Japanese logistics firm Konoike Transport Co. and Philippine aviation service firm MacroAsia Corp. have teamed up to develop airport ground operation staffing in Japan, where the number of foreign travelers is expected to increase.
Konoike will acquire a 20 percent stake in MacroAsia's airport service unit, MacroAsia Airport Services Corp., while MacroAsia will acquire a 30 percent stake in Konoike Group's affiliate, Japan Airport Service Co., according to a deal sealed Tuesday.
The two will develop an airport ground handling staffing business to train and employ foreign workers at Japanese airports, as the Japanese government has allowed foreign employment in the business since April 2019, a statement issued by Konoike said.
"This will enable us to secure human resources for ground handling operations which are seeing a rapid increase in work amounts at airports in Japan," Yoshikazu Tabo, Konoike's managing executive officer and executive general manager of the airport division, said in the statement released Tuesday.
The Osaka-based firm has operations at six Japanese airports and aims to expand operations to several others.
It plans to increase the number of foreign trainees by 60 during this fiscal year from the current 300, of whom 30 to 40 are working in ground handling operations, and expects to add 100 trainees annually from the following year, a Konoike spokesman said Tuesday.