Diversity & Inclusion

When my child was younger, I used the reduced working hour system. This system allows employees to reduce the prescribed working hours for up to three hours a day. I took advantage of this system to keep a good balance between work and raising a child.
Although I work full time now, I cannot work overtime because I have to go and pick up my child. I strive to increase my work efficiency by cutting the time for meetings and reporting to my supervisor and co-workers frequently.

I use the flexible work-hour system. While regular working hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., I cannot come to work on time sometimes after dropping my child off at nursery school. In such a case, I can ask my supervisor beforehand to obtain approval to come to work late. I see many other employees using this system.

I took maternity leave about two years after joining the company. Because I was not fully qualified then, I remember being worried thinking, “Can I keep up?” before returning to work.
Even so, thanks to the computer I borrowed from General Affairs, I was able to access information about the company anytime. I also had an interview with the section chief before returning from leave to discuss various subjects, including job descriptions and my concerns after going back to work.
I also appreciate the system of taking child caregiving leave when my child gets sick.

Bridgestone Software encourages employees to use teleworking as part of its effort to improve operational efficiency. In my case, my wife and I take turns participating in school or nursery school events, such as parent meetings. This system enables me to work from home in the morning and go to a parent meeting in the afternoon, allowing for a flexible workstyle.
In addition, the guidelines for the use of these systems are being organized to make the flow from submitting a request to obtaining approval more smooth. This also makes it easy for employees to use the system.

Although I am so busy balancing work and home life now, the ideal is to create more time that I can spend with my children. Because employees can take advantage of reduced working hours, teleworking, child caregiving leave, flexible work hours, and other well-organized systems, I want to continue using them effectively to bring my workstyle closer to this ideal.

It is important to prioritize work for as long as you are part of a company. Even so, it is important to have some time with your family and your own private time. Employees are very lucky to have such an environment because the company offers extensive employee benefits to achieve a work balance at their own discretion.
In addition, although there are some male employees who use childcare leave, I had the impression that it is still very low. I am looking forward to seeing a more workable environment where it becomes more commonplace for male employees to use childcare leave.