Human Rights
Policy and Approach
At Sunstar, respect for human rights is fundamental to how we operate as a global company. Guided by our corporate purpose — helping people everywhere achieve better health and enhance their quality of life — we are committed to conducting business responsibly, ethically, and with respect for people across our operations and value chain.
We recognize our responsibility to respect internationally recognized human rights and to identify, prevent, and address potential adverse impacts linked to our activities, products, and business relationships.
Our approach is guided by internationally recognized frameworks and principles, including:
- United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)
- International Labour Organization (ILO) Core Conventions
- OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
Our commitments
We are committed to:
- Providing safe, healthy, and respectful working environments
- Promoting diversity, inclusion, and equal opportunity
- Prohibiting child labor, forced labor, and modern slavery
- Respecting freedom of association and collective bargaining
- Upholding fair working conditions and ethical business conduct
- Supporting responsible sourcing practices across our supply chain
- Protecting consumer health, safety, and privacy
Responsible sourcing and business partners
We expect our suppliers and business partners to share our commitment to responsible and ethical business practices.
Our expectations for suppliers and business partners are outlined in our:
- Business Partner Code of Conduct
- Supplier Due Diligence and assessment processes
These processes support our efforts to identify and address environmental, social, and human rights risks within our value chain.
Governance and due diligence
Human rights considerations are integrated into our ESG governance, risk management, and sustainability activities. We continue to strengthen our human rights due diligence processes, including supplier engagement, risk assessments, and corrective action approaches.
Speaking up and grievance mechanisms
We encourage employees and stakeholders to raise concerns related to misconduct, unethical behavior, or human rights issues. We are committed to maintaining processes that support confidentiality, accountability, and non-retaliation.
Continuous improvement
We recognize that respecting human rights is an ongoing journey. We continuously review and improve our policies, processes, and practices based on stakeholder dialogue, evolving regulations, international standards, and industry best practices.
Major Initiatives
Human rights seminars (Japan, Europe, USA)
In Japan, human rights seminars are held every year for new recruits, new managers and plant employees. During these sessions, employees are taught the importance of human rights, basic background knowledge of human rights and an overview of human rights issues affecting companies, such as discrimination, sexual harassment, workplace bullying, and child labor at production subcontractors.
In Europe and the United States, compliance training has become mandatory since 2020. The program also covers human rights issues such as equal opportunities and non-discrimination regulations.