Basic Policy

In an environment where the working population continues to decline, the Group considers that securing human resources to support its medium/long-term business strategy and increasing the value of each employee are the urgent issues to be addressed as our management challenges. We will strengthen recruitment activities while enriching our recruitment methods and tools. At the same time, we increase engagement by promoting DE&I by creating a system which enables diverse work styles. In order to realize “Our Ideal State in 2030”, we will promote initiatives to strengthen the foundation of human capital management, which is a core element of enhancing corporate value through sustainable growth.

Initiatives on human resource strategy

Trends in the number of hires (employees)

Talent Acquisition

Securing skilled human resources is essential for the Group’s business growth amid a declining working population.
While improving recruitment capabilities by increasing salaries and the recognition of the Company, expanding recruitment methods, and reviewing the personnel system, we are actively engaging in recruitment activities to secure and retain excellent human resources.

Initiatives to improve corporate brand recognition

Corporate brand recognition is increasingly important for receiving applications from job seekers and having them accept job offers.
Accordingly, we actively implement various measures for improving corporate brand recognition, as our BtoB business is not familiar to the general public.

Introduction of a support system for scholarship refunds

For the purposes of enhancing recruitment and stabilizing employment of career-track employees, we established a support system for scholarship refunds.
Employees who have joined our company in April 2026 or later are eligible, and we offer up to 3.6 million yen to each career-track employee in the technical field and up to 2.4 million yen to each career-track employee in the clerical field.
By supporting employees in scholarship refund, we have established an environment where employees can work with peace of mind for a long period of time.
We will continue the development of systems that would help retain employees.

Introduction of a referral hiring system

In April 2025, we introduced a referral hiring system to recruit reliable talent through employee referrals and improve recruitment performance.
We expect that this system will not only enhance our recruitment capability, but also raise the retention rate.

Improvement of working conditions including compensation

We believe that it is important to improve working conditions of employees in order to realize a virtuous cycle of securing human resources, investing in human capital, and achieving business growth.
Through spring labor offensive, we realized a base pay increase for five consecutive years until 2026.

Strengthening the brand for recruitment

Considering that our website, which provides the first contact point with job seekers, needs to have a sufficient volume of information and be easy to use, we established a special website for recruitment in the technical, clerical, and research positions in December 2024.
In 2025, we created a website for recruiting skilled workers who engage in factory operation, facility management, etc. and are making efforts to create the website for recruitment more detailed by linking it with our leaflet for hiring factory workers.

Creating Human Added Value

Recognizing human resources as the source of our competitiveness, we will create added value by providing education and training through mainly on-the-job training and growth opportunities.

Active participation of women (training for female leaders)

In 2016, we established a Committee for the Promotion of the Active Participation by Women. Since then, we have continued to improve our in-house systems, provide training, and raise awareness through in-house public relations. Currently, we have set a target of increasing the ratio of female managers to 2% by 2027 in order to reflect diverse opinions in management. In 2024, we provided training for female leaders who were the candidates for the management. Currently, the ratio of female managers is 1.6%.

Study program at educational institutions in Japan (study at a junior college of industrial technology)

We have established a study program at educational institutions in Japan with the aim of developing human resources useful for the Company’s operations.

DC&M activities

Maintaining and improving practical capacities is essential to the sustainable growth of a company. Therefore, we have formulated an education and training plan to acquire skills and techniques related to manufacturing and equipment, and competence evaluations are conducted upon completion. Furthermore, with the goal of achieving “continuous improvement” and creating an “autonomous and strong workplace” that promotes growth, we are developing DC&M (Denko Circle & Management) activities on a company-wide scale, which are small-group initiatives with increased active management involvement.

Dialogues between managers and the President & CEO

Since 2024, we have been holding a dialogue between the President & CEO and all managers twice a year, in spring and fall. In 2025, managers prepared reports in advance on the theme of “issues to address for realizing ‘Our Ideal State’ and questions to the President & CEO,” attended the dialogue with the President & CEO, and exchanged opinions in each group. In April 2026, we set up a camp in which all executives had discussions based on the reports submitted by managers, for the purpose of brushing up our organizational competitiveness to realize “Our Ideal State in 2030”. In parallel with these efforts, we are promoting information sharing and active communication through dialogue at each workplace and level.

Trends in education and training expenses (million yen)

Strengthening the Foundation of Human Capital Management

In order to strengthen the foundation of human capital management, we are working on well-being management and diversity promotion through DE&I, work-style reform, and engagement. We are also developing systems and environments in which each employee can play an active role to create a workplace where diverse human resources can work with peace of mind.

Well-being management

Flexible work style

The Company is promoting a flexible work style with no restrictions on time and place. For clerical staff, we have adopted a flex-time work system and a telecommuting system. We have also established a career return system that allows employees who have left the Company due to childbirth, childcare, nursing care, or relocation of their spouses to re-join the Company.

• Telecommuting system
• Flex-time work system
• Career return system

Balancing work with childcare and nursing care

Following the “Kurumin” certification in 2019 and 2021, we have improved the support both for work and childcare further. Our childcare leave program exceeds legal standard, and our childcare leave is partly paid continually. We have also provided explanations about this system to not only employees, but also their superiors, to deepen their understanding of childcare leave and shortened working hour systems. Through these efforts, we are fostering an environment for facilitating the use of these systems. In addition, employees are required to take 6 or more days of annual paid leave every year, which exceeds legal standard, to promote the use of annual paid leave. The annual paid leave utilization rate in 2025 was 78.6%. Furthermore, we are making efforts to reduce overtime hours by specifying overtime-free days, and set a day for a leave to participate in children’s school events, in order to improve the work-life balance of each employee. In addition, we continued training for deepening the understanding of diversity and workstyles, to enhance each employee’s awareness and foster a workplace climate for mutual support. Through the repetition of such initiatives, our support for work-life balance advanced further from the time of acquisition of the “Kurumin” certification, and we obtained the “Platinum Kurumin” certification in February 2026. We will make efforts to balance work and childcare further.

• System for taking paid leave on a half-day basis and mandatory use of six days per year
• Childcare leave program that goes beyond the legal requirements (partially paid)
• Shortened working hours for childcare (until the end of the third year of elementary school) and work restrictions (overtime, late at night, etc.)
• Allowances for babysitting fees
• Special leave for caring for a child (paid, up to 10 days)
• Special leave for attending children’s school events (paid, up to 3rd grade)
• Nursing care leave program (period of nursing-care leave: 1 year) and leave for nursing (paid, up to 10 days)

Mental and physical health care

We provide allowances for medical checkups and follow up on the results so that employees can work in good physical and mental health and maximize their performance.

• Subsidizing the cost of complete physical examinations in addition to health checkups
• Full subsidies for specific health checkups that lead to early treatment of female-specific cancer diseases
• Full subsidies for the cost of influenza vaccinations
• Implementing a stress check (establishment of a system to promptly conduct interviews with an industrial physician when it is determined that the worker is overworked)
• Establishing an external consultation service consisting of a group of specialists as a stress reduction measure
• Allowing employees suffering from mental illness to see an industrial physician during a leave of absence or when returning to work
• Adopting a trial work system for employees returning to work after a leave of absence

We recognize that the employment of people with disabilities is an important social issue; therefore we strive to promote employment and develop a comfortable working environment. In addition, the Group cooperates with support facilities for people with disabilities and outsources production tasks that can be conducted inside the facilities to those who have difficulty in working outside, thus providing opportunities for occupational training and actual work.
Such outsourcing is also indispensable in the Group’s production system, so we will maintain the cooperative relationship.

Respecting Human Rights

We recognize that compliance with laws and regulations and respect for human rights are not only social responsibilities companies must fulfill, but also essential ethical standards in realizing our management philosophy. Based on this belief, we have formulated the “Nippon Denko Group’ Basic Policy on Human Rights.” By creating an open workplace that respects human rights, we aim to be a company in which each employee, regardless of gender, nationality, or educational background, can make the most of his or her individuality and strengths and diverse human resources maximize their various attractions.