Our System and Efforts to Achieve Respect for Human Rights

System for Promoting Respect for Human Rights

The Sustainability Committee deliberates efforts for promoting respect for human rights as outlined in the ORIX Human Rights Policy, and reports on the content of these deliberations to the Board of Directors. Information about ORIX’s Sustainability Governance Structure and the role of the Sustainability Committee can be found here.

Compliance Hotline for Consultation and Reporting on Human Rights Issues

ORIX accepts human rights consultations and reports through our internal and external whistleblower system. The internal whistleblower system is available to ORIX Group employees and the external whistleblower system is available to our clients and suppliers. We accept consultations on human rights violations such as harassment and opinions on human rights considerations.

Human rights risk analysis/evaluation and investment and lending-related decisions (establishment of prohibited transactions)

ORIX has worked with third-party experts to analyze the specific risk profiles of its various businesses in order to understand our overall human rights risk profile. Based on these analyses’ results, we have identified regions, business areas, and practices where human rights risks are particularly high.
We evaluate projects using the Sustainable Investing and Lending Checklist*, based on the ORIX Sustainable Investing and Lending Policy.Open PDF in New Window[85KB] We also use information from databases provided by third parties in this process. Human rights risk is an important factor in our investment and lending-related decisions. We strictly prohibit transactions with organizations that have elevated or suspected human rights risks, as well as sovereign initiatives in which human rights issues exist or are a concern, as described below.

  • Organizations that carry out forced labor, child labor, human trafficking, or any other practices defined as human rights offenses by the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015
  • Organizations that are operating in countries/regions determined as high risk in relation to human rights violations and have participated in human rights violations
  • A proprietary ORIX checklist based on international sustainability guidelines.

Human Rights Due Diligence

Since 2022, we have been undertaking human rights due diligence with reference to international norms such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. We conducted desktop analysis to specify and assess negative impacts on human rights, and identified highly serious issues. We are considering starting a fact-finding survey to address items that are assumed to have a high priority. In addition, the compliance department is discussing specific measures to prevent or mitigate the risk of human rights violations.

Efforts to Educate ORIX Group Employees about Human Rights

ORIX has established a Code of Conduct which applies to all directors, officers and employees, which provides basic guidelines to be followed within the course of our daily operations. One topic within the Code of Conduct is “Respect for Human Rights and No Harassment.”
ORIX carries out compliance training sessions regarding our Code of Conduct both within Japan and overseas. Respect for human rights and our policy of “no harassment” are covered as key topics in these meetings, and examples of harassment, legal responsibilities surrounding harassment, and “grey zone” areas (actions which could likely be considered harassment if carried out repeatedly) are explained. An e-learning course targeted at employees at ORIX Headquarters and domestic Group companies in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023 had approximately 29,000 participants (29,000 in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022 and 26,500 in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021). Some 2,900 employees participated in training sessions for overseas offices in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023.
ORIX also offer training sessions tailored for different types of employees, such as new hires, general employees, and managers. The training session oriented for new hires covers basic knowledge regarding harassment. For general employees, the training incorporates business and human rights-related themes. Managers study specific cases of harassment in their training, and learn how to properly address them. For general employees, this course is offered as part of their third year training curriculum and when they are posted to a new position with greater responsibilities. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, around 300 persons participated in these trainings, while around 280 participated in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024.
In addition to these training opportunities, ORIX makes additional efforts to enable each Group employee to recognize and improve their awareness of the issue, such as carrying out surveys regarding harassment prevention and hotline operations, as well as holding listening sessions about the workplace environment.

Creating a Comfortable Workplace for Employees with Diverse Values

At ORIX, diverse people support our diverse businesses. We are creating work environments that are comfortable for all types of employees through the efforts outlined below.

Promoting Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

For a company to grow, it must foster diversity in both the traditional sense (by including personnel from a variety of nationalities, ages, genders, and work backgrounds), and in terms of diversity of viewpoints and thought. By preventing all discrimination (such as that based on race, gender, nationality, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and age) and harassment (such as sexual harassment or workplace bullying), we endeavor to create a corporate culture which respects a wide array of opinions and values. ORIX has also enhanced its human resources and training systems to enable employees to both enjoy a sense of purpose in their work while maximizing their unique abilities and specialties.

Supporting Flexible Work Styles

ORIX aims to establish a safe, healthy working environment for employees with a diverse set of values. We make efforts to reduce excessive working hours which exceed the legal requirements of Japan and foreign jurisdictions. ORIX has a variety of human resource systems in place to enable flexible working styles that match employees’ needs in different life stages – from marriage, childbirth, and child rearing to caring for sick or aging relatives. Employees are given a wide variety of options which they can mix and match to use according to their situations.

Information about ORIX’s diversity, equity & inclusion promotion efforts and workplace environment-related personnel systems can be found here.

Human resources data, including working hours and leave taken, can be found here.