For nurseries, child welfare facilities and operators in Japan
Hiring that starts with
letting childcare workers
see your workplace
What qualified childcare workers returning after a break want most is “a chance to see the workplace before starting.” Cura lets you start hiring childcare workers (保育士) and child instructors (児童指導員) through visits and trial shifts.
The Cura app is in Japanese.
See the employer site for fees and other details.
How you meet candidates on Cura
- 1VisitThe job seeker comes to see your nursery
- 2Trial shiftThey actually work a shift, and are paid for it
- 3HiringIf both sides are happy, move on to hiring
Job seekers can apply for visits and trial shifts with no résumé or interview. Qualifications are checked from documents.
DATA
Childcare hiring in numbers
Job openings-to-applicants ratio for childcare workers
July 2026. 1.15 for all occupations. 3.88 in January 2026
Source: 保育士の有効求人倍率の推移（R8.7） — Job openings-to-applicants ratio for childcare workers (July 2026) (Children and Families Agency (based on the Employment Security Statistics), Sept 2026)
Registered childcare workers not working at facilities
October 2024. Includes people working at unlicensed facilities, kindergartens, etc.
Source: 基礎資料（保育人材の確保のための総合的な対策） — Background data: comprehensive measures to secure childcare staff (Children and Families Agency, Mar 2026 edition)
No. 1 support wanted by qualified childcare workers out of the field: “a chance to see the workplace before starting”
No. 2 was “a role that builds experience gradually, not as a class lead” at 40.8%
Source: 保育士等の意識及び業務負担軽減に関する調査研究（令和7年度）調査結果概要 — Survey on childcare workers’ attitudes and workload reduction (FY2025), summary of results (Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting (commissioned by the Children and Families Agency), Mar 2026)
Placement agency fee for a childcare worker (per hire, median)
Median fee rate of 25%. Note the small number of responses
Source: 医療等分野における雇用仲介事業に関する調査研究事業 報告書 — Report on job placement businesses in the medical and related fields (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, published Mar 2026, corrected July 2026)
Improved staffing ratios for nurseries (25:1 for 4–5-year-olds, 15:1 for 3-year-olds, and an add-on for 5:1 for 1-year-olds) and the “Kodomo Daredemo Tsuen” childcare-for-all system, launched in every municipality in April 2026, mean even more childcare staff are needed. Meanwhile, many registered childcare workers are not working in childcare.
4 POINTS
4 ways to become the nursery
returning childcare workers choose
Show your everyday reality
What returning childcare workers want to know is “could I make it at this nursery?” Letting them see an ordinary day, such as how breaks work, digital record-keeping and how staff talk to each other, is the best explanation you can give.
Offer a gradual way in
Being able to offer “start as an assistant or floater” makes it easier for people returning after a break to apply. The national Program to Strengthen Hiring of Childcare Assistants (保育補助者雇上強化事業) also covers hiring qualified childcare workers as assistants (subsidy for up to 1 year; availability depends on the municipality).
Put allowances and their distribution into words
Since FY2025, nurseries can distribute Tier 3 of the pay-improvement add-on (処遇改善等加算, up to ¥40,000 a month) flexibly at their discretion. Be ready to explain concretely on a visit how much the team leader allowance is and whether you offer housing support.
State the hours in part-time contracts
From April 2026, the ¥1.3 million dependent limit can be assessed from the employment contract. This can’t be used with a contract that only says “per shift schedule,” so stating scheduled weekly hours and the commuting allowance amount helps people who want to stay within the dependent limit apply with confidence.
- If someone actually does work during a trial shift, they may count as a “worker” under the law. You then need to pay at least the minimum wage and cover them with workers’ accident compensation insurance.
- From October 1, 2026, employers are required to take measures to prevent sexual harassment of job seekers, including applicants and workplace visitors (amended Equal Employment Opportunity Act). Decide who will handle visits and interviews, and set up a contact point for concerns.
- Even in casual conversation during a visit, avoid asking about family, housing, place of origin or other matters that could lead to discrimination in hiring.
Sources: 労働基準法研究会報告「労働基準法の『労働者』の判断基準について」 — Labour Standards Act study group report on criteria for “workers” (Ministry of Labour, Dec 1985); 企業において募集・採用に携わるすべての方へ 男女均等な採用選考ルール — gender-equal recruitment and selection rules (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, June 2026); 公正な採用選考の基本 — basics of fair recruitment and selection (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare)
Visits and trial shifts are a chance for job seekers to learn what the workplace is really like before joining. We have not found any research showing that “visits and trial shifts lead to people staying.”
Show candidates what job ads can’t:
invite them to see your nursery
Start hiring childcare workers and child instructors through visits and trial shifts.
See Cura’s hiring serviceThe Cura app is in Japanese.
Sources
- 保育士の有効求人倍率の推移（R8.7） — Job openings-to-applicants ratio for childcare workers (July 2026) (Children and Families Agency (based on the Employment Security Statistics), Sept 2026)
- 基礎資料（保育人材の確保のための総合的な対策） — Background data: comprehensive measures to secure childcare staff (Children and Families Agency, Mar 2026 edition)
- 保育士等の意識及び業務負担軽減に関する調査研究（令和7年度）調査結果概要 — Survey on childcare workers’ attitudes and workload reduction (FY2025), summary of results (Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting (commissioned by the Children and Families Agency), Mar 2026)
- 医療等分野における雇用仲介事業に関する調査研究事業 報告書 — Report on job placement businesses in the medical and related fields (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, published Mar 2026, corrected July 2026)
- 令和８年度 保育関係予算案の概要 — Overview of the FY2026 childcare budget request (Children and Families Agency, Jan 2026)
- 令和７年度以降の処遇改善等加算について — The pay-improvement add-on from FY2025 onward (Children and Families Agency, Oct 2025)
- 労働契約内容による年間収入が基準額未満である場合の被扶養者の認定における年間収入の取扱いに係るQ&A — Q&A on assessing dependent status when contract-based annual income is below the threshold (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2026)