Reinforcing Environmental Safety and Health Management

Occupational Health and Safety Policy and Target

To establish a safe and healthy workplace with comfort while consistently lowering the rate of workplace accidents and disasters, FENC established Occupational Health and Safety Policy as the highest guiding principle governing the management of safety and health of the Company. With “risk control” and “continuous improvement” as the management principle, operational safety is our utmost concern. The Company takes an active stand toward improving the work environment, manufacturing equipment and operational approaches to ensure the safety and health of the workers (including employees and contractors) and stakeholders.
⇥Occupational Health and Safety Policy

Executive Support and Involvement in Occupational Safety and Health

During the quarterly FENC Board meetings, the president from each Business presents the Occupational Safety and Health Management Report compiled by the Labor Safety and Health Department from the headquarters. In 2022, 4 reports were presented. The Board serves the supervisory role and conducts review and questioning over the report. Improvements needed will be acted upon at production units based on Board resolutions to ensure proper occupational safety and health management.

Continuous Operation of Occupational Safety and Health Management

As of the end of 2023, all FENC production sites had implemented the internal inspections of occupational safety and health management system, while 15 sites had acquired ISO 45001 certification (verified by an independent and external agency).
1. A total of 21 sites, representing 100% of the scope of this report, have implemented the system, covering 100% of the employees and workers.
2. Conducts related to occupational safety and health management; worker engagement; consultation and communication; prevention and mitigation of occupational safety and health impacts directly related to job duties are carried out in accordance with the stipulations in the occupational safety and health management system.

Risk Identification, Assessment and Control

Occupational Safety and Health Policy and principles governing FENC production sites are as follows:
1. The incorporation of new production lines, production processes or equipment is governed by Change Management Process. An application for change shall be filed and the process includes self-assessment on risk and control, change review/supervisor approval, pre-launch evaluation and closing.
2. Risk identification shall be conducted to determine the risk level of operations associated with raw materials, products, activities and services which may potentially harm the operator, including employees and contractors, or cause damages to equipment.
3. Improvement goals shall be established based on risk levels and distribution of resources. Hardware improvement takes the priority, followed by control measures such as administrative management with special plans or operational guidelines. Implementation of the control measures are strictly monitored to minimize risks. Operation of control mechanisms is based on Regulations Governing Risk Identification, Assessment and Control set forth at each plant.
4. Plans and implementations regarding overwork, workplace violence and the protection of the health of the middle-aged and elderly as well as maternity care at FENC production sites are conducted in accordance with local regulations. There were no irregularities in 2022.
5. All production sites arrange risk control training for employees. In 2022, 54 sessions were held with 2,046 employees completing 3,782 training hours.

Hazard Recognition, Assessment and Analysis Procedures at Production Sites

Building Workplace Safety and Health with Labor-Management Participation

FENC establishes Occupational Safety and Health Committee at production sites, serving as the highest authority at each organization on the review and discussion of safety and health management. Setting up labor representatives with more than 30% seats. The Committee convenes quarterly to determine the formulation, coordination and supervision of safety and health related issues at each plant to ensure full implementation.

Occupational safety and health management is one of the priority concerns when it comes to labor relations at FENC. The following subjects are included in the labor relations meetings, Occupational Safety and Health Committee meetings, and collective bargaining agreements with employees:
1. Provide personal protective equipment.
2. Implement labor relations management and establish the occupational safety and health committee with labor and employer representations.
3. Involve labor representatives in the health and safety inspection, review and investigation.
4. Provide job-related training for workers.
5. Establish grievances mechanism for workers.
6. Guarantee workers the right to refuse unsafe work.
7. Schedule regular health checkups for workers.
8. Comply with regulations from International Labor Organizations.
9. Clearly define the procedure or system that workers shall follow when encountering safety or health related problems.
10. Clearly establish safety and health goals and ways to achieve such goals.

The Occupational Safety and Health Committee at Operational Sites

Operational Sites	Number of Committee Members	Percentage of Worker Representatives
Headquarters	11	36%
Hsinpu Chemical Fiber Plant	29	34%
Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant	21	33%
OGM	18	56%
Kuanyin Dyeing and Finishing Plant	33	36%
Hukou Mill	12	33%
Plant 1 of OPTC	15	33%
Plant 2 of OPTC	17	35%
FEFC	12	33%
OPSC	22	86%
FEIS	30	67%
WHFE	18	33%
OTIZ	48	67%
FEIW	22	68%
FEDZ	61	98%
FEAZ	25	52%
FEAV	29	17%
FENV	15	13%
FEPV	74	51%
FIGP	45	67%
APG Polytech	10	50%

Note: 1. There is no provision in the Vietnamese regulation concerning the number of labor seats in the occupational safety and health committee. 2. There is no provision in the U.S. regulation regarding the establishment of occupational safety and health committee.

Reinforcing Safety and Health Awareness Through Training

FENC provides regular training to make sure that every employee is familiar with occupational safety and health regulations as well as the management mechanism. The total occupational safety and health training hours accrued by FENC and contractor employees are 227,720 and 41,289 in 2022, respectively.

2022 Employee Safety and Health Personnel Training Statistics

	Number of Classes			Number of Trainees			Training Hours
	2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022
On-The-Job Training on Safety and Health	869	993	1,311	17,590	19,967	34,421	131,835	84,031	165,251
Health Management Training	194	252	272	7,123	12,435	11,961	14,371	13,844	15,046
Hazardous Chemical Training	162	89	140	4,327	2,154	3,295	17,231	8,810	19,925
Protection Personnel Training	15	15	20	184	213	213	416	330	412
Emergency Response and Personal Protective Equipment Training	292	464	337	12,316	6,138	10,860	45,800	15,296	20,052
Internal Safety and Health Auditor Training	30	44	31	405	238	444	3,417	1,113	3,252
Risk Control Training	33	82	54	2,239	1,717	2,046	4,248	5,217	3,782
Total	1,595	1,939	2,165	44,184	42,862	63,240	217,318	128,641	227,720

 

2022 Contractor Safety and Health Personnel Training Statistics

	Number of Classes	Number of Trainees	Training Hours
On-The-Job Training on Safety and Health	725	7,201	36,996
Health Management Training	181	2,159	1,982
Hazardous Chemical Training	178	644	321
Emergency Response and Personal Protective Equipment Training	222	874	1,067
Internal Safety and Health Auditor Training	1	24	24
Risk Control Training	41	505	899
Total	1,371	11,407	41,289

Chemical Safety Management

All production sites of FENC have established chemical management regulations of chemicals based on Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). Chemical management at all production sites places are according to the items as following:
1. Chemical management at all production sites places an emphasis on source management. When procuring hazardous chemicals, the manufacturer, importer or supplier must provide the hazardous label and Safety Data Sheets (SDS). The same information is required when changes are made to existing data.
2. When the chemicals arrive at the plant, on-site staff or the end-user must conduct examination based on the label, SDS and applicable regulations prior to acceptance.
3. Post identification for hazardous chemical and prepare safety data sheet (SDS).
4. The Company utilizes Chemical Control Branding (CCB) to evaluate the likelihood of exposure (usage and the degree of spread) and takes corresponding or control measures to mitigate risks. When changes occur to the types of chemicals as well as operational or production procedure, exposure assessment must be conducted again within 3 months before or after the changes occur.

SHEF Task Force, Mainland China

As the COVID-19 pandemic headed into a downward trend in 2022, the Safety, Health, Environmental and Firefighting Task Force (SHEF Task Force) in mainland China maximized the site visit opportunities by conducting safety training. A total of 12 training sessions were offered, including the recognition and assessment of hazard sources, chemical management, installation of scaffolding, lifting operation, jurisdictional safety management, safety culture infrastructure and governmental inspection. The attendance count reached 375, and the total training hours reached 1,713. Following the training, SHEF continues to help production sites conduct operational risk assessment. Priority tasks for SHEF in 2022 are as follows:
1. Coordinate and promote jurisdictional management between FEIW and FEDZ with clearly delineated goals.
2. Implement the reporting and optimize the management of various environmental safety and health incidents with a focus on mild injuries and false alarms and provide assistance to applicable plants with in-depth investigation on recordable injuries.
3. Share environmental safety and health incidents and the latest legal and regulatory updates.
4. Develop the SHEFs Smart Management Platform with continuous optimization of the hidden danger investigation system, equipment and facility systems as well as applets for the manufacturing execution system (MES+); launch the dual prevention mechanism system; upgrade the permit to work systems (PTWs) to align with new governmental regulations concerning special operations.
5. Promote learning and exchange among production sites and coordinate resources to cultivate a culture of mutual support and growth.
6. Issue the fourth SHEF quarterly, which includes an overview on the Production Safety Law of the People's Republic of China with the latest amendment, the dual prevention mechanism for risk assessment and hidden danger investigation, the production safety month campaign and a special issue on fire safety. All of the content is contributed by the managers and employees. The quarterly is a treasure trove of staff’s ideas and experiences on environmental safety and health and a useful reference for all production sites in terms of the management of environmental safety and health.

Safety and Health Enhancement Campaign – Worker Engagement

1. FEAV and FENV - the Workplace Safety Facilitator
To enhance workplace safety, representatives from FEAV and FENV attended the safe production and management training held by Nike Vietnam. The training included fire safety, structural safety and women’s health awareness. A total of 71 employees completed the training in 2022 and became workplace safety facilitators (WSF) responsible for promoting the three course subjects at FEAV and FENV. The program will benefit over 2,500 employees.

2. OPTC and Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant – Occupational Safety and Health Week
Lecturers were invited to explain the applications of the occupational safety and health system and audit techniques to 340 employees from OPTC and Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant. Participants were encouraged to recommend any improvements related to safety, health and environmental protection, including operational approaches, operating environment, hardware facilities and safety protocol to heighten the safety awareness among staff and establish a workplace with more safety and environmental focus.

3. FEPV’s Polyester Plant – Occupational Safety Equipment Display
To ensure that all staff are equipped with appropriate and effective PPE, the Environmental Safety Department of the Polyester Plant of FEPV made requests for suppliers to provide multiple PPE options that meet the plant specifications from which staff may choose, including five selections of chemical-resistant gloves, three selections of ear plugs and three selections of chemical respirators. Staff who wish to purchase or replace their PPE may visit the Environmental Safety Department to try out the available options, determine the fit and effectiveness, and then make the choice. This arrangement keeps staff from making the wrong purchase, which saves costs and ensures safety.

4. OTIZ – Apparatus Operation Competition
OTIZ held an apparatus operation competition to improve site workers’ skills and regulate employee conducts. The event also helped enhance team building, igniting their passion for work while improving production safety and efficiency.

5. OPSC – Lecture on Hazard Source Recognition and Assessment
OPSC held the lecture to enhance hazard source recognition and assessment, safety awareness and emergency response among workers, helping the plant meet the requirements of establishing the dual prevention mechanism and safety standardization system mandated by the Ministry of Emergency Management of the People’s Republic of China. The lecture encompasses theoretical knowledge, recognition approaches, case studies and group discussions. The lecturers guided 160 employees to apply analytical thinking and interact with one another. Prizes were handed out during the lecture to encourage participation.

6. Kuanyin Dyeing and Finishing Plant – Road Safety Lecture
Traffic-related fatality has been climbing by the year. To help staff understand occupational accidents caused by traffic incidents in 2021 as well as the returning rate of employees affected by such incidents, Kuanyin Dyeing and Finishing Plant invited lecturers from Jhungli Motor Vehicles Station in Taoyuan to discuss road safety and defense driving. The event helps staff understand the characteristics of people, vehicles and objects involved as well as the procedures of handling traffic accidents. The case studies keep staff informed so they can keep away from traffic accidents.

7. The Dyeing and Finishing Plant of FEPV - Risk Ranking and Equipment Safety Improvement
The Environmental Safety Department collaborated with applicable units and conducted risk assessments regarding 53 types of equipment, including the forklift, stationary crane, lift and production machinery. The risks identified were ranked and classified to prioritize the enhancement of protective devices and safety measures. The Utilities Department coordinated with the contractors on installing the safety components of the machinery and equipment. The improvements made 2022 a year free of equipment-induced disasters.

Strengthening Emergency Response with Safety Drills

To strengthen employees’ ability to react immediately during emergencies and activate emergency responses to reduce the loss of lives, property and production capacity, all FENC sites must conduct risk identification and assessment with considerations given to the geographic location, type of hazardous chemical, and area prone to natural disasters. Once the assessment is completed, staff shall consider controllable factors within the plant and propose emergency response procedures targeting various emergency scenarios. The order of each training and drill is determined based on the type and frequency of the disaster.

During an emergency, all production sites shall follow the protocol established for emergency response and notification procedure. Staff shall identify the disaster, notify applicable units and personnel, and engage in damage control to keep the situation from worsening. Ongoing assessment shall be made to the on-site conditions to minimize harm to the staff, property and environment with adequate treatment to prevent secondary disasters. The investigative unit shall conduct thorough reviews over the cause and propose improvement strategies. A report shall be presented and the unit responsible for the emergency shall undergo educational training to prevent future occurrence.

The government aggressively promoted the green energy industry in 2022. As a show of support, FENC installed solar power systems at multiple production sites. To prevent fire or electrical hazards associated with the solar installations, FENC has established management measures with safety drills.

Smart Occupational Safety and Health

1. FENC Legal Cloud System
To keep all production sites informed of the latest regulatory updates and amendments and implement the necessary measures swiftly for compliance, FENC incorporated the Legal Cloud system in 2022. It checks the latest updates on regulations and guidelines against plant inspection records and sends automatic warnings to alert compliance risks. The software also coordinates inter-departmental collaboration and management regarding stakeholder requests such as ISO standard identification and audits. The implementation drastically reduced the time required for the annual compliance review when regulatory changes occurred. The system automatically sends notifications regarding the changes to avoid omissions and ensure the integrity of compliance audits.

2. Facebook Occupational Safety and Health Campaign for Migrant Workers at Hsinpu Chemical Fiber Plant
To enhance occupational safety and health awareness among migrant workers, prevent occupational accidents and share relevant information, Hsinpu Chemical Fiber Plant established a Facebook group to disseminate information regarding hazard awareness, work environment, health management and risk prevention. The notification function of the social media application allows migrant workers to participate anywhere, anytime. The view rate is analyzed through the program analytics to help the administrators monitor the performance and calibrate the decision making at any time. As of December 2022, promotional campaigns conducted through this platform include COVID-19 boarder restrictions; hook knife safety; forklift operation; working at height; fire safety. The aim is to establish adequate background knowledge on safety to prevent harm.

View Rate of Occupational Safety and Health Promotion Materials

Occupational Injuries

At FENC, the end game for occupational safety and health is “zero occupational disasters”. The Company values the safety and health of each and every employee and protects them by raising their awareness and understanding through conducting risk assessment and identification; preparing promotional campaigns and public notice; holding pre-work and toolbox meetings; designating safety and health month with programs and activities. In the unfortunate event of occupational disasters, immediate actions are taken to address the emergency. The following procedures are applicable to all production sites:

All improvements must be completed within 2 months. Facility improvements that require construction contracts shall be completed within 3 to 6 months.

There were no severe occupational injuries (inability or difficulty to recover to pre-injury health condition or recover within 6 months) recorded at FENC production sites in 2022. Among the occupational injuries, the number of others(slip) rank the highest with 24 cases (31%). Major causes of the occupational injuries include environmental slipperiness and negligence of the risk factors. To prevent future occupational disasters, FENC has established the following measures:
1. Implement the 5S methodology for safe and healthy workplace and eliminate risk factors.
2. Remind operators by adding warning labels at the job site.
3. Implement dynamic safety and health inspections and promote pre-work hazard recognition.
4. Enhance safety and health promotion among employees to reduce occupational accidents.

The investigation of and correction measures for occupational accidents at all FENC sites have been completed following the steps referenced above.

Statistics on Occupational Injury in 2022

 

Statistics on Occupational Injury

		Petrochemical			Polyester
		2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022
Occupational Injury Cases	Male	4	2	0	35	37	22
	Female	0	0	0	7	10	2
	Total	4	2	0	42	47	24
Injury Rate (IR)	Male	0.71	0.34	0.00	0.61	0.60	0.36
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.12	0.16	0.03
	Total	0.71	0.34	0.00	0.74	0.76	0.39
Absentee Rate % (AR%)	Male	0.33%	0.37%	0.90%	0.11%	0.16%	0.20%
	Female	0.04%	0.05%	0.04%	0.03%	0.11%	0.08%
	Total	0.37%	0.42%	0.94%	0.14%	0.27%	0.28%
Lost Day Rate (LDR)	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	16.05	5.02	4.87
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	2.02	0.83	0.92
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	18.07	5.85	5.79
Number of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0	0	0	1	0	0
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	0	0	0	1	0	0
Rate of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.02	0.00	0.00
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.02	0.00	0.00

 

		Textile			Total
		2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022
Occupational Injury Cases	Male	37	29	38	76	68	60
	Female	35	20	15	42	30	17
	Total	72	49	53	118	98	77
Injury Rate (IR)	Male	0.23	0.20	0.21	0.34	0.32	0.24
	Female	0.21	0.14	0.08	0.19	0.14	0.07
	Total	0.44	0.33	0.29	0.52	0.45	0.31
Absentee Rate % (AR%)	Male	0.23%	0.37%	0.12%	0.20%	0.31%	0.15%
	Female	0.44%	0.28%	0.33%	0.32%	0.23%	0.26%
	Total	0.67%	0.65%	0.44%	0.53%	0.54%	0.41%
Lost Day Rate (LDR)	Male	4.36	2.88	2.77	7.20	3.42	3.23
	Female	4.67	1.72	1.49	3.89	1.42	1.32
	Total	9.03	4.60	4.26	11.09	4.83	4.55
Number of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0	0	0	1	0	0
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	0	0	0	1	0	0
Rate of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.004	0.00	0.00
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.004	0.00	0.00

Notes: 1. There were no severe occupational injuries (inability or difficulty to restore to pre-injury health condition within 6 months) between 2020 and 2022, which corresponds to 0% Process Safety Incident Severity Rate (PSISR) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 2. There were no occupational illnesses between 2020 and 2022. 3. Injury rate (IR) = total number of occupational injuries × 200,000, which corresponds to Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) and Process Safety Total Incident Rate (PSTIR) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 4. AR(%) = Days of Absence ÷ Total Work Days × 100%. 5. LDR = Lost Days ÷ Total Work Hours × 200,000. Lost days do not include the day of injury and the day of work resumption. 6. Rate of Work-related Deaths = Number of Work-related Deaths ÷ Total Work Hours × 200,000, which corresponds to fatality rate in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 7. IR, LDR and Rate of Work-related Deaths indicate the percentage of every 100 workers with 40 work hours a week, 50 weeks a year. 8. Occupational injuries include premature deaths, permanent total and partial disabilities, temporary total disabilities and that result in no more than one lost day. Minor injuries and traffic accidents that occur during employees’ commute to and from work are excluded. The classification corresponds to Process Safety Incidents Count (PSIC) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry.

The 2022 statistics on occupational injury from FENC production sites are compared against the 2021 statistics from Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Ministry of Labor of Taiwan, as shown in the following table. In 2022, there were no occupational injuries at the Petrochemical Business. The disabling injury frequency rate and severity rate at the Textile Business are far lower than those from the industry peers. At the Polyester Business, both rates are higher than the industry overall. However, all improvements have been made.

Comparison Between FENC and Nationwide Statistics on Occupational Injuries

	Petrochemical Industry FR	Petrochemical Industry SR	Polyester Industry FR	Polyester Industry SR	Textile Industry FR	Textile Industry SR
Statistics from Taiwan OSHA	0.50	12	0.99	14	2.08	103
Statistics from FENC	0	0	1.93	28	1.44	21

Note: 1. Disability injury frequency rate (FR) = total number of disabling injuries ×1,000,000 ÷ total manhours worked. 2. Disability injury severity rate (SR) = number of injured days off work × 1,000,000 ÷ total manhours worked. 3. FENC data is compared against the 2021 statistics for the petrochemical, chemical material manufacturing and textile industries from Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Ministry of Labor.

 

Contractor’s Occupational Injury at Production Sites

		Petrochemical			Polyester
		2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022
Occupational Injury Cases	Male	0	2	2	1	3	6
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	1
	Total	0	2	2	1	3	7
Number of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0	0	0	3	0	0
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	0	0	0	3	0	0
Injury Rate (IR)	Male	0.00	0.32	0.41	0.06	0.30	0.58
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.10
	Total	0.00	0.32	0.41	0.06	0.30	0.67
Rate of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.17	0.00	0.00
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.17	0.00	0.00

 

		Textile			Total
		2020	2021	2022	2020	2021	2022
Occupational Injury Cases	Male	0	0	0	1	5	8
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	1
	Total	0	0	0	1	5	9
Number of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0	0	0	3	0	0
	Female	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	0	0	0	3	0	0
Injury Rate (IR)	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.04	0.26	0.45
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.06
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.04	0.26	0.50
Rate of Work- Related Deaths	Male	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.12	0.00	0.00
	Female	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
	Total	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.12	0.00	0.00

Notes: 1. There were no severe occupational injuries (inability or difficulty to restore to pre-injury health condition within 6 months) between 2020 and 2022, which corresponds to 0% Process Safety Incident Severity Rate (PSISR) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 2. There were no occupational illnesses between 2020 and 2022. 3. Occupational injuries include premature deaths, permanent total and partial disabilities, temporary total disabilities and that result in no more than one lost day. Minor injuries and traffic accidents that occur during employees’ commute to and from work are excluded. The classification corresponds to Process Safety Incidents Count (PSIC) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 4. Injury rate (IR) = total number of occupational injuries × 200,000, which corresponds to Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) and Process Safety Total Incident Rate (PSTIR) in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 5. Rate of Work-related Deaths = Number of Work-related Deaths ÷ Total Work Hours × 200,000, which corresponds to fatality rate in the SASB standards for the chemical industry. 6. IR, LDR and Rate of Work-related Deaths indicate the percentage of every 100 workers with 40 work hours a week, 50 weeks a year.

FENC is committed to the management of safety and health. We grieve the loss of lives due to workplace disasters. Therefore, we establish SOPs for all operations and require staff compliance. This is a priority for safety and health management to prevent such tragedy from ever happening again.

Employee Health Management and Promotion

Employees are FENC’s most treasured assets. The Company never hesitates to devote resources that nurture employees’ mental and physical health. It is the Company’s wish to foster a workplace that offers safety, comfort and friendliness for all employees.

1. Regular Health Check

To promote healthy workplace, FENC headquarters, Hsinpu Chemical Fiber Plant and Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant established their own health management systems. Staff may log on at any time to review past health check reports and monitor their own health. They may also register online for health promotion campaigns. The system provides health-related knowledge to help employees improve health management.

In addition to establishing health promotion plans in accordance with the regulations, the health management system conducts analysis based on employees’ health reports. When anomalies are detected, a comprehensive monitoring mechanism is designed according to the type and severity of conditions. The mechanism includes classification, tracking and medical consultation in order to provide employees with effective, systematic and continuous health management. During the process, occupational physicians and nurses provide holistic health risk assessment and control, offering complete care to safeguard employees’ health.

FENC production sites in mainland China offer annual health checks to employees who have completed one year of employment. The health center establishes a comprehensive health profile for each employee and invites medical doctors to explain employees’ health conditions during the one-on-one consultation. Production sites in Vietnam have also arranged preliminary health checks for employees.

2. Health Management for Special Hazardous Operation

To control occupational diseases, FENC production sites established the following control measures targeting hazardous operations:

Health check items	Number of people being assessed		Tier 1 Management		Tier 2 Management		Tier 3 Management		Tier 4 Management
	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Noise	416	142	177	70	207	68	0	0	32	4
High Temperature	74	0	43	0	31	0	0	0	0	0
Dust	275	1	239	1	36	0	0	0	0	0
Ionizing Radiation	22	4	16	1	6	3	0	0	0	0
Organic Solvents and Specialty Chemicals	113	15	89	15	24	0	0	0	0	0

Tiered health management is offered to employees based on their conditions. Tier one involves the provision of health information as references. At tier two, the doctors specify tasks unsuitable for certain health conditions in addition to providing the health information. For tiers three and four, employees’ duties and tasks are selected to match their health conditions. The Company conducts site visits to evaluate operational risks and make improvement accordingly. Additional health-related measures include providing adequate PPE and requiring workers to wear PPE properly; labeling restricted zones with entry for authorized operators only; conducting hazard exposure at the operating environment semi-annually and reducing worker exposure; requiring workers to wear radiation dosimeters during radiation operation; installing local exhaust at the testing area; establishing health protection plans for operators with regular health checks for special hazardous operation with tiered management.

At production sites in mainland China, employees susceptible to occupational diseases undergo annual health checks targeting specific occupational hazards with reexamination and follow-ups, where on- and off-the-job health checks are conducted to prevent occupational diseases and ensure labor rights. 

FENC’s production sites in Vietnam have arranged advanced healthcare services for workers who are at high risks of occupational hazards. Nearly 80% of the workers at the garment plants are female. Hence, more health resources targeting women’s health are provided. Examples include educational materials on the cervical cancer, breast cancer as well as maternal and newborn care. The plants also collaborate with brand customers to provide consultation services regarding family planning, which has been popular among the female workers.

3. Health Protection Programs

Globalization has altered the labor structure, prompting the government to develop worker care policies addressing a different set of labor issues, such as shift scheduling, night shifts, long working hours, repetitive tasks, overwork, fatigue, stress and workplace violence. Meanwhile, as women excel and gain presence at the workplace, maternity care is also gaining attention. FENC production sites in Taiwan have been promoting four major health promotion programs aimed to protect employees’ mental and physical health, including the ergonomic hazard prevention program covering musculoskeletal disorders caused by repetitive movements; prevention program for diseases induced by overwork; maternity health protection program; workplace violence prevention program.

FENC has provided assistance to 140 individuals, 114 males and 26 females, who are identified as potentially hazardous cases and hazardous cases. Medical appointments and health consultation are arranged for the worker assessed as experiencing overwork. Occupational health nurses email health related information to provide personal health consultation and recommendations with follow-up assistance and care. The nurses also notify the supervisors to provide aid to employees. 

Workers assessed as having musculoskeletal disorders caused by repetitive movements receive medical referrals, appointments with occupational health physicians and health consultation. The Company conducts workplace visits when deemed necessary to determine the association between the disease and work duties. Workers also receive individual health consultation with recommendations as well as follow-up assistance and care. The 52 workers identified as potentially hazardous cases have received the medical attention they needed and seen improvement.

Statistics of Risk Identification and Assessment

Hazard	Individuals undergoing hazard recognition and risk assessment		Non-hazardous		Non-hazardous Potentially Hazardous		Hazardous
	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Maternal Health Care	-	23	-	23	-	0	-	0
Workplace Violence	1,983	425	1,983	425	0	0	0	0
Overwork	2,536	952	2,469	941	65	11	2	0
Musculoskeletal Disorders Caused by Repetitive Movements	2,619	994	2,572	979	39	13	8	2

 

Maternal protection is highly valued at production sites in mainland China. To enhance care for pregnant employees, FEIS created a private quarter for expectant mothers to rest in comfort and safety and enhanced the sense of workplace happiness among female employees. At production sites in the Suzhou region, female employees who are nursing are provided with a one-hour breastfeeding break each day. Private breastfeeding rooms are also prepared to help them nurse their newborns.

At OTIZ, resident physicians and nurses provide in-house preliminary health check and consultation for employees during working hours at the infirmary of the plant. An occupational health profile is established for each employee to help them receive holistic care. In addition, the resident physicians offered online pandemic consultations in 2022, providing professional medical advices to employees with added convenience.

To address the anxiety emotional instability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, FEIS added mental health to its corporate health management plan. The plant posts comforting humanitarian messages and videos on WeChat and TikTok and helps employees release stress by expressing their emotional sentiments, view articles and video content through the social media.

4. Health Programs

Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant invited contract physicians to provide on-site health services for employees with high blood pressure, blood sugar, blood lipids and BMI, the leading risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. The plant also invited cardiologists to give lectures on preventing and controlling the three hypers. The doctors explained the importance of regular tracking and control to prevent health hazards caused by cardiovascular diseases. Employees as well as their supervisors are reminded to pay attention to occupational health and safety. The campaign lasted for three months with 167 participants attending seven lectures.

Based on the results of the musculoskeletal questionnaire in the Guideline for Preventing Ergonomic Hazards, a large number of employees at Kuanyin Chemical Fiber Plant experience neck, shoulder and back pains. The plant held a lecture on relieving office aches and pains with physical therapists explaining the cause of these issues. Employees learned about pain relief by adjusting their chairs and postures along with a few tips.