Japanese farms turn to foreign workers as rural population ages

Staffing company recruits temporary labor from places such as Southeast Asia

Farms across Japan are increasingly turning to temporary foreign workers from Southeast Asia and beyond for help during busy seasons, as a shrinking rural population and aging local workforce stoke labor shortages at home.

As part of this shift, Persol Holdings, one of Japan’s largest temporary staffing firms, in March launched a service to send foreign workers to farms for seasonal jobs such as harvesting.

Persol Global Workforce, a unit of the broader company, recruits workers from Indonesia and other Southeast Asian nations who have studied in places such as agricultural schools. They enter Japan on “specified skilled worker” visas, with Persol offering them the chance to “refine their skills” on a variety of farms around Japan.

That means Japanese farmers can reduce costs by only taking on staff for periods when they are needed, with the recruitment agency sending workers from site to site as harvest times often differ by region. For example, cabbage is harvested in Gunma and Nagano prefectures from June to October, but Chiba and Aichi prefectures gather the crop from November to May.

“It will be difficult for our country to secure enough farmworkers solely from a local population that is continuing to decline,” said Morihiro Tada, CEO of Persol Global Workforce. “We need to take a whole new approach to maintaining the agriculture that is essential to our lives.”

Japanese farmers hope to reduce costs by only taking on staff for periods when they are needed. (Photo courtesy of Persol Global Workforce)

Persol in November acquired a foreign workers dispatch business from Tokyo-based agricultural staffing company Sharagri as the foundation for its push into the sector. The company plans to attract new customers by capitalizing on Sharagri’s relationship network with farmers across the country, as well as by cooperating with local governments.

Persol is aiming for its new service to generate 1.3 billion yen ($9.7 million) in sales by the fiscal year ending in March 2026, sending out around 550 workers to farms each month.

Japan introduced its “specified skilled worker” program in April 2019 to attract foreign staff for 12 sectors facing labor shortages. Workers must pass skill and Japanese language tests.

One category of worker under the program can stay for up to five years but cannot bring their family into the country. A second category is allowed to remain in Japan for longer and be joined by family members.

Less than 10% of people with “specified skilled worker” status currently work on farms, according to data from the Immigration Services Agency.

As well as Indonesia and Southeast Asia, Persol also hopes to recruit workers from South Asian countries like India, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

“Using ‘specified skilled workers’ will allow Japanese farmers to build networks with their foreign counterparts. Our short-term goal is to make up for labor shortages, but we also want to help Japanese farmers advance overseas in the medium- and long-term,” Tada said.

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