Despite the passing of The Act for Promotion of Employment of Persons with Disabilities causing an increase in the number of people with disabilities working at private-sector companies, there are still many such persons who are unable to work because of the severity of their disability or their age. Benesse Socius Co., Ltd. aims to create a society in which every person with disabilities with the requisite motivation can feel the joy of being part of society by working. In addition to supporting the continued employment of such people, it strives to forge a place that can become an anchor point for their lives and mental health. We talked to the staff involved in the establishment of Benesse Socius’ welfare service center, a place that recognizes everyone’s differences and individuality and is overflowing with gratitude.

What do we need to do to create places for the continued employment of people with disabilities who have nowhere else to work?

Benesse Socius is a Benesse Group company that handles the welfare service business, aiming to provide comprehensive support for the everyday lives and societal participation of people with disabilities.

It was established in response to issues that became apparent at the workplaces of people with disabilities. The Benesse Group also includes special-purpose subsidiary Benesse Business-mate, Inc., which employs persons with disabilities such as by supplying administrative support to businesses. It was when visiting a workplace for people with disabilities while working at Benesse Business-mate that Mr. Hajime Yamaguchi (President and Representative Director of Benesse Socius) got the idea for establishing the company when he realized that: “There are lots of people who need a little more training and a low-stress working environment in order to work at regular companies.”

Given that the Group corporate philosophy is “well-being,” Mr. Yamaguchi was sure that Benesse could help in some way. From this one idea, he began considering setting up a new business. Putting the concept of “developing work spaces that are easy to work in” at the heart of his planning in order to enable workspaces suitable for a wide range of people with disabilities, including those with serious disabilities, he hit upon the possibility of forming a support business for continuous employment Type-A “A-type business that support continued employment” (hereafter “A-type business”).

■Support business for continuous employment Type-A
A workplace that provides opportunities for productive activity as well as training and other necessary support to improve the knowledge and abilities needed for employment to people who might struggle to work at a company but can continue working based on an employment contract.

Considering various possibilities for such A-type business, Mr. Yamaguchi formulated a plan to establish a new company and commercialize a large-scale laundry center in collaboration with the Group company that operates nursing care homes. After internal talks to gain further understanding, in 2016 he created the Benesse Socius Inagi Center which was designated as an A-type workplace.

“Socius” means “ally” in Latin. Following on from the first laundry center in Inagi, a second was set up in Itabashi in 2019. At its inception, the Inagi center had four laundry staff members handling items from four nursing care homes, but the two centers now employ 74 staff members taking in items from more than 80 nursing care homes.

A place overflowing with small miracles and gratitude where people say every day “They were able to achieve this today”

A visit to the Inagi center reveals a place with a lively group of staff members who as well as being employees of Benesse Socius are also welfare service “users” receiving support and training ready for regular employment.

Laundry items and towels belonging to the residents of nursing care homes operated by Group company Benesse Style Care are constantly arriving. The staff members check carefully to make sure there is nothing in the pockets. They separate clothing by type into those which can put into a dryer and those which cannot, and then after items have been washed and dried fold them individually for each resident and put them into bags along with towels ready to be sent back to each home. These tasks reveal each person’s specialties, such as those with good memories and memorization skills, those adept at folding towels, and those good at putting folded laundry into bags. The staff work opposite each other so they can see each other’s faces enabling a brisk workflow.

We talked to Mr. Yamaguchi and Mr. Susumu Naito (Director and Business Manager of Benesse Socius) about the personal growth of the staff members achieving “small miracles each day.”

“People who were unable to even greet others when they joined the company are now working as leaders of the group. Moreover, one person who was only able to work very slowly because of the characteristics of their disability now walks around quickly (having watched others move around as they work), and the care worker who has looked after this woman since she was a small girl said “That’s the first time I have ever seen her walk that quickly!” (Mr. Naito).

“We hold a meeting with the care workers at the end of each day. As there are 40 users of the Inagi Center, every day brings a series of “Did you see what so-and-so managed to do today?” comments.” (Mr. Yamaguchi)

“Thank you” is a word heard a lot at the Inagi Center.

“Benesse Socius’ pledge is to do work that prompts customers to say “Thank you.” However, as we can’t hear from nursing home residents directly, myself and the care workers make sure to say “Thank you” several times a day. “Thank you” is a magic phrase that brings smiles to people’s faces. Our belief is that having that experience every day feeds people’s working motivation and eventually translates into customer satisfaction.” (Mr. Naito)


(Left photograph) A letter of thanks sent to Benesse Socius staff members by the delivery personnel who bring laundry from the nursing homes. It is displayed proudly on the whiteboard of the room used for breaks and meetings. (Right photograph) Let’s do work that keeps our customers in mind and makes them say “Thank you” is taken from Benesse Socius’ pledge.

Working is a special experience. We want to continue to be an “anchor point” that ties people together with each other and with society.

Our visit left us with the impression of place with a lively workforce, but the state of emergency imposed on cities in Japan as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic some time later forced a significant reduction in laundry work and the requirement for staff members to stay at home for six weeks. Mr. Naito speaks of the unforgettable moment when the state of emergency was lifted and work restarted.

“When we contacted the managers of the nursing homes who send their laundry to us to tell them we were restarting operations they said things like “We’ve been waiting for this” and “Thank you so much,” and that reaffirmed to us how much the services are needed. Even during the pandemic-enforced break, the staff members called us every day as they were practicing folding laundry. We tested them all when they came back to work, and while they were very nervous, they soon cheered up when they found out they had passed. I got quite emotional when I saw how earnestly they all worked when they came back.” (Mr. Naito)

“Working is a special experience. Although people with disabilities receive a disability pension that means they can probably survive OK, I think what they really want is to connect with other people and society through work. For the people who come to Benesse Socius this place acts as an anchor point in their lives. I want this to be somewhere that they can work without hardship and for a long time.” (Mr. Yamaguchi)


Mr. Hajime Yamaguchi, founder of Benesse Socius (right of the photo), and Mr. Susumu Naito, who signed up to do something different after working as the manager of a Benesse Style-Care home for many years (left of the photo), pictured at the Inagi Center.

This summer, Mr. Naito is planning to establish a “Social Firm” in Tokyo (a type of company recognized by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as a place where people who struggle to find employment, such as people with disabilities, single parents, and those who have experienced social withdrawal, can find work). This will be another new challenge for Benesse Socius.


In March 2021, the Benesse Group signed up to The Valuable 500*1, an international movement to promote the social inclusion of people with disabilities. It brings together companies that aim to hire a diverse range of human resources and to create environments that let people give full rein to their abilities (regardless of whether they have disabilities or not) in order to actively promote the hiring of people with disabilities. In addition, these companies also work to develop educational materials that are sensitivity to those with disabilities for the good of the next generation.

*1 The Valuable 500 is an international network that sprang out of the annual meeting of The World Economic Forum (the Davos Forum). It is a collection of 500 companies that are implementing inclusion policies for people with disabilities with the goal of creating an inclusive society.


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Benesse Socius

https://www.benesse-socius.co.jp/
Established in 2016, it provides employment support for every person with disabilities by taking account of their individual characteristics and abilities. By giving them lots of opportunities to hear the words “Thank you,” it builds their motivation to work and teaches them the importance of working together, with the aim of turning out people who can contribute to society and their local communities.