Vegecoop Inc.

Company overview

Vegecoop Inc. dispatches foreign human resources on a scale of approximately 1,000 people from over 10 countries. The company achieves a high visa acquisition rate and retention rate at dispatch destinations through the precise assessment of human resources and a substantial follow-up system. As the company name suggests, its business originally started with the planning and sale of organic vegetables.
Naoshige TAKATSU (general manager of the Administration Division) comments: "To address the aging population and labor shortage in the vegetable wholesale business, we initially hired international students as part-time workers. We planned to hire them as full-time employees after that, but they could not meet the criteria for residence status and had to look for other employment. In that process, we noticed the issue that there were few places accepting foreign human resources, so we launched a human resources business."
The diversity of human resources and the rejuvenation of the organization due to accepting foreign human resources led to the expansion of sales channels in the wholesale business. In addition, trust relationships with contract farmers have deepened through human resource dispatch, leading to good results in the food business as well.
Supporting this human resources business are foreign coordinators. They cover eight languages and provide consistent support, from negotiations with "sending organizations" that dispatch human resources from overseas to recruitment, entry into Japan, and dispatch. Reaksmey CHHOUN, from Cambodia, is one of them. He came to Japan to study, and after attending a Japanese language school and a vocational school, he participated in Vegecoop’s employment information session. He was scouted by an employee of the company and joined as a coordinator. "I felt the appeal of a job where I can support people in the same position as myself," says CHHOUN.

Work-life balance initiatives

The company aims for a sustainable way of working. Behind this is a reflection on the past. Takatsu comments: "One employee was very busy and did constant overtime , so we tried to hire new personnel to share the work. However, that employee was chased by deadlines and could not even take time for handover. In the end, the people around could not help, and we made the employee suffer."
Therefore, the company organized the work details of all employees, proceeded with creating manuals so that anyone can understand the work details, and established a system where other people can also take on the work. The company is promoting efforts to bring overtime closer to zero by eliminating tasks that can only be done by specific employees. It seems that CHHOUN also has other employees take over his work when he needs to take time off from the company for the care of his child.
Also, flexible leave systems have been introduced to ensure sufficient rest. One of them is a system where employees can apply for compensatory leave on an hourly basis if they work overtime due to specific circumstances. CHHOUN also says that he takes time off on an hourly basis on other days when he works overtime to handle entry procedures for hired foreign human resources. He comments: "It helps when I go to the city office for private matters." Furthermore, the system that allows employees to take homecoming leave for up to three weeks is popular among foreign employees. "I use this leave to spend time relaxing with my family in my home country during the Lunar New Year," says CHHOUN.

Human resource development initiatives

CHHOUN, who joined as the first Cambodian coordinator, reflects: "Since it was work in which I had no experience, I didn't understand anything at first, and it was tough." However, being able to perform tasks steadily after that was thanks to OJT, where one trainer is assigned to one employee. "A senior staff member taught me in detail, so I was able to learn the work with peace of mind," says CHHOUN.
Being able to advance one’s career in stages across job categories is also a characteristic of Vegecoop. According to Takatsu: "There are employees who, after joining as dispatch staff, transferred to the head office to become the ones supporting dispatch staff and are challenging themselves to attract foreign human resources. Furthermore, there are people who have acquired specialized skills through visa procedures, invoice handling, and payroll calculation, and who built new careers in accounting and labor management." CHHOUN has also expanded on his dreams, saying: "I want to try accounting in the future."
Also, setting the timing of evaluation and salary increase to four times a year is unique to the company. Takatsu comments: "Some foreign employees felt that assessments every six months or a year were too infrequent. We thought that even if the salary increase amount is the same in the end, motivation is more likely to last if we increase the frequency."
Vegecoop has enriched its training and evaluation systems and established a comfortable working environment. While wishing for employees to "stay with the company as long as possible," the company says its stance is to accept it if they wish to take on another challenge. "In almost all cases, work experience is required to get a job at any company. That is why I want them to experience various practical tasks and build a track record at our company and increase their career options," says Takatsu.

Message from our top executive

General Manager, Administration Division / Naoshige TAKATSU

In the future, we will focus on expanding dispatch destinations so that foreign human resources can be active in more industries. At the same time, in order to have them stay with their dispatch destinations for a long period, we plan to proceed with strengthening the training system, such as training for learning technical terms in each industry. Many of our foreign employees are members with a strong sense of purpose, and I feel they are reliable. There are still many jobs that we want to entrust to people, so if you have the desire to challenge yourself, let's work together!

Message from foreign talent

Coordinator / Reaksmey CHHOUN (Nickname: Samey)(Cambodia)

Currently, I am instructing a junior employee who is also from my country of Cambodia. I imagine that there are many things that they don't understand, so I make sure to support them any time to prevent their anxiety. There are many people who are serious about their work in Japan, and there is a culture of working with all one’s might during work hours. Since I can feel a great sense of fulfillment, I would like to continue working in Japan in the future. Tokyo is a big city, and it is attractive to be able to get to know people from your same home country through events and other activities. Even if you feel anxiety about leaving your home country, please come and try working here at least once.