Start of demonstration testing to secure agricultural labor force and increase local exchange population through business collaboration

JA Nagano Agricultural Labor Force Support Center, East Japan Railway Company, KDDI CORPORATION and Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. will implement an initiative to support agricultural work as side jobs or volunteer work by company employees to promote local agriculture by solving labor shortage in the busy farming season and sustainably revitalize the region by increasing the exchange population.

1 Background of the initiative

In recent years, shortage of labor during the busy farming season due to aging population and lack of successors is a major issue in regional agriculture. To address this issue, the JA Nagano Agricultural Labor Force Support Center is working to promote and expand the use of “daywork”, an app for one-day part-time agricultural work, as a farming service in the form of short-term part-time work. However, fundamental issues have not been resolved, although some results have been achieved.

On the other hand, conditions are now in place for business people to work as agricultural labor force due to companies lifting the ban on work-from-home and side jobs, but there are various issues to expand the initiative due to difficulty in finding partner farmers and managing labor.

Based on such social background and issues, a corporate management function is added to the one-day part-time agricultural work app “daywork” to promote participation in agriculture by company employees, and demonstration testing will begin with the aim to secure agricultural labor force and expand local exchange population.

2 Overview

(1) Purpose

The aim is to resolve shortage of local labor with agricultural support as side jobs or volunteer work by business people in the busy faming season when spot labor force is needed such as when harvesting fruits.

Additionally, we will work to transmit information and improve the environment so that farms can accept external labor force with a sense of security.

By having company employees come in contact with local agriculture through the initiative, we will develop human resources who are interested in agriculture and contribute to realizing a sustainable regional society by developing exchange population.

(2) Description

Corporate use function is added to the “daywork” app, which is used at the JA Nagano Agricultural Labor Force Support Center, and an environment is developed where corporate workers can engage in agricultural work on a daily basis as a side job or volunteer work.

The function will be used by employees of participating companies to verify necessary functions for corporate members of “daywork”.

Actual number of matches, and respective issues of the participating side and accepting side will be investigated through questionnaires during the demonstration period.

(3) Term

June to December 2023

(4) Area

Hokushin Area of Nagano Prefecture

3 Role and position of participants

（1）JA Nagano Agricultural Labor Force Support Center

Holding study sessions to promote the use of the app by local farmers and increase acceptance by farmers
Holding briefings and recruiting participating companies

Creating work videos for workers (company employees, etc.)(Note) Implemented at JA Nagano

（2）East Japan Railway Company

Organization of requirements to add corporate functions to the “daywork” app, participation in agricultural support by employees by using the app, internal information transmission to promote side jobs through the initiative, recruitment of participating companies

（3）KDDI CORPORATION

Calling out to other companies to participate, extracting issues of corporate resources solving regional issues through questionnaire analysis, participation in agricultural support by employees as volunteer work by using the app

（4）Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.

Participation in agricultural support by employees as volunteer work by using the app

(Note) JA Nagano Agricultural Labor Force Support Center is a council established by 23 organizations in Nagano Prefecture, consisting of Nagano Prefecture, 14 JAs in the prefecture, JA prefectural organizations (Central Union, Cooperatives, etc.) and agriculture-related organizations (Agriculture Council in Nagano Prefecture, Nagano-ken Nougyou Ninaite Ikusei Kikin), in order to implement an initiative to secure agricultural labor force in the prefecture in an integrated manner throughout Nagano Prefecture.