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Transport clerical workers

How to become a Station Staff Member

Official title: Station Staff

Also called: Ticket and Gate Staff, Railway Passenger Services Staff

Sells and checks tickets, collects fare adjustments, provides IC card services and manages passengers on the platform at railway stations.

Main tasks

Workers in this job say university or high school is common. From job tag's survey of people in each job, who could give several answers. It shows what workers see as common, not how many workers hold each level.

How to become one

No particular qualifications or level of education are needed to start. People join a railway company after graduating from high school, university or similar. After new-staff training and training in using the equipment, they are posted to stations as station staff. After working at the ticket counter and gates, some sit exams and move on to become conductors or drivers. Others pass promotion exams and move into management roles such as deputy station master and station master. Ticket counter and gate work involves handling large amounts of cash, so you need to be able to manage money. Good customer service manners are also important so passengers enjoy using the station.

Ways in

Pay · Job openings · AI and this job

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Questions people ask

How do I become a Station Staff Member?

No particular qualifications or level of education are needed to start. People join a railway company after graduating from high school, university or similar. After new-staff training and training in using the equipment, they are posted to stations as station staff. After working at the ticket counter and gates, some sit exams and move on to become conductors or drivers. Others pass promotion exams and move into management roles such as deputy station master and station master. Ticket counter and gate work involves handling large amounts of cash, so you need to be able to manage money. Good customer service manners are also important so passengers enjoy using the station.

How much does a Station Staff Member earn in Japan?

Average annual income in the private sector, bonus included, is ¥5,797,000 (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). The figure is for the wage survey group Transport and post clerical workers, which covers several jobs.

Do you need a degree to become a Station Staff Member?

Not always. In this job's census occupation group, 29% of workers are university graduates. Ways in include: Junior college (短期大学) programme.

Will AI change the work of a Station Staff Member?

Generative AI could change many tasks in this job, which usually reshapes the work more than it replaces it, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 解説系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_description_7_01.xlsx）ver.7.01 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 簡易版数値系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_numeric_7_00.xlsx）ver.7.00 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

Sources: JILPT Occupational Information Database download data via job tag (解説系 ver.7.01 and 簡易版数値系 ver.7.00, downloaded 4 October 2026), processed by Peernovo; MHLW, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025; Statistics Bureau of Japan, 2020 Population Census; MEXT, School Basic Survey 2025; MHLW, Employment Referrals for General Workers (Hello Work statistics). Figures processed by Peernovo. English job names, translations and the matching of jobs to statistical groups, schools and degree fields by Peernovo.

Updated 4 October 2026