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jamo22
Joined: 30 Apr 2007 Posts: 47
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 8:21 am Post subject: should anyone accept 220 000? |
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Hi, ive never worked in japan, have experience elsewhere, and got offered this amount by a recruiter to teach in public schools. Is this Crazy low? has anyone accepted this amount and lived to tell the tale? |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009 Posts: 1546 Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 9:34 am Post subject: |
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250,000 is supposed to be the non-JET standard although I've noticed scarily low salaries popping up in entry level jobs these days... I've seen 185,000!
Could you live off 220,000 and still have a little to put aside?
Well it depends on your lifestyle but it is possible especially outside of the big cities where housing is often substantially cheaper. If you have student loans, etc to pay back, you will need to do some hard budgeting before you accept any salary let alone a lower than standard one.
What is your holiday pay like?
Have you combed the contract for other deductions?
Is your contract tied to company accomodation?
Do you get paid for transport on top of that salary? |
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jamo22
Joined: 30 Apr 2007 Posts: 47
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 11:20 am Post subject: |
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the contract seems to be pretty shocking on a whole.
19 months
have to pay 50 000 visa fee if break it early
salary is tied to accom, 55 000, which is deducted
from your salary, in leopalace, whcih i think would be
alright.
60 000 fee at end of contract for 'cleaning' and 'moving'
No Paid leave! Im pretty sure this is illegal no? you get the whole
month of august off, but no salary, although they will pay for your
rent.
I dont need to save any money, and the main reason im considering the contract is because I think it would be better to teach in a public school compared to an eikewa. |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009 Posts: 1546 Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 11:52 am Post subject: |
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Seems a scam.
The may be jacking up your rent. And yes whilst there is a clean up fee when you move out of many Japanese apartments, for Leopalace it is just under 30,000.
There are no visa fees for your employer. You cover all if any fees when you take the COE to get processed in exchange for your passport stamp (4,000yen if you do this at immigration in Japan, �6 if you are British and having it processed in the UK, free for US citizens in the US or the UK, etc). So that 50,000 if you break the contract is not only ridiculous but also illegal to write into the contract - Glenski is oracle of Japanese law quotes and links.
And yes you should be getting 10 paid personal days within your first 12 months (available for use after your first 6 months).
What about national holidays? Plenty of them througout the year. Are none of these paid either? |
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jamo22
Joined: 30 Apr 2007 Posts: 47
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 12:18 pm Post subject: |
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moving fee and cleaning fee together is 60 000.
public holidays are paid. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 12:49 pm Post subject: |
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Do not take that job. They have illegal clauses regarding penalties and fees, and I wouldn't want my job tied to my housing.
Let someone else who is desperate take that job. You can find better.
No paid leave at all in 19 months' time? Totally illegal!!
"Visa fees"??? As seklarwia wrote, there is no such thing. Just because it's in a contract, that doesn't make it legal or binding. They sound like they got burned with a previous teacher or two and are trying to make it up financially by threatening people. |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009 Posts: 1546 Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 1:57 pm Post subject: |
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jamo22 wrote: |
moving fee and cleaning fee together is 60 000.
public holidays are paid. |
Moving what where?
I was in a Leopalace until Jan of this year. I got charged their standard cleaning fee. Moving costs cannot be predetermined unless somebody can see the future. You pay for moving if it is required and the amount determined by the amount you are moving and the distance it is being transported.
I mean I just moved a whole apartment full of stuff to the opposite end of my prefecture (including large furniture and appliances including washing machine, fridge/freezer, tables, etc) and it didn't cost 30,000.
Leopalace places are furnished so you are hardly going to be buying anything large enough that might cost a lot to move.
They are just looking for ways to avoid having to pay you your final pay cheque. |
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wayne432
Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 255
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 2:26 pm Post subject: |
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If you move out of an apartment, there is generally a "cleaning" fee... However, it's never 60,000 yen... maybe 20-30,000.
19 months? Sounds like someone jumped ship early.
Visa fees are bogus.
220,000 a month for how many days/hours a week?
If you're working full time (40 hours a week), it's a rip off.
I know that some interac branches have 5-day part time positions that amount to roughly 200,000 a month, but that's for a 20 hour work week.
No personal holidays at all? Bogus.
Though technically a company doesn't have to give you holidays the first 3 months on contract if they don't want to... I think? |
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EmowshinallChicken
Joined: 25 Jun 2010 Posts: 26
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 5:21 pm Post subject: |
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is this company called fifthwings...?...if so, dont go near them... |
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tttyg
Joined: 26 Apr 2011 Posts: 16
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 6:49 pm Post subject: |
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Like others have said, 220,000/mo. jobs do exist and it seems like people out there do take them (otherwise they wouldn't be around for very long).
It is definitely a "livable" wage for one who has a 50,000/mo. apartment and no debts. However, most people out there certainly wouldn't envy it.
Also, as stated, do not take the job; more questionable than the wage are those "contract stipulations", which range from insane to illegal. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 10:07 pm Post subject: |
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wayne432 wrote: |
No personal holidays at all? Bogus.
Though technically a company doesn't have to give you holidays the first 3 months on contract if they don't want to... I think? |
It's the first 6 months.
(Annual Paid Leave)
Article 39. An employer shall grant annual paid leave
of 10 working days, either consecutive or divided into
portions, to workers who have been employed continuously
for 6 months calculated from the day of their being hired
and who have reported for work on at least 80 percent of the
total working days.
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/laborinfo/library/documents/llj_law1-rev.pdf |
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jamo22
Joined: 30 Apr 2007 Posts: 47
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 1:07 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for confirming my suspicions. And yes, it is with fifth wings... |
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rxk22
Joined: 19 May 2010 Posts: 1629
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 5:08 am Post subject: |
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seklarwia wrote: |
250,000 is supposed to be the non-JET standard although I've noticed scarily low salaries popping up in entry level jobs these days... I've seen 185,000!
Could you live off 220,000 and still have a little to put aside?
Well it depends on your lifestyle but it is possible especially outside of the big cities where housing is often substantially cheaper. If you have student loans, etc to pay back, you will need to do some hard budgeting before you accept any salary let alone a lower than standard one.
What is your holiday pay like?
Have you combed the contract for other deductions?
Is your contract tied to company accomodation?
Do you get paid for transport on top of that salary? |
220,000 isn't terrible. My biggest problem would be with how are the breaks dealt with? If you only get like 50-60% for Aug, Dec, and less than that for mar and Apr, than you will save exaclty zero in the end. in fact it will prolly cost you money to work in japan, when you finish balancing the books.
I make 235,000 a month, but in march I made 180,000 and in April I made a petty 90,000. Needless to say I have saved nothing this year. |
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rxk22
Joined: 19 May 2010 Posts: 1629
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 5:14 am Post subject: |
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jamo22 wrote: |
the contract seems to be pretty shocking on a whole.
19 months
have to pay 50 000 visa fee if break it early
salary is tied to accom, 55 000, which is deducted
from your salary, in leopalace, whcih i think would be
alright.
60 000 fee at end of contract for 'cleaning' and 'moving'
No Paid leave! Im pretty sure this is illegal no? you get the whole
month of august off, but no salary, although they will pay for your
rent.
I dont need to save any money, and the main reason im considering the contract is because I think it would be better to teach in a public school compared to an eikewa. |
OH WOW! Didn7t read this post. Yeah def turn that down. No way can you live on that salary without getting paid. Even Interac doesn't mention about the March/April pay gap, but that is way worse.
If I were you I would pretend to accpet, and just never show up. Teach them for scamming. |
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EmowshinallChicken
Joined: 25 Jun 2010 Posts: 26
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 8:24 am Post subject: Fifthwings or THIEFwings |
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Ha...of all the schools, companies etc....how did I guess./bad feeling..the fact I did and what I briefly said before..not wanting to go into too much detail...would infuriate myself - don't go anywhere near that company...better to be homeless and unemployed......worst two months of my thirteen year 'tefl career'.....
THIEFwings...!!
Last edited by EmowshinallChicken on Sun Jun 05, 2011 11:29 am; edited 1 time in total |
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