Balancing Work and Childcare / Nursing Care Responsibilities
Creating a System That Allows Employees to Continue Their Careers
The Cosmo Energy Group has introduced a variety of programs to ensure that employees can work in a physically and mentally healthy state, while balancing work and family responsibilities at various stages of their lives.
Beyond these institutional programs, we have established the Cosmo Work Style Guidelines and encourage employees to choose the work style that suits their own personal situation and work duties, whether that be flextime, teleworking, or another modality.
Employees giving birth or raising children can use a childcare leave system with partial pay that exceeds the legal requirement, and also take advantage of options such as shorter working hours and teleworking. We also encourage these employees to take other types of leave, such as special occasion paid leave for a child’s first birthday, and childcare leave when a child falls ill, which can be taken until the child graduates from elementary school.
As part of our efforts to support caregivers, we strive to boost caregiver literacy by holding nursing care seminars and distributing our Nursing Care Handbook to ensure that employees are able to balance their work and nursing care responsibilities without having to leave their jobs when faced with caregiving challenges. We have also set up a Nursing Care Consultation Hotline in the Human Resource Department to foster an environment in which employees feel free to ask for help.
*1 Fiscal 2019-2021
*2 Fiscal 2023 results
Support Programs for Balancing Childcare and Work
| Programs Based on Legally Mandated Standards |
|---|
| Postpartum leave |
| Time during the workday for childcare responsibilities (for women only) |
| Restrictions on overtime and late-night work |
| Company-Specific Support Programs That Exceed Legal Requirements |
| Maternity leave |
| Childcare leave (until the end of the fiscal year when the child reaches age 3) *Partial pay (conditions apply) |
| Shorter working hours for childcare reasons (until the child enters grade 4 of elementary school) |
| Leave for childcare / nursing care |
| Paternity leave (for men only) |
| Special occasion leave |
| Special leave when the employee’s spouse is transferred to a distant location |
| Reemployment system for childcare reasons |
| Teleworking |
| Limited work location system |
| Assistance for accessing childcare facilities (licensed and other daycare centers, babysitters) |
| Childcare leave benefits (Cosmo Oil Mutual Aid Association) |
| Consultation service for finding daycare |
| Support for balancing career and childcare needs |
| Babysitter coupons and other related benefits |
System for Maternity, Postpartum and Childcare Leave
Benefits and Loans
During maternity leave (before and after childbirth), the Cosmo Energy Group Health Insurance Society provides a maternity allowance equivalent to two-thirds of the standard daily wage. In addition, while on childcare leave, employees receive 30% of their base salary from the Cosmo Oil Mutual Aid Association on top of the childcare leave benefits provided by employment insurance. Loans from the Cosmo Oil Mutual Aid Association are also available during childcare leave.
Career Support During Leave
Prior to taking maternity leave, the employee meets with her supervisor to provide them with a concrete idea of her desired work style after returning to work. While on leave, the supervisor maintains regular contact with the employee and shares relevant company information with her, while also encouraging her to take online company courses as a means of encouraging her to continue thinking about her career. A few months after returning to work, the employee meets with her supervisor to discuss her needs in terms of work style and the scope of duties going forward.
Number of Employees Using the Shorter Working Hours Program
| Reason | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Childcare | 39 | 36 | 41 |
| Nursing care | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Non-occupational injury/illness | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Note: Whenever program usage extends from one fiscal year into the next, the usage is counted for each respective year.
Caregiving Support
We have established systems such as nursing care leave, time off for nursing care, shorter working hours, and teleworking to support employees in balancing their work and nursing care responsibilities.
| FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of employees who took nursing care leave | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Occupational Safety and Health
Reducing Long Working Hours
The Cosmo Work Style Guidelines have been established to help maintain the physical and mental well-being of our employees, enhance their work-life balance, and improve productivity by promoting better work habits. The Group is striving to improve productivity by raising employee awareness of the need for more efficient use of time and undertaking related initiatives. These efforts include encouraging employees to come in earlier rather than working late in the evening (by adjusting overtime pay rates), encouraging employees to use their annual paid leave, and setting total working hour targets for each organization.