Employee Relations
Policy and Approach
Sunstar Group companies and employees shall endeavor to behave according to high standards of ethical conduct. The Guiding Principles for Employees were established as the basic philosophy for carrying out work duties. The Sunstar Code of Conduct (available in Japanese, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Thai, and Indonesian), states basic requirements for performance of duties and employees must conduct themselves accordingly.
Main contents of the Sunstar Code of Conduct
- Explanation of corporate philosophy
- Boldly approach your work with a strong sense of mission
- Perform your work with a positive attitude, acting respectfully and professionally at all times
- Strive to study continuously to strengthen your abilities and broaden your knowledge
- Act with a challenging spirit and cultivate your creative power
- Work together in the spirit of harmony and cooperation
- Trust others and earn their trust
- Endeavor to improve your health and overall wellness
- Value the support you receive from others and reciprocate with gratitude
- Code of conduct for members of the Board of Directors
- Responsibilities toward employees, customers, consumers, and business partners
- Financial and business obligations
- Environment, health and safety
Sunstar group employees by area
(as of December 31, 2021)
A total of 3,757 employees work at the Sunstar Group in 23 different countries. Of the Group’s workforce, 48% work in Japan, 23% in Asia, 12% in Europe, and 17% in the Americas.
Health Promotion
The Sunstar Group works to promote good health among employees, delivering the message below to our global workforce in line with a basic policy of health promotion for employees indicated in our corporate motto, Guiding Principles for Employees, and Sunstar Group Long-Term Vision 2032.
Major Initiatives
Health management centering on health guidance camps at Sunstar Mind-Body Kenkodojo (Japan)
Not only do we provide employees with comprehensive annual health check-ups, dental examinations, and follow-up care by doctors, public health nurses and dental hygienists, we also run health guidance camps at the Sunstar Mind-Body Kenkodojo in-house welfare facility for new employees and those requiring specific health guidance.
Supporting Employee Growth（Policy and Approach）
Supporting Employee Growth（Policy and Approach） We believe the key to success as an organization is partnership between management and employees whereby everyone bears an equal obligation to devote their full energy to achieving goals, whatever the results of those endeavors may be. With this in mind, we make every effort to ensure safe and sound working environments, places where employees can thrive and improve their personal skills and abilities. In addition, we have adopted a fair performance-based remuneration system that gives both employees and the organization certainty about their own achievements over time.
Outstanding ideas that stimulate growth only come about because of the tireless efforts of employees around the world, who are constantly on the lookout for new technologies, business opportunities and business methods.
We analyze current and future trends in consumer needs, hopes, ambitions and behavioral patterns and translate them into valuable information that generates business. Moreover, we have established tools to encourage employees from all areas of the organization to provide ideas and get recognized for their contribution to developing our business.
Major Initiatives
Sunstar Global Four Awards (Global)
Every year, we present awards to Sunstar Group employees across the world in recognition of activities that have made a significant contribution to the Group’s growth or corporate value based on an understanding of our corporate culture, philosophy and management policy. The aim of this initiative is to nurture ingenuity among employees and encourage them to become involved in the company’s management.
Promoting an understanding of Sunstar’s corporate culture and philosophy, and encouraging interactions between employees (Europe)
In Europe, we launched the Sunstar Connect Program for employees to deepen their understanding of Sunstar’s Corporate Philosophy and core values. As part of the program, we held the 1st regional Sunstar Value Day connectingall Sunstar sites across Europe. The programbrings the corporate motto and the guiding principlesto life. It aims to activate the principles in the daily work life and mindset of employees,to connect all independent from distance, from physical places and spacesand from job roles or generation for an inspirational work environment in all its aspects.
Company-wide summit on digital transformation (global)
The inaugural Sunstar Summit was held in 2021 for Sunstar employees around the world. World-famous experts were invited to deepen employee understanding on how digital transformation is driving business reforms, and how it is remodeling methods of thinking, working, collaborating, and communicating with colleagues, customers, consumers, and partners. The summit encouraged employees to think independently about how to improve their work styles, and to enhance their ability to create new business opportunities.
Implementing an E-Learning Platform (Europe)
Sunstar has implemented an innovative new e-learning platform in Europe. Linking up with Bookboon Learning, the platform enables employees to access self-study contents in the form of audiobooks, electronic documents, and virtual classrooms.
Enhancing opportunities for self-development (Japan)
In Japan, Sunstar is promoting diverse employee education programs, with the twin aims of ensuring the wellbeing of both individual employees and of the company organization as a whole, and of transforming its workforce into an autonomous and highly competitive group of professionals. Sunstar is seeking to create a corporate environment that facilitates innovation; to this end, the company is developing educational programs for self-development, so that employees can proactively bring about change with high levels of ambition and expertise.
Diversity and Equal Opportunities（Policy and Approach）
We will provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and job applicants, supporting each and every individual with thorough policies and ongoing efforts to ensure equality in the workplace. We do not tolerate any discrimination on the basis of race, color of skin, religion, gender, age, nationality, citizenship, disabilities, or marital status. We also demand the same standards from our customers and business partners. Sunstar complies with all applicable laws that guarantee equal employment opportunities and the elimination of discrimination in the employment.
Global gender equality ratios per career level
(as of December 31, 2021)
Female employees make up 38% of Sunstar’s total global workforce; they account for 24% of management positions, and 11% of executive positions.
All employees
Managers
Executives
Major Initiatives
Effort to diversify workstyle（Europe, Asia, Japan）
Sunstar is promoting employee wellbeing and workstyles innovation – for example recommending work-from-home once a week, setting flexible work schedules during the summer time, and more. In Switzerland, Singapore, and Japan, we are promoting a culture of diversity and inclusion for example by providing specific training opportunities for all.
Respect of diverse values（Asia）
At Sunstar, we work to honor diversity and respect different customs and values. In Indonesia, we have a prayer room within the office for Muslim employees. We have also established buildings equipped with a multi-purpose room, which can be used both as prayer room and as a meeting room.
In Singapore, where multinational employees work, we hold employee trainings and workshops every year to improve internal communication as part of our effort to promote diversity and inclusion.
Labor-management councils and roundtable conferences (Global)
In Japan, we hold regular meetings intended to foster cooperation between labor and management and encourage inclusive company management in which everyone plays a part. During these meetings, participants discuss solutions to business challenges and ways to improve workplaces.
We have similar frameworks in other countries to match systems specific to those nations.
Creating a Workplace to Increase Employee Productivity and Happiness（Policy and Approach）
We will strengthen our sense of unity and build a robust business foundation by transcending individual positions and roles, as well as nationality, customs and language, to collectively pursue the goals of the Group while engaging in free and frank communication, oriented toward learning what we can from the world and expressing it in our own action. Management will make every effort to enhance workplaces to foster a strong atmosphere of trust where we come together as partners.
Major Initiatives
Implementation of flexible work styles, including work from home (Global)
To enhance employee well-being and raise work productivity, we apply a variety of work styles, including flexible work hours and working from home.
New system launched to enhance employee comfort and rewarding work (Japan)
From January 2021, work-from-home and full-flexible work schedules with no core hours have been officially implemented at all Group companies in Japan. We support diverse work styles, including the adoption of free dress code and a free seating system in the office. In 2022, an employee engagement survey was launched, and we have started initiatives to improve job fulfillment.
Employee assistance programs (Europe, Americas)
We provide support, counseling, referrals and resources for issues that impact the lives of employees and their families in Europe and the Americas. In addition, seminars and webinars have been conducted on a range of topics including diversity and inclusion, conflict resolution, managing workplace stress and other work/life issues.
In addition, we also continue to hold webinars to help employees maintain good communication with each other and share ideas for improving work efficiency even when they are primarily working from home under COVID-19 situation.
