How Niseko Is Addressing Its Labour Problem

Niseko Town and Kutchan Town began collaborating last fall with an application-based national company called Timee to address the area’s labour shortage.

And so far, it seems to be helping.

Timee uses technology to match positions with the varied hours that individual workers are available, allowing them to report for duty without having to undergo an application process and streamlining payment so they are compensated as soon as their shifts finish.

Masiho Arakawa of Timee’s Public Relations department said that the collaboration with Kutchan and Niseko began when Timee approached their governments, after having already identified the area’s labour shortage.

Kutchan and Niseko, in an effort to get ahead of the current season’s anticipated staffing issues after a challenging 2022/23 season, entered into a comprehensive partnership agreement with Timee on 27 October 2023.

While Timee was already being used by some area restaurants and accommodations, the partnership agreement allowed Timee to hold explanatory meetings for businesses in cooperation with the towns and for Timee to be promoted through the town’s official channels.

Timee reported that as of 30 January, compared to last season, the number of job offers in Niseko and Kutchan on its platform has increased fivefold, the number of workers eightfold and the number of filled positions has nearly doubled.

While Timee doesn’t release specific numbers regarding the number of positions being offered in particular regions, a quick search on the Timee app shows dozens of separate companies offering work across the two towns, some repeat and some one-off jobs, most in need of several staff.

Timee Application screenshots showing various gigs in Niseko and Kutchan

One of these is a Tokyo-based company called Zycle with a dedicated Housekeeping Division in Niseko that services the Hilton Niseko Village and Niseko H2 Group’s facilities and guest rooms.

Zycle CEO Junji Takano said that the Housekeeping Division has found 75 workers through Timee over last December and this January, describing the process as “very easy and hassle-free.”

Kota Okamoto of Kutchan Tourism Association said that while Timee is still a “work in progress,” his organisation has already hired more than 30 Timee workers as of 15 January, giving permanent staff some breathing room.

Timee president Ryo Ogawa had the idea for the application in 2018 while he was a university student working part-time jobs at convenience stores and warehouses.

Frustrated by the various steps required for most part-time work in Japan like resume-creation, interviews and meetings, he designed Timee with technology to immediately match spot-work positions to individual workers’ available hours, eschewing the typical bureaucratic process.

When workers sign up with the Timee application, they are able to input their skills, credentials, regions where they are interested in finding work and pay requirements, if any.

And some participants are casting a rather wide net as many workers that have filled Niseko-area positions are coming from as far away as Sapporo, Otaru, and Noboribetsu, according to both Okamoto san and Arakawa san.

Although very modern in its app-based platform and western in its elimination of red tape, Timee’s marketing has taken a decidedly Japanese approach, having as its logo a cute bear-like creature and using actress and former teen-idol Kanna Hashimoto as its spokesperson.

Timee grew rapidly since its founding, registering over 2 million workers by 2022 according to company figures, and progressively began adding skills-training programs for in-demand positions as well as targeting regions with labour shortages, like Niseko.

The collaboration between Niseko, Kutchan and Timee is reflective of other efforts the municipalities have taken to address the area’s needs, like the “Niseko Model” collaboration with the Hokkaido Transportation Bureau and the GO Corporation that brought in about two dozen taxi drivers from Sapporo and Tokyo for the current winter season.

None of these measures is a panacea and labour remains a challenge for Niseko, but everyone spoken to for this article feels that the labour situation has improved since last year, despite initial tourism numbers suggesting that this season will see even more visitors.

The Timee collaboration is expected to continue next winter.

Images:
Timee, Timee Sukimabaito Application screenshots, Timee Commercial screenshot

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