejudiced or discriminatory views against the Dowa caste. With regard to foreign residents issues, we make all employees aware of giving consideration to the human rights of foreign residents, including the handling of personal authentication documents and respecting privacy.

Prevention of sexual harassment and power harassment

Actions such as sexual harassment and power harassment are prohibited at the SuMi TRUST Group. In the event harassment does occur, advice is sought and complaints are registered via the Harassment Prevention Committee representative in each branch and department, or directly by the Personnel Consultation Desk (LGBTQ Consultation Desk) within the Human Resources Department. Stringent corrective measures or punishment are implemented against the perpetrators.

The Personnel Consultation Desk (LGBTQ Consultation Desk) responds to various consultations related to human rights and, in cases where a negative impact on human rights is evident, cooperates with the related departments to promptly take measures as needed. In fiscal year 2022, the Personnel Consultation Desk received 93 consultations, of which 32 were situations involving concerns about human rights violations, including harassment. 15 of these situations remain unresolved, and we are working with the related departments to settle these cases.

Initiatives to prevent discrimination against LGBTQ people

We strive to ensure thorough prevention of discrimination against sexual minorities such as LGBTQ in hiring or performing their work. Our Personnel Consultation Desk (LGBTQ Consultation Desk) addresses this issue as an ally (supporter).

Investments and loans related to cluster bombs

The SuMi TRUST Group refuses to provide loans to foreign or domestic companies that produce cluster bombs, which are recognized as a weapon raising strong humanitarian concerns.

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