Compliance
Metrics and targets
Strengthen the diversity of internal reporting contacts and investigators
Results
Evaluated current systems in light of the revised Whistleblower Protection Act to determine if changes were necessary
Our Philosophy
Compliance goes beyond simply obeying the law; it includes abiding by internal standards and ethical norms as well. We see compliance as an indispensable foundation for the fair and robust business activities we promote.
We prioritize maintaining the trust of our stakeholders and society over short-term gain by raising compliance awareness to foster sound judgment among officers and employees alike.
Compliance Structure
The THK Group has a Compliance Committee that is headed by our President and includes outside directors and a legal advisor as observers. It convenes four times a year to approve the annual activity plan, report on results, respond to violations, and address internal reports made through the THK Group Helpline, all with the goal of establishing, instilling, and maintaining THK's compliance structure.
Each plant also has its own Plant Compliance Committee, headed by the plant manager, that convenes twice a year. These committees work to promote compliance and improve responses to reporting at the plant-wide level.
Compliance subcommittees, composed of members selected from each office and department, have also been established. While developing their own knowledge of compliance-related matters, members of these subcommittees also work with the organizations they represent to conduct training, identify issues, and act as a reporting resource for employees, coordinating with the Compliance Committee’s secretariat, the Risk Management Department, as necessary.
Compliance Structure
THK Group Helpline
The THK Group Helpline was established to facilitate prompt detection of and response to illegal activities, wrongful acts, and other compliance violations at the individual and institutional levels.
There are two internal contacts (the Risk Management Department and the Audit and Supervisory Committee) and one external contact (our legal advisor) for reporting, and reports can be made anonymously. Furthermore, we strictly enforce our rules ensuring the confidentiality of all reports and prohibiting retaliation.
A total of 167 cases have been reported to the THK Group Helpline since it was established in 2005. There were 23 cases reported in 2025, and we worked with the relevant divisions to take the necessary measures to address each of them.
In the last five years, the largest single category of cases has been harassment (including sexual harassment and power harassment), accounting for 38% of all reports. Violations of internal rules and employee relations/labor issues were also prominent among reports.
The breakdown of reports made in 2025 shows the continuation of these trends.
Reporting Trends
Breakdown of 2025 Reports
Compliance Training
THK plans and conducts a variety of seminars to raise compliance awareness. In 2025, we conducted seminars on general compliance as well as harassment and quality fraud. We also conduct audience-specific seminars for new hires, plant employees, global talent, and others as necessary.
Seminar Overview
1.General compliance
- The meaning of compliance and the risks caused by violations
- Case studies from other companies
- Tips for prevention and response
2. Harassment
- Examples of harassment and related legal cases
- Harassment awareness
- The importance of communication
3. Quality fraud
- Examples of quality fraud and its consequences
- The Fraud Triangle
- Quality fraud prevention
- Security export control seminars for directors
- Security export control seminars for new employees
- Security export control training performed for Group companies in Japan
- Other seminars held for individual departments
- Courses offered using e-learning
- Paper audits: 51 departments
- On-site audits: 3 departments
- Group companies: 1 company
| Participants/Type of training | Date(s) | Number of participants |
|---|---|---|
| Global talent training (Harassment) | January 27, 2025 | 49 |
| Global talent training (Compliance) | March 24, 2025 | 30 |
| TALK SYSTEM (Compliance seminar for management staff) | February 20, 2025 | 59 |
| TALK SYSTEM (Compliance seminar for regular employees) | February 20, 2025 | 85 |
| New-hire training | April 2, 2025 | 121 |
| Global talent training (Compliance/Human rights) | August 28, 2025 | 34 |
| Global talent training (Harassment) | September 10, 2025 | 28 |
| Global talent training (Basics of information security/Global handling of personal data) | October 23, 2025 | 23 |
| Plant compliance seminars (Quality fraud) | June to August 2025 | 3,086 |
| Manufacturing subsidiaries in Japan (Quality fraud) | July to December 2025 | 1,527 |
| 5,042 total |
“Compliance Tips” Quarterly Publication
One of THK’s efforts to promote compliance takes the form of a quarterly publication called “Compliance Tips” that presents relevant examples of legal violations and related risks.
It touches on compliance violations that employees can commit unknowingly, explaining them in an approachable way complete with illustrations and quizzes, and it is ultimately intended to foster and maintain greater compliance awareness.
2025 publications
Volume 25． THK Group Human Rights Efforts
Volume 26． Harassment: Case Studies to Consider
Volume 27． Pressing Pause to Think About How We Use Social Media
Volume 28． Virtual Meetings and Information Security
Compliance Survey
In order to identify compliance concerns and formulate concrete responses that properly address them, THK invites employees to participate in an anonymous compliance survey every year.
The results of the 2025 survey did not indicate that any violations directly related to serious misconduct had occurred. However, some responses to the survey suggested that not all employees are fully aware of the laws and rules relevant to their work. We are currently considering verifying understanding of these laws and rules with each department and ensuring that this information is shared.
Global Structure
Our Chinese operations also have a Compliance Committee similar to the one that exists in Japan. The committee, composed of all THK's Chinese manufacturing subsidiaries and led by our holding and management company, THK (CHINA) CO., LTD., convenes once a year to verify the status of compliance training, internal reports, serious legal violations (0 in 2025), and important legal changes. Established in 2019, the committee is now managed and maintained locally.
Compliance committees for Europe and the United States have also been considered and are to be established in 2026.
Security Export Control Structure
In order to maintain the peace and safety of the global community, THK performs security export control based on the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act of Japan. THK has established security export control regulations as part of its internal rules, with the president being the chief party responsible for export controls and the Risk Management Department's Security Export Control Section functioning as the managing department. The Security Export Control Section gathers information on changes to security export control regulations, notifies internal parties of updates, and conducts employee training to build a compliance framework. This group also coordinates with the relevant departments in order to promptly and appropriately classify products and examine transactions.
Next year, they will continue to participate in seminars held by organizations such as CISTEC and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in addition to gathering information by purchasing publications related to security export controls in order to handle these matters. Furthermore, THK will establish an even more appropriate and efficient security export control structure through the promotion of digital transformation.
Training
In order to increase institutional knowledge of these issues, THK offers directors, employees, and Japanese Group companies training on security export controls and on laws related to the export controls outside of Japan.
Internal Audits
Departments that export items were given a paper audit, and several underwent an on-site audit (conducted virtually). These internal audits confirmed the state of security export control operations in each department.