Safety & Health
Applying Frontline Experience to Safety Initiatives
Y.M：
Since joining the company, I have spent many years working on the production floor at the Kyoto (Oyamazaki) Plant. Now, I work in the Safety Group of the Safety and Health Care Department, where I am responsible for initiatives aimed at eliminating workplace accidents and traffic-related incidents, including those that occur during commuting.
Throughout my time in manufacturing, I have worked with five key responsibilities in mind: safety, quality, cost, delivery, and talent development. Now, my focus is entirely on safety. When an accident occurs, I visit the site, assess the situation firsthand, and discuss with frontline personnel why it happened and how similar incidents can be prevented in the future. Having spent many years on the shop floor, there are often things I can recognize immediately about working conditions and whether proposed countermeasures are realistic and practical.
Without safety and health, no work can truly succeed. Improving quality and efficiency is important, but those efforts must be built on a foundation where every employee can work safely and in good health.
S.S：
I work on the Mental Support Team, where I am responsible for employee mental health initiatives. My primary responsibilities include planning and conducting mental health training, administering and analyzing stress checks, providing consultation services, and supporting employees taking leave or returning to work.
What inspired me to work in mental health support was my feeling that, as people enter the workforce, expectations placed upon them increase while the systems available for seeking support often become less visible. That is why I believe it is important to identify signs of difficulty before someone’s condition worsens and help connect them with the support they need.
Preserving Lessons Learned and Practicing the Basics Without Exception
Y.M：
There is something we must never forget when talking about safety at Daihatsu. In 2009, a series of serious accidents occurred over a short period of time, resulting in the loss of a precious life. It was a year in which something that should never have happened took place, and it fundamentally changed Daihatsu’s approach to safety.
The rules and principles established at that time remain in place today. Rather than constantly introducing new measures, what matters most is ensuring those lessons are never forgotten and consistently carrying out the basic things that should always be done. We refer to this mindset as the thorough execution of ordinary but essential practices.
Looking back at the accidents that occurred in 2025, many may have been preventable if fundamental practices had been followed more consistently, including adherence to procedures, hazard awareness, and safety checks. That is why it is so important to follow established procedures, pause before taking action, and check one’s surroundings. Consistently carrying out each of these actions is critical.
For example, holding the handrail when using stairs or keeping to the right when walking. Even these basic rules are taken seriously at Daihatsu. Even if you believe nothing will happen to you, a fall can affect the people around you as well. We must continue reminding people that safety is built on the accumulation of small, everyday actions.
Using Data to Prevent Problems Before They Occur and Improve the Workplace
S.S ：
The same principle applies to health. Early awareness is essential. In 2025, the number of employees taking leave due to newly emerging mental health issues increased, reinforcing the importance of identifying concerns early and connecting people with the support they need. At the same time, leave taken due to recurring mental health issues remained within our target range, giving us confidence that our support efforts aimed at preventing recurrence are having a positive impact.
Analysis of stress-check results shows that employees identified as experiencing high levels of stress are more likely to take leave than those who are not. That is why it is important not to stop at conducting stress checks, but to proactively engage with workplaces where risks are identified and use those findings to drive workplace improvements.
To support this effort, we have expanded our poststress- check follow-up training and increased opportunities for employees and managers to learn about self-care and line care. We want employees to be able to recognize changes in their own condition, while also helping supervisors and colleagues notice signs of change and reach out early. Strengthening both of these capabilities is an important goal for us.
Y.M：
The same is true when it comes to safety. We analyze trends in workplace accidents and traffic incidents, then focus our awareness campaigns and safety-monitoring activities on situations where risk is highest. In traffic safety, we also focus on high-risk situations such as commuting hours and busy parking lots in the morning.
For both safety and health, it is not enough to simply look at the outcomes. What matters is understanding how to improve the behaviors and environments that exist before problems occur. The key is to identify early warning signs and potential risks before they develop into larger problems. I believe that consistently taking those preventive actions is what ultimately reduces accidents and health-related issues.
Creating a Workplace Where Everyone Takes Ownership
S.S ：
One of the biggest challenges in mental health initiatives is helping people see the issue as something that concerns them personally. We can provide specialized knowledge through training, but it is not easy to get people to apply that knowledge to themselves or their own workplace and turn it into action.
In the past, the Safety and Health Care Department and Health Center primarily led these efforts by providing training and support. However, we cannot support every workplace on our own. Going forward, it is important that each workplace identifies its own challenges and takes the initiative to create an environment where people can work with energy and engagement.
In 2025, we revised our approach to post-stress-check workplace improvement activities, placing greater responsibility on each workplace to develop and implement its own improvement plans. We plan to continue sharing successful examples and finding practical ways to make these initiatives easier for each workplace to put into practice.
Y.M：
The same is true for safety activities. They cannot be driven solely by the Safety and Health Care Department. Every individual in the workplace must take personal responsibility and act accordingly. We promote safety awareness through a variety of opportunities, including sharing lessons from serious accidents, distributing incident information across departments, issuing safety reminders through computer pop-ups, and providing safety education for mid-career hires.
For employees who are newly joining Daihatsu, it is especially important to explain why safety rules are valued so highly here. We believe that understanding the experiences and lessons behind those rules, rather than simply memorizing them, is the first step toward making safety a personal responsibility.
Creating a Workplace Where People Notice and Support One Another
S.S ：
In reality, many people find it difficult to ask for help. Some wonder, “Is this really something I should ask about?” Others worry, “Will asking for help affect how I am evaluated?” A few ponder, “People expect a lot from me, so I have to keep pushing myself.” As a result, they often endure too much on their own.
That is why not only self-care, but also line care, where supervisors and colleagues notice changes in those around them, is so important. It is important to build relationships through everyday communication so that people feel comfortable speaking openly when they are struggling. Both those seeking support and those providing it need to learn how to communicate effectively, how to speak up, and how to listen.
Y.M：
Even when I worked on the front line, I always valued creating an environment where everyone could work comfortably. Sometimes you can tell something is different simply by looking at someone’s expression in the morning or listening to the way they talk. Even when people do not realize they are pushing themselves too hard, those around them may notice subtle changes. Noticing those small changes and reaching out can sometimes be the first step toward preventing an injury or health issue.
S.S ：
Stress is not always a bad thing. When managed well, it can even contribute to personal growth. We want people to manage stress effectively, stay aware of their own condition, and feel comfortable seeking help early when they need it. Our goal is to create a workplace where those behaviors come naturally.
Y.M：
The role of the Safety and Health Care Department is to help create a workplace where everyone at Daihatsu can work more safely, stay healthy, and perform at their full potential. We want people to arrive at work healthy and return home with a smile. To protect that simple but important part of everyday life, we will continue working together with people across the company and steadily building on these efforts, one step at a time.