CSR Procurement Guidelines

8.Human rights

8.1 Respect for basic human rights

  • It is necessary to respect workers’ human rights and not engage in such inhumane acts as harassment, sexual abuse, corporal punishment, mental or physical oppression, or verbal abuse.

8.2 Protecting personal information

  • The personal information of all suppliers, customers, consumers, workers, and others must be appropriately managed in compliance with the laws and regulations of the relevant country.

8.3 Preventing leakage of confidential Information

  • It is necessary to appropriately manage and protect confidential information. This applies not only to a company’s confidential information but also to information received from customers and third parties.

8.4 Respecting intellectual property

  • ntellectual property rights must be respected, and transfers of technology and expertise must be done in a manner that ensures the protection of intellectual property.
  • This applies also to the intellectual property of third parties, such as customers and suppliers.

8.5 Exclusion of antisocial forces

  • There can be no relationships with antisocial forces (such as an organized crime group or corporate extortionist or capitulation to their unjust demands.
  • Transactions with antisocial forces cannot be allowed.

8.6 Handling of conflict minerals

  • It is necessary to exercise due diligence to ensure that tantalum, tin, tungsten, gold, and other such minerals contained in the products manufactured do not cause or contribute to serious human rights abuses, environmental destruction, corruption, or disputes in conflict-affected areas and high-risk areas.

Supplementary Explanations

8.1 Respect for basic human rights
Callous behavior such as sexual harassment and verbal abuse may intensify in the working environment without people nearby noticing it.
It is necessary therefore to establish procedures for quickly detecting and responding to such behavior while, at the same time, creating and expanding an environment in which people can talk about it within the company.
It is necessary to also protect the confidentiality of information that is brought forward and the anonymity of workers who bring the information or seek consultation, and to take steps to prevent retaliation against them.

8.2 Protecting personal information
Compliance with local laws and regulations on personal information, and careful handling of the personal information of suppliers, customers, consumers, and employees is necessary. Personal information must only be collected, stored, processed, transmitted, and shared within the scope required to achieve its specified purpose. In Japan, the main law that addresses this matter is the Act on the Protection of Personal Information.

8.3 Preventing leakage of confidential Information
Confidential information generally refers to information disclosed according to a written confidentiality agreement (including digital information recorded magnetically or optically) or information disclosed orally upon confidential notice.

An appropriate framework and management system is required for managing both the company’s own confidential information and that received from third parties. This includes defining information management levels and employee training.

8.4 Respecting intellectual property
The protection of intellectual property applies not only to the company itself, but also to third parties such as customers and suppliers.
Intellectual property rights are rights defined by law, and include patent rights, utility model rights, design rights, trademark rights, and copyrights.
Intellectual property includes trade secrets and technical know-how in addition to intellectual property rights.

8.5 Exclusion of antisocial forces
The term “antisocial force” refers to an organized crime group, its members or, associate members, company affiliated with it, corporate extortionists (sokaiya), miscreants advocating political activism, an intellectual crime group, or any similar party.
It is necessary to never have a relationship of any kind with an antisocial force. Specifically, this means:

  • Not using or employing them.
  • Not providing them with assets or favors.
  • Not having a close association or any other relationship with them that could attract the condemnation of society.
  • Not using fraud, violent behavior, or threatening language against another party or a party associated with another party, either by the business partner itself or through a third party.

8.6 Handling of conflict minerals
Due diligence regarding responsible minerals procurement refers to companies’ establishing policies, communicating expectations to suppliers (and incorporating them in contracts where possible), identifying and reviewing risks in the supply chain, and establishing and implementing strategies to handle the identified risks.
Related laws include Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act in the United States and the Conflict Minerals Regulation of the European Union.