KUALA LUMPUR - East Japan Railway, or JR East, has launched a training programme to develop around 100 foreign workers annually for railway maintenance roles.

The initiative comes amid severe labour shortages in Japan’s railway sector, as reported by The Japan Times.

The trained workers are expected to secure employment with railway companies nationwide.

The programme is being closely watched for its potential to help address workforce gaps.

On March 6, the training was opened to the media at JR East’s general training centre in Shirakawa, Fukushima Prefecture.

A total of 113 participants from four countries, including Indonesia and Vietnam, took part in the programme.

They attended lectures conducted in Japanese and underwent practical training exercises.

These included moving rails on a training track and operating machinery used to tamp ballast beneath the rails.

About 60 per cent of participants have prior experience in Japan’s technical intern training programmes.

Le Nhat Tin, a 30-year-old trainee from Vietnam, said understanding technical terms was initially challenging.

He said the content became easier to grasp with guidance from instructors.

“I have learned the importance of safety.

“I want to work in Japan for a long time,” said Pandu Mukti Pranoto, 24, from Indonesia.

The trainees arrived in Japan after receiving informal job offers from 47 companies.

These include maintenance divisions of seven JR companies, major private railway firms and their partner companies.

After completing four weeks of training, participants will sit for examinations by the end of this month.

Those who pass are expected to begin work in Japan this summer.

Labour shortages have been compounded by shifting worker preferences, with fewer people willing to take on night shifts.

Railway operators have responded by moving some maintenance work to daytime hours by suspending train services.

JR East, which faced a series of transport disruptions earlier this year, plans to increase its technical workforce in the next fiscal year.

“We have introduced new equipment, technologies and a labour-saving system, but it is difficult to secure enough maintenance workforce with Japanese workers alone.

“Foreign workers are rare in the railway sector, so we have called on other companies to take part in the training programme,” said Naoyuki Sakaguchi, manager of JR East’s human resources development unit.

The company plans to train about 100 foreign workers annually and may expand sessions if demand rises.

“Looking ahead, it is extremely important to involve foreign nationals and train them to address the labour shortages in the railway sector.

“Labour shortages have become an urgent issue, particularly for regional railways regarding track maintenance, and I want to closely monitor JR East’s efforts,” said Hitoshi Tsunashima, project professor at Nihon University’s College of Industrial Technology.

In March 2024, Japan added the railway sector to its specified skilled worker programme.

The scheme, introduced in April 2019, aims to increase the intake of foreign workers.

As of January this year, 52 individuals had been granted Type 1 residency status in the railway sector.

The status allows skilled workers to remain in Japan for up to five years.