Ensure Employee Health and Safety

It is essential for each and every employee to maintain and strengthen both his and her mental and physical health in order to shine and flourish professionally. This is only possible in a safe and comfortable work environment. We place the top priority to human life, safety and legal compliance, and support the occupational health and safety (OHS) of employees.

The Toshiba Group OHS Management Policy was established in 2004 in response to the declaration of commitment to OHS by the top management with a goal of all employees sharing the commitment. The content was revised together with revision of The Essence of Toshiba in 2018 and the new content specifies our consideration of the people working in diverse conditions related to our business, including independent contractors as described in item 4 of the Toshiba Group OHS Management Policy, based on the requirements of ISO 45001, a new standard for OHS management systems.

For Toshiba Group to resolve social issues and contribute to the further development of society, it is necessary to promote work style reform that includes enhancing the work environment and reforming operations, and to link this so that employees feel their work is rewarding. In order to steadily promote work style reform, it is essential that each employee is safe and healthy as well as works in a lively manner and leads a fulfilling life, and it is important to take steps aimed at boosting health and safety to increase employees' vitality.

Toshiba Group has codified its OHS management activities into the OHS management to penetrate them throughout the organization from top management to all employees. We declared the launching of this policy at the Toshiba Group CSR Conference in December 2018.
We designated the executive in charge of Human Resource and Administration Division as the Chief Health & Safety Officer (CHSO) and formulated the Toshiba Group OHS Management Declaration to specify the roles in the field of OHS management to be fulfilled by executives, managers, OHS staffs and employees. The CHSO is in charge of making the Declaration well known within the Group.
In addition, to spread awareness of OHS management, we had been convening an OHS Management Conference chaired by the CHSO since FY2019 on a semi-annual basis. From the second half of FY2023, to increase the frequency of meetings and to make it possible for executives in charge of businesses to attend, the Conference has been held at weekly executive meetings* to facilitate timely discussions.

• A meeting in which the President and CEO and other executive officers share information, exchange ideas, and make decisions for the entire company.

Specific OHS activities of Toshiba Group are carried out at each of the business sites (or individual Group companies) based on measures to achieve the OHS objective transmitted from the corporate department, which is the supervisory division of the Group, key business divisions, and Group companies, under a line management system based on job classifications that covers all personnel from top management through to employees.

Statutory activities at each business site (or Group company) in Japan include the appointment of dedicated OHS staff and the establishment of an OHS Committee. Many sites and Group companies go beyond this to set up other autonomous OHS activities, such as specialist or workplace committees tailored to the work process and their risk factors.

Toshiba Group in Japan provides the following opportunities for communication.

At Toshiba, we ensure opportunities for communication with top management regarding safety and health management at executive meetings. These meetings are attended by the President and CEO; the corporate officers in charge of corporate staff, including the CHSO; and the corporate officers in charge of business. At the meetings, the attendees confirm the general situation and progress of measures related to safety and health in Toshiba Group, and discuss and decide on promotion objectives and measures for the next fiscal year. In addition, the CHSO is subject to the oversight of the Board of Directors with respect to the implementation of health and safety risk management, and the CHSO reports to the Audit Committee on the status of business operations to ensure the effectiveness of internal controls.
In addition, together with Toshiba Union Headquarters, we co-host the non-statutory meetings of the OHS Debriefing in the first half and the Central OHS Committee in the second half. We are striving to ensure that Toshiba Group health and safety measures take into consideration the perspectives of employees through close communication with the Toshiba Union Headquarters. At the Central OHS Committee in January 2024, we shared with the objectives for promoting OHS of Toshiba Group for FY2024 as well as the need for further improvement of our OHS management systems (OHSMS). 
As a means to laterally share information among Toshiba Group in Japan, we hold the Toshiba Group OHS Supervisor Meeting once a year that is attended by OHS Supervisors from Group companies and business sites. They report on matters such as the incidence of occupational accidents and objectives that are to be promoted Group-wide, as well as efforts for high priority issues and the activities undertaken at each site.
We also hold the statutory OHS Committee, etc. at business sites once a month as an opportunity for employees to participate, discuss and communicate with each other on health and safety issues. The meetings are used to deliberate and decide on various measures related to the OHS management system such as the basic OHS policy at the business site, annual objectives and OHS promotion plans. In view of their importance, meetings of the OHS Committee, etc. have been held regularly. Further, we are striving to ensure appropriate communication with entities involved in the Group’s business by securing opportunities for OHS Subcontractor Meetings and OHS Consultative Meetings that include resident subcontractors at business sites and related subcontractors at construction sites managed by a Toshiba Group company as the primary contractor.
Toshiba Group overseas has established an appropriate system in accordance with the laws and OHSMS requirements of the country where the company is located.

Identification and Risk Assessment of Hazards Related to Safety and Health

Toshiba Group in Japan conducts two types of risk assessment (general OHS and chemical substance) based on guidelines concerning investigation into dangerous and harmful operations stipulated by the Japanese government. This helps us to identify hazards^*1, evaluate risk and formulate control measures^*2 in the course of operating our OHSMS. With this risk assessment, Toshiba Group employees strive to identify the hazards that may be encountered by them as well as subcontractors and visitors.
To ensure the effectiveness of our risk assessment, we provide training to OHS staff and risk assessors to enhance their capabilities. We also verify the validity of risk assessment findings through an annual review by members of the division which has the risk and auditing by the OHSMS Internal Audit department.
In addition, for anything designated as an emergency situation in the risk assessment, we have established response procedures and if required, regularly conduct response training that also include subcontractors in order to ensure smooth evacuation in the event of an emergency.
At Toshiba Group overseas, especially companies that have obtained OHSMS certification, we carry out risk assessment in accordance with the requirements of the standard and implement measures against extracted risks.
In the event of an occupational accident, Toshiba Group identifies the hazards and causes and assesses the risk prior to the accident and following the implementation of assumed measures to ensure that corrective measures are taken.

• In addition to risk assessment as a means of identifying hazards, we conduct risk prediction activities prior to work, make close call reports and have top management, industrial physicians and health officers implement workplace inspections to complement this.
• Toshiba selects the control measures to reduce the risks according to the following hierarchy:
  (1) elimination, (2) substitution, (3) engineering controls, (4) signage/warnings and/or administrative controls, (5) personal protective equipment.

We reflected our fundamental approach to mitigating the risk of natural disasters in Japan such as a large-scale earthquake or storm and flood damage in a Basic Guideline for Disaster Prevention Countermeasures and Business Continuity Plan (BCP) for the Group. The basic guideline prioritizes the life and personal safety of employees, and is based on the policy of protecting our social credibility, property and equipment, and fulfilling our corporate social responsibility to customers, shareholders and other stakeholders.
The guideline stipulates the role of Toshiba’s corporate staff divisions, Toshiba Group companies and business sites in drafting and implementing policies and measures regarding disaster prevention and formulating a BCP so that each company and organization can prepare for disasters in accordance with their role. In addition, we established Toshiba Group Disaster Countermeasures Headquarters, headed by the President and CEO of Toshiba, to coordinate with disaster response headquarters at Toshiba Group companies and business sites. This framework enables the coordination, direction and support of relief and recovery efforts.
To prepare for future disasters, we are also taking steps including creating regulations, introducing educational programs and conducting drills for employees, and stockpiling items and equipment required in a disaster.

Toshiba Group seeks to prevent and avoid damage to parties and facilities related to our operations in countries and regions in addition to Japan as well as to prevent and avoid damage these parties and facilities may cause to third parties. In the event of such a damage, we have established and operate a basic policy for safe operations overseas with the aim of minimizing the damage.
When implementing a new project, we confirm risks in advance as required through such means as risk assessments covering local laws and regulations, the surrounding environment, infrastructure, facilities, and substances used.

Toshiba Group has set items related to health and safety (Toshiba Labor Agreement and work regulations in Japan), and when faced with life-threatening risk, employees are required to take the basic action of first reporting to their supervisor (or the administration division) and then following the instructions given. However, employees are permitted to prioritize evacuation in order to protect themselves when it is difficult to make a report in a timely manner. Employees will not be treated unfairly in such a case.

Every year at Toshiba Group, during National Safety Week in July and National Occupational Health Week in October, the top management of Toshiba sends a message to all employees to share their firm resolve to ensure OHS. The President and CEO and CHSO both convey messages from FY2020.
In addition to messages to the entire Group, top management at each Group company and business site, including those overseas, sends messages to all their employees and develops their own OHS initiatives.

First held in 1975, the Toshiba Group OHS Conference has been held every year to share information for the purpose of raising the level of OHS activities and generating greater awareness about OHS management. The main participants are top management, labor union representatives, and people in charge of OHS activities in Toshiba Group in Japan. Companies and business sites as well as to small-group activity programs and improvement proposals by individuals that set an example for others are commended for their excellent OHS-related activities through the granting of the President and CEO’s Award for Excellence. This was integrated with the CSR Conference in FY2008 (although the Conference is being held independently again from FY2023), and the CEO commends the efforts in OHS management made by overseas Group companies in addition to those in Japan.
We established regulations for OHS awards consisting of awards for OHS promotion and OHS improvement as well as OHS slogans with the aim of enhancing the Group’s safety management and the three occupational health management* activities along with raising awareness of employees’ participation in OHS activities.
One group won the FY2023 OHS Promotion Award, and two groups won the FY2023 OHS Improvement Award. From FY2023, we have changed the application guidelines for the OHS slogans so that they are better suited to the Group's priority OHS promotion objectives, and we have also improved the timing for making posters based on the selected slogans. The winning slogans will be used in OHS posters on digital signage for this fiscal year at Toshiba Group business sites in Japan.

• This refers to the following three types of occupational health management: (1) Operational management, which defines procedures for preventing environmental pollution, and reducing exposure to harmful substances as well as workload, and their suitable implementation; (2) Operational environment management, for identifying and evaluating factors that may cause harm in the workplace through statutory working environment measurement and risk assessment of chemical substances to ensure the best conditions possible; and (3) health management to confirm the health condition of each employee through medical examination, detect abnormalities early on, prevent exacerbation, and take medical and work management-related steps to recover a healthy condition.

Toshiba Group in Japan conducts various types of OHS-related educational programs as a corporation and for each level of the organization at business sites.
Toshiba conducts regular Company-wide OHS training programs for entry-level and mid-level employees engaged in OHS as well as for industrial physicians and occupational healthcare staff to enhance their skills as OHS staff. We also strive to boost health literacy through e-learning on health-related matters for all Toshiba Group employees in Japan.
In addition to the education required by the Industrial Safety and Health Act, we provide unique courses and training tailored to the conditions and issues of each business site as well as programs for employees engaged in OHSMS in an effort to enhance the capabilities of personnel engaged in OHS.

Toshiba Group overseas ensures the competence required for OHSMS in accordance with the actual situation in each country.

The frequency of occupational accidents (frequency of lost workdays) of Toshiba Group in Japan in FY2023 increased by about 1.3 times compared to the previous fiscal year. This is much lower than the national average for the manufacturing industry. The number of occupational accidents in FY2023 was 103 in total, increased by about 1.1 times compared to the previous fiscal year, 2 cases of fatal accidents, 33 cases resulting in lost workdays and 68 cases without lost workdays. The number of fatal accidents involving Toshiba Group employees in Japan over the past three years was one in FY2021 and two in FY2023, with two fatal accidents overseas in FY2022 and FY2023. The number of accidents resulting in lost workdays or more severe impacts, excluding death, in Toshiba Group overseas, excluding Toshiba Tec Group, was 49 in FY2023.
The most common types of accidents were falling, reaction to movement or forced movement, caught in/between, cuts/abrasions, falls from height, and getting hit. In particular, fall accidents account for approximately 37% of all accidents. Of these, the accidents caused by normal activity of daily life (ex. falling while walking or falling downstairs), make up the majority of total accidents. In light of the number of accidents occurring from normal activities, we incorporated content aimed at preventing falls in addition to conventional health management information in our Company-wide e-learning program for FY2020, drawing attention to the need for vigilance among all Group employees. In addition, if a serious accident, such as a fatality, is to occur, we work to share information throughout the Group on exactly what happened, the cause and our response to ensure that the same kind of accident does not happen again under similar conditions using similar equipment. As for occupational accident prevention activities, Toshiba’s corporate staff division has set objectives for promoting OHS of Toshiba Group. Based on these objectives, each Group company and business site in Japan formulates promotion goals and plans while considering their unique challenges, and undertakes actions aimed at preventing occupational accidents.

• Includes accidents involving part-time workers, fixed-term workers and dispatched workers.
• LTIFR: Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate, the number of lost time injuries occurring in a workplace per 1 million man-hours worked.

• Includes accidents involving part-time workers, fixed-term workers and dispatched workers.
• Injury rate per 1,000 workers (all accidents): The number of lost-time injuries occurring in a workplace per 1,000 workers.

• Includes accidents involving part-time workers, fixed-term workers and dispatched workers.

Toshiba Group considers the fact that fatal accidents have continued to occur over the past few years to be very serious, and we have placed top priority on the reduction of hazardous risks that may lead to serious injuries and diseases. In addition, we conduct risk assessment with the aim of striving for zero serious accidents on an ongoing basis. Based on the results of this risk assessment, we have reviewed work methods to identify and eliminate or reduce risks and to ensure appropriate management. We have proceeded to systematically improve facilities, thoroughly educate and train employees on safety principles, conduct hazard simulation training, and strengthen safety patrols outside the workplace.

Toshiba Group in Japan has set the prevention of lifestyle diseases, enhancement of mental health and prevention of overwork as the basis to achieve them as the top priority measures within the Toshiba Group’s Standards for Health Management. We strive to raise employees’ awareness of the importance of health and take various measures to maintain their physical and mental health from both a high-risk approach^*1 and population approach^*2.
Toshiba Group overseas is working to maintain and improve the health of its employees in accordance with the actual situation of each country.

• High-risk approach: A method of health management that focuses on people at high risk of disease
• Population approach: A method of health management that focuses on the whole group rather than a specific group to lower the exposure to risk

Toshiba Group in Japan has held the OHS Management Conference (which has been succeeded by the executive meeting from the second half of FY2023) on a regular basis since FY2019 to share the Group’s health-related issues and regular monitoring indicators, or key performance indicators (KPIs), and each business division and the top management of each key Group company in attendance are then requested to incorporate those into measures to improve the safety and health management of their employees though the governance line.
In addition, we launched the Collabo-Health Meeting and started convening meetings in FY2019 together with the Toshiba Health Insurance Association, to study how to promote health measures throughout the Toshiba Group in Japan organically. In FY2021, we entered into a memorandum of understanding with each Group company to promote collaborative health measures to maintain and improve health, and we established a system for the effective use of employee health information held by both parties. This meeting aims to accelerate OHS management and enhance health at the various life stages of employees in addition to realizing the Company’s objectives of enhancing corporate value and ensuring a bright and vibrant life for our employees. It is also designed to help achieve the social missions and goals of the Toshiba Health Insurance Association such as optimizing medical expenses.

In FY2023, Toshiba Group in Japan adopted SaaS^*1 for its health management system, and we have also created a system that enables health management procedures^*2 to be performed by a workflow at all of our locations in Japan, ensuring that health management operations can be implemented according to the same standard using the same methods.
In this process, the medical history items that we had specified ourselves in the former system are replaced with items that are widely used in specific health examinations, etc., and the evaluation of KPIs has been improved so that it is easier than before to compare against national figures. In addition, we have changed the calculation method and target figures for some KPI process indicators and added new items (described in the next section).
Furthermore, with the aforementioned conclusion of the memorandum of understanding with each Group company to promote collaborative health measures to maintain and improve health, the new system has been linked to the results of cancer-/lifestyle-related disease examinations conducted by the Toshiba Health Insurance Association, making it possible to provide more effective “follow-ups on health examination results” and “recommendations for consultation with medical institutions for high-risk individuals.”

• SaaS: Software as a Service
• Review of employment classification decisions, confirmation of health management interviews, circulation of occupational medicine action opinion letters, release of results of group stress check analyses, health management for employees dispatched overseas, health checkup prior to overseas dispatch and upon return to Japan, etc.

KPIs for health management were set forth as shown below at the OHS Management Conference for FY2020. Using the results of Toshiba Group in Japan in FY2019 as the starting point, we will aim to further improve items which have already attained nationwide target figures. For items for which we have yet to achieve the targets, we will strive to improve them to the national level that we have set as our targets. Our varied approach will center on improving the process indicator, lifestyle habits.

We are investigating the impacts of physical and mental health on attendance by conducting a quarterly survey of employees who have been absent from work for an extended period of time due to physical or mental illness, and those who are working under restrictions, from the perspective of understanding absenteeism and presenteeism.

* 3  Those who have not worked for more than one month due to mental or physical (non-mental) problems.

* 4  Those working under restrictions based on the opinion of an industrial physician due to mental or physical (non-mental) health problems.

The results of the surveys on the above KPIs and the percentages of employees with health problems are listed for each Group company and shared with the Group companies as a reference material for internal benchmarking in order to help them with their own initiatives.

As a high-risk approach to preventing lifestyle-related diseases, Toshiba Group in Japan has steadily provided priority support to employees at high risk of developing brain and heart diseases, through such means as work management and health guidance, according to work classification determined based on levels of regular medical checkup data, a shared standard across all Group companies since FY2011. We also run a program to prevent diabetes, chronic kidney disease and hypertension from becoming severe in collaboration with the Toshiba Health Insurance Association. The effects of these initiatives have started to emerge with a decrease in the percentage of deaths caused by brain and heart disease while still at work and a decrease in people at high risk of high blood pressure and high blood sugar. (Refer to the previous section)
As a population approach, we have set target values for improving lifestyle habits and have been undertaking measures such as anti-smoking measures, improvements to the canteen menu and providing opportunity to exercise, since FY2013. We introduced a health-related education program for each age group in FY2014 and have been supporting employees to maintain their health according to their stage of life. As a result, lifestyle indices, including levels of smoking and drinking, are improving; however, there are many items that need to be addressed, and further improvement measures are needed to achieve the KPIs and target values. In particular, the percentage of patients and those having a high risk of contracting metabolic syndrome (visceral fat syndrome) is on the rise nationwide; this is a shared issue throughout Toshiba Group and has been set as a materiality KPI. In addition to improving patients and those at high risk, we implement various measures (described in the following sections) to prevent others from developing metabolic syndrome by improving health self-care skills. In addition, while providing specified health guidance for those aged 40 and over who are legally covered by the Toshiba Health Insurance Association, from FY2024, we have started to provide health guidance similar to the specified health guidance to younger people in their 30s and below as well.

To solve health problems, the Toshiba Health Insurance Association began to introduce an ICT tool to support health for the general insured population (employees) in April 2024.
This ICT tool supports employees’ self-care by displaying their health age according to the results of health checkup, distributing health articles, organizing various health events (e.g., walks and health quizzes), and awarding incentive points.
We will promote wider use of this ICT tool within the Group and actively use it as a means of developing various health measures.

Toshiba Group in Japan was one of the first Japanese companies to address the issue of employees’ mental health and has developed an advanced, comprehensive system in four areas of care to support our employees’ work and daily life. Going forward, we will encourage each individual to consciously maintain their physical and mental well-being, keeping in mind work styles that are now the new normal.

Toshiba Life serial article

While the first principle of Toshiba Group in Japan is to transition to a working style in which employees are not expected to do overtime (work style reform), the Group has also been working to prevent health problems caused by overtime work since before the revision to the Industrial Safety and Health Act in 2006. For example, employees who work 80 hours or more overtime per month and other employees who work 45 hours or more overtime per month and are recommended by a doctor to have an interview as well as those who request such an interview themselves are required to receive health guidance from industrial physicians (interview guidance for employees working excessive overtime).
This standard sufficiently meets the requirements of the revised Industrial Safety and Health Regulations enforced in April 2019.

Toshiba Group in Japan has a specialized division to support the health management of employees who work overseas. In addition to medical checkups prior to the posting and upon return in accordance with the law, we have made it compulsory to have a checkup once a year while away, including for the employee’s family. We are taking steps to ensure employees stationed overseas receive the same level of health management support as our employees in Japan based on the results of each individual’s medical checkups. The services include providing employees and their family members with optimal support in line with each country’s medical care system such as consultation and information on local medical institutions and arranging emergency transport.
We are taking a flexible approach to medical checks for employees who work overseas amid the COVID-19 pandemic with the understanding that checkups will be administered as soon as the situation improves in consideration of difficulty traveling between countries, conditions of local medical services and the risk of infection.

Toshiba Group compiles the latest information gathered from various sources that include the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, companies specializing in safety crisis management overseas and international medical care, international risk-related media and in the field concerning outbreaks of infectious diseases (tuberculosis, malaria, HIV/AIDS, etc.) in foreign countries and their spread, and distributes it to those stationed in relevant countries in order to alert them on such risks. Toshiba Group in Japan also gives guidance to employees assigned to work overseas and their accompanying families, on medical, safety, infectious disease measures and other information on life overseas. Once overseas assignment is confirmed, a briefing is held again, including prior medical checkups and shots of vaccination. New recruits in Japan are provided with booklets containing information about HIV/AIDS. Along with other awareness-raising programs covering topics such as the prevention of HIV infection, the Group calls for the prohibition of unfair discrimination due to insufficient knowledge about the disease. In addition, business sites cooperate with the government for rubella antibody tests for target age groups by providing the venue of medical examination.

Toshiba Corporation has published information on the Work-Life Balance Support System and the Consulting Service, which support diverse work styles from a health and systems perspective, as well as contact information, on the Corporate Information Portal (CPI), which can be accessed from the Company’s website. We also regularly promote these systems and healthy attitudes through means such as various seminars, top management messages, and e-learning.

<Example: Cancer treatment and support for balancing work and treatment>
Each year, Toshiba Corporation holds a Work-Life Balance Support Seminar on cancer, including an introduction to the insurance system. In addition, the Cancer Prevention and Work-Life Balance Support page published on the CPI website introduces various systems that can be used if one suffers from cancer, as well as knowledge about cancer prevention, and the Introduction to Consulting Services page provides information on how to use the mental and physical health consultation service, which has a dedicated consultation service for employees and their families to support them in balancing cancer treatment and work.

Toshiba Group is implementing the following initiatives as specific measures to “ensure appropriate consultation and participation, on occupational health and safety initiatives of workers and their representatives in various positions, who are involved in the Toshiba Group’s business,” as stated in the Toshiba Group OHS Management Policy.

<Within business sites>
The administrative division of a business site forms an OHS Subcontractor Meeting with representatives of contractors who work in the site. While sharing the site’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Management Policy and goals, the division also monitors each contractor’s safety performance; sets up rest areas at the site; clarifies hazardous work at the site and informs contractors of the details thereof; provides support for improvements in emergency response techniques; and conducts evacuation drills together with the contractors.

<Field work>
In particular, for work sites where Toshiba Group companies are the primary contractors, the field division of the business site that oversees the site shall share information on occupational safety and health activities with contractors and partner companies that carry out work. Such information shall include monitoring of safety performance, health and safety education equivalent to that provided to employees, workplace patrols, and evacuation drills that assume the occurrence of accidents. In addition, the field division shall promote cooperation between the site, field division, business division, Group companies, etc. In this way, we are working to foster a safety culture as the primary contractors.

Despite these efforts, two fatal accidents involving contractors’ employees occurred during the three-year period from FY2021 to FY2023 (FY2021: electric shock at a site; FY2022: fall at a site), making further improvement of contractor safety management standards an urgent issue.

• Toshiba Group Procurement Policy
• Promote Sustainable Procurement

Toshiba Group is working to reduce individual exposure by thoroughly implementing measures to reduce exposure for radiation workers belonging to the Group and partner companies who work at nuclear power plants, etc. In particular, as the decommissioning work at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is being carried out in a harsh radiation environment, we are working to reduce exposure by examining designs and procedures that take into account exposure reduction as well as conducting mock training. We also work to ensure safe, efficient on-site management, including the development of our own management tools and radiation measuring devices that are tailored to on-site conditions.

Using the Toshiba Radiation Control & Engineering Support System (TRACES), which centrally manages individual radiation exposure data from nuclear power plants across the country, Toshiba Group has been monitoring and managing radiation exposure data for more than 100,000 radiation workers in Toshiba Group since the 1960s. We effectively use this system to manage doses in accordance with our internal standards, which are stricter than the legal limits, including standards for workers at partner companies.

With regard to safety management, we have prepared various education and training programs, and we are working to raise the safety awareness of employees of both the Group and partner companies as well as to eliminate accidents, with a special emphasis on hands-on practical training.

As for health management, we carry out necessary health checkup at every work site, including those of the Group and partner companies, and industrial physicians provide advice on mental and physical health.