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Working Holiday on Sado Island

 
Working Holiday in Sado Island
 
 
For those who want to get to know rural and traditional Japan, Sado Island, which with its 855 km2 (330 sq mi) is Japan's sixth largest island after the main islands Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku and Okinawa, is the perfect place.
 

About Sado Island

 
When gold was found on Sado Island in 1601, the island flourished economically and culturally, developing a unique and rich cultural heritage, including performing arts such as dance, chants and music, the world-famous Taiko drumming, puppet theater, folklore festivals, and traditional handcraft. Sado has hundreds of Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines and several historical villages from Edo Period (1603-1867), which have remained architecturally mostly intact.
 
The island is of extreme scenic natural beauty, with 288 km of rocky coastline, dense forests, terraced ricefields and a northern and southern mountain range reaching an altitude of 1172 meters. Sado is sparsely populated, with the vast majority of the population of around 55,000 living in Sado City in the flat middle part of the island.You can find all infrastructure there that you can expect from a Japanese city of that size. As opposed to large cities such as Tokyo, you will find it easy to get in contact with the population, as the people of Sado are very community-oriented and interested in their fellows.
 
The island has an oceanic climate with hot and humid summers and cool, humid winters.
 
World Unite! cooperates with the Sado Tourism Association that we share the office with near the Ryotsu ferry port.
 

Working Holiday Jobs on Sado Island

 
On Sado Island we can offer pre-arranged Working Holiday jobs in the following areas:
 
Gastronomy, Hotels, Tourism
 
Tourism in Sado is mainly about nature experiences and cultural experiences, as well as culinary offerings that appeal to both Japanese and foreign tourists. A limited number of typically smaller, owner-run ryokans, hotels, restaurants and tourism attractions are hiring participants on a Working Holiday visa, including kitchen assistants, waitresses, hotel receptionists, cleaners, and bed makers. The tourism high season is during the summer months.
 
Agriculture
 
Farms in Sado are usually small. The products include rice, vegetables such as radish, asparagus, potatoes, fruits such as kakis (persimons), apples, pears and kiwis, as well as cattle keeping and breeding.
 
Farm jobs are possible all year round, but most jobs are offered during the planting and harvesting seasons (spring and fall). Rice is planted in April, with rice nursery boxes prepared in advance and the placed in the fields. Rice is harvested and packed in September and October. In April and May, the persimon trees are pruned. The harvest takes place from the end of October to the middle of November when the fruits must be picked from the trees and sorted according to size and quality. Vegetables, fruits and grass are also harvested during the summer months. In winter there are tasks related to the further processing of food such as drying/conserving radish, as well as tasks related to cattle keeping.
 
Fishery Jobs
 
Much of the traditional Japanese food comes from the sea, including fish, seafood and seaweed. We can arrange Working Holiday jobs at small fishing businesses that can be categorised as follows:
 
Aquacultures for fish: Fish such as Red Snappers are bred in floating net enclosures in quite bays. The job is to go by boat early in the morning to the net enclosures and feed the fish, catch them by net and pack them for the fish market.
 
Aquacultures for oysters and mussels: Oysters and mussels are harvested at aquaculture farms of Lake Kamo from November to May. The job is to unload the oysters and mussels from the boat in the morning, to open the shells and remove the oyster/shellfish meat.
 
Aquacultures for seaweed and algae: Seaweed usually grows on ropes in shallow bays and is harvested several times a year.
 
Fishmonger at Ryotsu Port: The fishmonger buys fish and seafood from  fishermen in Sado for resale at the Toyosu fish market in Tokyo. Your job is to weigh fish, cut it by weight, pack it, label the iced boxes and load the truck. This job is available from May to August and November/December. The fishmonger also runs a sushi restaurant in Sado where you can work.
 
The remunersation of Working Holiday Jobs in Sado is generally within the statutory minimum wage of Niigata prefecture at 830 JPY/hour, with you typically working 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. During the harvest season longer working hours might be required, which often depend on the weather.
 
We will arrange accommodation for you, whose standard and rental costs depend on local availability. In the case of rooms of simple standards, if available, the monthly rent is about 10,000-35,000 JPY; if only hostel/ryokan accommodation is available within a reasonable distance from your workplace, this will cost you 2000-2700 JPY per night.
 
Language requirements: Some jobs are possible without any knowledge of Japanese, others require basic Japanese or advanced Japanese.
 

Who can join the program "Working Holiday in Sado Island"?

 
The requirements are:
 
  • You need to be able to get a Working Holiday visa. This is only possible for citizens of the UK, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, France, Portugal, Spain, Hungary, Argentina, Chile, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Taiwan and Hong Kong aged 18-30 years (at the time of applying for the visa).
  • It is expected that you are serious about and motivated about the work and able and willing to integrate into a rural Japanese community. We will prepare you for this! After we have confirmed a job to you and you have accepted it, you should not cancel it for minor reasons. Being on time and the meticulous performance of your tasks is expected!
 

Can I do the Working Holiday job on Sado Island as part of my longer Working Holiday stay in Japan?

 
Of course! You will only get the Working Holiday visa once in a lifetime, so you should make use of it to the fullest! With the Working Holiday Visa you can stay for up to one year in Japan and accept fully remunerated jobs. If you book our Working Holiday package "Working Holiday in Sado Island", it includes all the support services of the Working Holiday Package Tokyo. Prior to or after your job on Sado Island you can come to us in Tokyo and make use of our Tokyo support services at no further cost.
 

What do we offer you as a participant of our program "Working Holiday jobs on Sado Island"?

 
Sado IslandWorking Holiday Package Sado Island:
1 Participant 1100 EUR, 2 Participants 850 EUR p.p. 
Book now!
 
The Working Holiday Package "Ryokan jobs in Japan" includes:
 
  • Upon booking Translation of your CV/resume to Japanese
  • Presentation of jobs in Sado and making arrangements for a job interview via phone or Skype
  • Personal Preparation/Consultation for the job interviews
  • Assistance with travel arrangement to Sado Island
  • Pickup from Ryotsu Ferry Port in Sado and transfer to your accommodation on Sado Island
  • All services which are part of our Working Holiday Service Package Tokyo:
    • Preparation documents (Online Knowledge Base) – including all kinds of practical information for your life in Tokyo and Intercultural Preparation
    • Question and Answer zoom session prior to your arrival
    • Arrangement of accommodation
    • On arrival, pick up from Haneda or Narita Airport or Tokyo Station by public transport and drop to accommodation
    • On-site assistance including:
      • Immigration Department (Residence Card)
      • Residence Registration
      • Tax number
      • National Health Insurance
      • Opening a bank account and mobile phone contract
      • Japanese Language Course (at extra cost)
      • Local orientation
    • Assistance with finding a job
      • Help with job application in Japanese (preparing your CV/resume in Japanese)
      • Job Counselling Session with a lot of information about working in Japan
      • Registration at the employment office or one-on-one support session at our office
      • Providing job offers from other sources
    • Bilingual Contact persons on site (English and Japanese) for any assistance
    • Use of PC and printer for researching job offers and creating application documents
    • We are your contact partners throughout your year in Japan!
    • For the CO2 compensation of your long distance flights, we plant 10 indigenous trees per participant on the slopes of Kilimanjaro in Tanzania

 

What is the process now?

 
The necessary steps are:
 
  1. Upon booking and payment of a first instalment of 200 EUR we translate your CV/resume to Japanese and bring it to the right format.
  2. You can let us know your job preferences in Sado from the 3 categories (gastronomy/hotels/tourism or farming or fishing).
  3. After some days we will present job options to you and you let us know which ones you prefer.
  4. We will then let you know the date for a job interview with your first choice.
  5. Prior to the job interview we will give you some advice about and prepare you for it. The employer will at the end of the interview typically confirm to you whether you are hired or not.
  6. In case you are not hired, we will arrange job interviews with your 2nd, 3rd choice etc. until you will have been accepted
  7. The remaining instalment for the Working Holiday package "Sado Island" is only due one month prior to your arrival.
 

Can I combine the job on Sado Island with other pre-arranged Working Holiday jobs that World Unite! is arranging (farmwork and ryokan jobs elsewhere in Japan, ski resort jobs)?

 
The Working Holiday support services in Tokyo are already included in this package. You can also book our pre-arranged Working Holiday jobs in ryokans and on farms elsewhere in Japan and at ski resorts. For every additional package an extra of only 100 EUR applies.
 

What happens if no job can be found for me on Sado Island?

 
In this unlikely event, we will suggest an alternative job to you elsewhere in Japan. You can decide if you want to accept it, or if you prefer to use only the Working Holiday package in Tokyo (that we will only charge you for), or you can completely withdraw from the program (with a full refund).

 
 
Sado IslandWorking Holiday Package SADO ISLAND:
1 Participant 1100 EUR, 2 Participants 850 EUR p.p.
Book now!
 
    BOOK NOW OR INQUIRE!
 
 
 

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