Labor Practices

The Yamato Group has established these committees at each Group company to hold discussions on how to increase employees’ pride in their work and sense of satisfaction, and how to promote diversity, and then implement the ideas.
At Yamato Transport, we hold monthly committee meetings chaired by the director in charge of the Human Resources Unit and attended by the Head Office General Manager and labor union representatives. In addition to Employee Awareness Surveys, they decide on initiative themes based on employee opinions collected from each unit. They then carry out initiatives that aim to improve job satisfaction as a whole by implementing concrete measures based on hypotheses.

The Yamato Group acknowledges employees’ freedom of association, right to organize, and right to collective bargaining, and has formed labor agreements with unions.
Yamato Transport advances labor discussions between the Company and unions (to which approximately half of all employees belong) about the improvement of various systems and the management environment as necessary.

At Yamato Transport, workers and management set the planned number of working hours in a year to curb long working hours and realize work-life balance.
Each month, progress is checked at a meeting held at each regional branch with workers and management participating. If any workers are found to have particularly long working hours, improvement measures are considered as a first order of priority as part of a commitment to maintaining the planned annual working hours.

Yamato Transport strives to ensure a rest period (interval) of at least 11 hours between the end of work on one day and the start of work on the following day to ensure that employees can have a reasonable amount of rest.

Yamato Transport encourages systematic utilization of annual leave, such as taking a week of continuous leave and taking leave on celebration days. We aim to see individuals use at least 90% of their annual leave.

The Yamato Group has introduced telework, flextime, shorter working hours, and other systems with the aim of realizing diverse working styles, enhancing operational efficiency, and improving productivity. By combining on-site work, working from home, satellite office work, and other methods based on job characteristics, we aim to realize working styles that enable both the organization and employees themselves to fully maximize their capabilities.
We are expanding the scope of employees covered by this system by introducing a framework for departments that face operations restrictions, such as call center work and employees who work part time.

Yamato Transport has introduced a “standby work system” under which Sales Drivers take turns to be on standby to respond to irregular situations.
This prevents workers from having to suddenly work on their days off and establishes an environment that enables them to rest during emergencies, such as health or family situations. In this way, the company has created a work environment where employees and their families have a sense of security.

The Yamato Group has introduced the Yamato Employees’ Shareholding Association, under which employees (full-time and part-time) can continuously make contributions, even if only a small amount, to obtain Yamato Holdings shares. This is an example of a welfare system that supports long-term employee asset-building, with a history of approximately 50 years, and is used by numerous employees.

TOPICS

Supporting the "White Logistics" Movement Toward Work Style Reform for Logistics

In the face of major environmental changes, such as the rapid growth of the e-commerce market and tight supply and demand in the labor market, stabilization of logistics functionality is a major issue for society as a whole.
In response to this, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) launched the White Logistics Movement, with the aim of improving trucking productivity and logistics efficiency and creating a sound and healthy working environment that is easier for workers, including female and senior drivers (in their 60s) to work comfortably.
Yamato Transport supports the White Logistics Movement-an initiative for companies involved in logistics-and is working to improve logistics in mutual understanding and cooperation with suppliers and other stakeholders in order to achieve the realization of highly productive logistics and working style reforms.

We have been conducting Working Styles Awareness Surveys and Engagement Surveys with employees across the Yamato Group to understand the current working environment and make improvements.
For the results of Employee Awareness Surveys, please refer to our ESG Data page.
The survey for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, found a minor fall in “rewarding,” but a year-on-year increase for other factors. The Group has positioned the improvement of the “rewarding” category as a priority issue.
To enhance manager skills, which strongly correlate with employees feeling “rewarded,” we have been implementing exchanges of opinions between Sales Office managers and senior management at all regional branch offices of Yamato Transport, sharing values that reflect the direct connection between customers and employees, and implementing management discussions on a six-month basis that aim to realize a working environment that encourages job satisfaction since the fiscal 2023. We have also been encouraging mutual understanding through smooth workplace communication and creating a psychologically safe working environment of mutual respect for diverse approaches and values. One such measure is implementing employee discussions from fiscal 2024 to deepen mutual understanding through dialogue between management and representative employees. By continuing to establish issues and engage in measures based on the results of these surveys, we will promote the development of a working environment, that enables employees to work enthusiastically, from the perspectives of being employee-friendly and rewarding.

"Kuroneko Tamago" is a system that allows all Yamato Transport employees to make proposals for business improvements, new products and services. In addition to making their own proposals, employees can also vote and give their opinions on those submitted by other employees. Among the proposals and opinions received, the Hint Award is awarded to those proposals considered for actualization.
In FY2024 there were 367 proposal entries, 55 of which received the Hint Award.