2025 Volume 62 Issue 2 Pages 83-87
This study examined the effectiveness of work improvement activities as a methodology for enhancing safety in fisheries. A survey was conducted in set-net fisheries operated by the Noda village fisheries cooperative association (Below, FCA), Hirono town FCA, Kuji city FCA, and Ogonaihama FCA. In each region, workshops were held in 2014 and 2015 to show the procedures for implementing voluntary improvement activities. The survey evaluated the status of the following activities conducted by each FCA since 2016: implementation of work improvement activities, continuation of safety training sessions for fishermen, and whether any new activities other than those implemented in the initial training sessions were started. The results showed that work improvement activities continued in all FCAs. Regarding the continuation of safety training, in some areas, social workers and other instructors have been continuously employed as lecturers, whereas in others, meetings (instead of workshops) have been held for fishermen to raise safety awareness. In addition, two newly implemented improvement activities were identified, i.e., manualization of standardized work and sharing among fishermen. Thus, it was confirmed that these voluntary activities have been effective since their implementation because the “methodology” adopted to achieve improvement was presented rather than specific improvement points.
