“週休３日”は人材確保の切り札に！浦河町は北海道の自治体で４月に初導入　採用活動でアピールする民間企業も　北海道

Three days off per week... What do you think about a "three-day weekend" system? Local Resident "A three-day weekend is great; you can take time for yourself." "It's good to have a good balance between your personal life and work, so it's good to have a good balance." The town of Urakawa in Hokkaido has made this a viable work style. Last week, the Urakawa Town Council passed an amendment to its ordinance regarding flexible working hours for town employees. Starting in April, they will be able to choose a three-day weekend. It's already happening in the private sector... Driver working on a three-day weekend "When I tell my friends about it, they say it's a great idea." Is a three-day weekend an effective way to secure talent? Let's take a closer look. Urakawa Town in Hokkaido's Hidaka region. This town is the first in the prefecture to introduce a three-day weekend. Urakawa Town Mayor Taku Ikeda "For a town like ours, located far from the city, securing talented personnel is an urgent issue. We want to increase the attractiveness of the workplace and secure young people who will choose Urakawa Town Hall." Urakawa Town once thrived as a horse-breeding region with a population of over 20,000. The population has now fallen to less than 12,000, and the town is aging. How can we increase the attractiveness of the workplace and secure talented personnel? The "three-day work week" system, which is one of our initiatives, is as follows: Until now, employees have worked five days a week, seven hours and 45 minutes each, for a total of 38 hours and 45 minutes. With the introduction of flextime, as long as they can ensure an effective work week of 38 hours and 45 minutes, they will be able to choose to work longer hours and take three days off to suit their own schedule. Urakawa Town Employee "This kind of initiative isn't available in other areas, so I feel it will make working here easier." "It's good in the sense that it broadens the range of ways I can work. I'd like to spend more time relaxing at home with my children." In Urakawa Town, with the exception of the fire department and daycare center, employees are free to choose their work schedule as long as it doesn't interfere with town hall operations. Meanwhile, there is a private company that has already implemented a three-day weekend. Taxi Next, a new company in Sapporo that opened three years ago, has a unique customer service policy, such as "announcing passengers at the door when they board," and they also promote their three-day weekend policy in their recruitment activities. Masataka Tanaka, Manager of the Planning Department at Goshin Holdings, which owns Taxi Next. "After we introduced the three-day workweek, we attended joint company information sessions, and people who had previously passed us by started stopping by. As a recruiter, I was really shocked." The average age of the 27 drivers who joined us as new graduates or mid-career hires is around 32. Compared to the average age of 62.8 years for taxi drivers in Hokkaido, this age is striking. Masataka Tanaka, Manager of the Planning Department at Goshin Holdings, which owns Taxi Next. "For example, we often hear stories of employees with children or caring for family members finding they have more time for themselves after switching to the three-day workweek." At Taxi Next, employees work 12-hour shifts, including a two-hour break, four days a week, with the remaining three days off. Takabe, who joined the company four months ago... Shohei Takabe (24) "I work two days a week, one day off, and two days off. I was surprised to hear they offer a full three-day weekend. The hours are long, but I think it helps me feel refreshed." "Workstyle reform" goes beyond just "days off"... Sapporo City is supporting workstyle reform for small and medium-sized businesses. One example of this is subsidies for introducing "telework." One company that has taken advantage of this is located in Shiroishi Ward. Takafuji is a company that manufactures window frames and performs on-site installation. In January, they received a subsidy from Sapporo City and created a "telework" environment that allows them to work from home. Takafuji General Affairs Manager, Takahiro Onoe "We needed to reduce work hours and streamline our operations, but we were short on computers. So we purchased five laptops and received the full subsidy of about 600,000 yen." Employees are now able to telework from home when they wish, and the system has improved work efficiency in a variety of areas. Takafuji General Affairs Manager, Takahiro Onoe "We used to have to go back to the office to write daily reports or quickly prepare purchase orders for clients that same day, but now we can do things like create simple documents on the go, so I guess there's been a change." Sapporo City's subsidy is available to small and medium-sized enterprises and sole proprietors, and, subject to certain conditions, will subsidize th...