Japan, facing a shortage of workers, especially in the agricultural and seafood-processing sectors, wants to receive about 10,000 workers from Vietnam every year, said the Japan International Training Cooperation Organization (JITCO). 

A Japanese recruiter in Vietnam interviews Vietnamese workers who have returned from China , Photo: Tuoi Tre

After the disastrous earthquake and tsunami last year, the proportions of workers in the two sectors have declined sharply because of the repatriation of a large number of Filipino and Chinese workers, the JITCO said.

Japanese businesses, therefore, have been in need of foreign workers to fill the vacancies to maintain and expand their operation.

Considering that Vietnamese workers are appropriate for working in Japan’s agricultural and seafood-processing sectors, JITCO wants Vietnam’s labor suppliers to increase the number of workers to be sent to Japan to work in the sectors this year. 

In general, Japan’s labor market can absorb about 10,000 workers from Vietnam a year to work in various sectors. 

Nguyen Gia Liem, head of the Vietnamese Labor Management Board, said the average salary of workers on Japanese farms or in seafood factories is now between US$1,000-1,500 per month. 

Following JITCO’s statement, Vietnamese companies that specialize in sending workers to Japan, said they would recruit workers from rural areas to meet Japan’s demand.

Work requirements in Japan are relatively easy, since Japanese employers demand that workers have secondary education and good health, no previous convictions, and have no legal barriers in leaving Vietnam or entering Japan. 

Candidates who get through the qualification round will be given Japanese language training and orientation education for 4-6 months, after which Japanese recruiters will interview them for final selection.

Except for the two sectors, Vietnamese labor exporters will maintain sending to Japan mechanics workers, food-processing workers, engineers and experts. 

(Except for the increased demand in the two sectors, Vietnamese labor exporters see no change in the number of mechanics workers, food-processing workers, engineers and experts they send to Japan every year.) 

As for high-skilled workers, like technicians and experts, the salary can amount to US$2,000 per month and they are allowed to bring their families to Japan to live with them during their working term.

Source: Tuoi Tre