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Interac: breaking the law by prorating my April/March pay...
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Pitarou



Joined: 16 Nov 2009
Posts: 1116
Location: Narita, Japan

PostPosted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 1:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Black_Beer_Man wrote:
If you ever want to know if a company in Japan is following Japanese labor laws, you should consult the downloadable bilingual guide here http://www.hataraku.metro.tokyo.jp/soudan-c/center/e/index.html

If you don't find your answer here, maybe you can contact them.
Great find! Thanks.
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rxk22



Joined: 19 May 2010
Posts: 1629

PostPosted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 1:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"A few years later, my contracts went to gyomu-itaku. By spelling out that you only "work" 29.5 hours a week, there is no way you can claim you are a "full time employee" and that the company needs to kick in for your health and pension. "

Man, I should have pushed this issue when I was with the big I. I think every Interac employee should refuse to be at the schools any longer than 7 hours per day. I would explain that we are not being paid, and that it is illegal to work off the clock. Instead of breaking the law, I will go home.
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marley'sghost



Joined: 04 Oct 2010
Posts: 255

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 12:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

rxk22 wrote:
"A few years later, my contracts went to gyomu-itaku. By spelling out that you only "work" 29.5 hours a week, there is no way you can claim you are a "full time employee" and that the company needs to kick in for your health and pension. "

Man, I should have pushed this issue when I was with the big I. I think every Interac employee should refuse to be at the schools any longer than 7 hours per day. I would explain that we are not being paid, and that it is illegal to work off the clock. Instead of breaking the law, I will go home.


Go down that road, and we will end up being paid by the lesson. Not sure if that's the sort of deal I'd want.
As it stands, I don't complain about "working off the clock". I use the schools as my base of operations. I can prep my private lessons, study, do my taxes and other business, write clever and insightful exposition here at Dave's, I keep busy and occasionally productive.
Then again, I'm pretty lucky. I only have two schools, a regular schedule, average 15 lessons a week, maybe a whole 25 hours of "work" once prepping and planning and face-time with the kids is taken into account. The classrooms are air-conditioned (big, big plus!), and I've been here longer than most of the Japanese teachers, so I do things my way.
If I were running around to 5 different elementary schools a week and doing 5 lessons a day, it would be different. I might be saying, "Just pay me and let me out!" too.
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kah5217



Joined: 29 Sep 2012
Posts: 270
Location: Ibaraki

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 1:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

In my case, I got around 18 unpaid days in August and 5 unpaid days in December, hence the 60 and 75% figures.

Their defense for the 29.5 thing is that transfer times between classes aren't counted as work. I was scheduled in my school for 7 hours a day, so under that model I was technically part time. Teachers who are scheduled 8 hours get a free period, which again "technically" counts. But anyone who has ever set foot in a school knows that you aren't turned off during those ten minutes between classes. Most of the time the eager kids would ask questions, you'd have to check work during your break so they could take their notebooks home, etc.
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rxk22



Joined: 19 May 2010
Posts: 1629

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

True, but often times you get paid 3000 or yen per lesson hour. Might end up making more, even with more unpaid time off. Just saying.

Yeah, I used my Interac time to read. Read Song of Fire and Ice, and studied Japanese a crap ton. Prolly should have stayed until I got my N2. But I was doing 20+ lessons a month, so they were pushing me a bit more. I also was at one of the worst schools in my prefecture.

Personally, if I were in Interac, I would do the 7 hour days, and hit a lot of privates after work.

I think they have to give you 45mins off for 6 hours of work. So even the 10 min breaks don't add up to that.

Anyhow, sorry to be so disjointed here. I really feel that the dispatchers should get what they pay for. If they want anything approaching quality, they need to break open their purses. I knew a lot of ALTs who stayed after school. Which is nice and all, but you aren't receiving ANY benefits, nor pay at this point, while the JTs are. Just using people imho /rant
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metropolis



Joined: 01 Nov 2011
Posts: 32

PostPosted: Mon Sep 15, 2014 6:05 am    Post subject: asdfsadf Reply with quote

Some of the burden here has to go on the teacher. If you constantly put up with Interac cheating you, then they will keep squeezing you. Do something about it. Write a letter of complaint to the Board of Education. Call or write to the Ministry of Education/Labor. Bad mouth Interac as much as possible. Warn prospective people who want to come to Japan. Get the word out. And by no means work later than your scheduled time. Make it clear to your schools that you are not getting paid enough and that Interac is literally taking half of your pay every month. Interac has another scam, too. They push you to accept an apartment that they are the guarantor for. Usually, that apartment is waaaay overpriced. They will tell you that your time is running out on getting an apartment, you need to move in quickly, blablabla. Borderlink does the same thing. They are partnered with some company called Bridge Life. They are conveniently there to help you find an apartment that is totally affordable (cough). But you need to choose quickly because time is running out; we need you at the school ASAP! Think of the children!!! Of course the deposit and rental fees are super high. And they are there to help you get a phone, too. Wow! A phone plan where you are charged about 12,000 per month. I have two phones and pay that much. Ripoff.
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rxk22



Joined: 19 May 2010
Posts: 1629

PostPosted: Mon Sep 15, 2014 1:26 pm    Post subject: Re: asdfsadf Reply with quote

metropolis wrote:
Some of the burden here has to go on the teacher. If you constantly put up with Interac cheating you, then they will keep squeezing you. Do something about it. Write a letter of complaint to the Board of Education. Call or write to the Ministry of Education/Labor. Bad mouth Interac as much as possible. Warn prospective people who want to come to Japan. Get the word out. And by no means work later than your scheduled time. Make it clear to your schools that you are not getting paid enough and that Interac is literally taking half of your pay every month. Interac has another scam, too. They push you to accept an apartment that they are the guarantor for. Usually, that apartment is waaaay overpriced. They will tell you that your time is running out on getting an apartment, you need to move in quickly, blablabla. Borderlink does the same thing. They are partnered with some company called Bridge Life. They are conveniently there to help you find an apartment that is totally affordable (cough). But you need to choose quickly because time is running out; we need you at the school ASAP! Think of the children!!! Of course the deposit and rental fees are super high. And they are there to help you get a phone, too. Wow! A phone plan where you are charged about 12,000 per month. I have two phones and pay that much. Ripoff.



This. I with Interac overpaid for a crappy apt in a rural area. I could have rented an actual house for not much more. I am almost 100% sure, they get a kickback.
Same with the phone plan, they tack on an extra 1000yen or so per month.
Insurance too. Why pay for a private insurance, that will make it hard to stay your second year? Especially since during your first year, insurance is pretty dang cheap.

Lastly, yes don't stay past your scheduled hours. I at my time with Interac made that clear with my school. That I am not being paid enough to stay late, also no benefits. I told them I had a second job to make ends meet, which was an exaggeration.

I know one guy who went to the BOE. He had his Interac or whatever dispatch MC come, and he had the BOE basically fire the dispatch company. I think we need to post how to become a direct hire, as that is the best way to squeeze out the dispatch companies.
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marley'sghost



Joined: 04 Oct 2010
Posts: 255

PostPosted: Tue Sep 16, 2014 2:24 am    Post subject: Re: asdfsadf Reply with quote

rxk22 wrote:

I know one guy who went to the BOE. He had his Interac or whatever dispatch MC come, and he had the BOE basically fire the dispatch company. I think we need to post how to become a direct hire, as that is the best way to squeeze out the dispatch companies.


I would love to hear details on how he pulled that off. Can you get in touch with him?
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rxk22



Joined: 19 May 2010
Posts: 1629

PostPosted: Tue Sep 16, 2014 3:54 am    Post subject: Re: asdfsadf Reply with quote

marley'sghost wrote:
rxk22 wrote:

I know one guy who went to the BOE. He had his Interac or whatever dispatch MC come, and he had the BOE basically fire the dispatch company. I think we need to post how to become a direct hire, as that is the best way to squeeze out the dispatch companies.


I would love to hear details on how he pulled that off. Can you get in touch with him?


You know what, I will try.
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nicenicegaijin



Joined: 27 Feb 2015
Posts: 157

PostPosted: Thu Apr 09, 2015 8:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

To become a direct hire at a private school you just tell them how much the dispatch company is paying you. You then tell them that you find that your dispatch company is cheating you regarding pension or some similar thing.
Someone I know was earning 360000 per month at a private school then cut out the dispatch company and got 500000. he is still there after 10 years. Although he is going nowhere and has occupational depression like most working in these fringe jobs where the only co workers are boring old Japanese he is able to provide for his family.
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GambateBingBangBOOM



Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 2021
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri Apr 10, 2015 4:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

nicenicegaijin wrote:
To become a direct hire at a private school you just tell them how much the dispatch company is paying you. You then tell them that you find that your dispatch company is cheating you regarding pension or some similar thing.
Someone I know was earning 360000 per month at a private school then cut out the dispatch company and got 500000. he is still there after 10 years. Although he is going nowhere and has occupational depression like most working in these fringe jobs where the only co workers are boring old Japanese he is able to provide for his family.


I think it's normal for the contract that a school signs with the dispatch company (as in NOT the one with the teacher) to stipulate that they cannot circumvent the dispatch company in that manner without paying a ridiculous amount of money. Schools would only do that if they REALLY wanted the person.

Usually, to get a direct hire job, you apply to an ad for a direct hire (IME usually called an NET) position (or you hear about a position opening up from a friend there) and interview.

IME you need an MA TESOL or B.Ed / PGCE from your home country and a higher level of Japanese than is required for dispatch companies. There are exceptions to this of course (especially if you're a friend of someone).

It's usually a case of three years (or five or six) and you're out. Very few direct hire jobs do not have that kind of a limit on the number of contracts. And when they don't, it is (sometimes? usually? almost always?) the case that hardly anybody will stay because of things like student behavior, and the school offers it as a way to attract applicants.

I don't know of a single direct hire position that involves teaching classes with a Japanese teacher in the room. Especially at the junior high level, student behavior is a massive issue for foreign teachers doing 'solo' classes.

I think there are more direct hire types of jobs in Kansai than Kanto.
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mitsui



Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki

PostPosted: Fri Apr 10, 2015 5:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have to team teach every class.
I am in Kanagawa.

It takes some getting used to, and when it is with the boss,
I can't say it is fun.

I have a direct hire job.
Sports are the focus, not academics.

Direct hire jobs in Kansai are almost never advertised.
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nicenicegaijin



Joined: 27 Feb 2015
Posts: 157

PostPosted: Sat Apr 11, 2015 11:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

GambateBingBangBOOM wrote:
nicenicegaijin wrote:
To become a direct hire at a private school you just tell them how much the dispatch company is paying you. You then tell them that you find that your dispatch company is cheating you regarding pension or some similar thing.
Someone I know was earning 360000 per month at a private school then cut out the dispatch company and got 500000. he is still there after 10 years. Although he is going nowhere and has occupational depression like most working in these fringe jobs where the only co workers are boring old Japanese he is able to provide for his family.


I think it's normal for the contract that a school signs with the dispatch company (as in NOT the one with the teacher) to stipulate that they cannot circumvent the dispatch company in that manner without paying a ridiculous amount of money. Schools would only do that if they REALLY wanted the person.

Usually, to get a direct hire job, you apply to an ad for a direct hire (IME usually called an NET) position (or you hear about a position opening up from a friend there) and interview.

IME you need an MA TESOL or B.Ed / PGCE from your home country and a higher level of Japanese than is required for dispatch companies. There are exceptions to this of course (especially if you're a friend of someone).

It's usually a case of three years (or five or six) and you're out. Very few direct hire jobs do not have that kind of a limit on the number of contracts. And when they don't, it is (sometimes? usually? almost always?) the case that hardly anybody will stay because of things like student behavior, and the school offers it as a way to attract applicants.

I don't know of a single direct hire position that involves teaching classes with a Japanese teacher in the room. Especially at the junior high level, student behavior is a massive issue for foreign teachers doing 'solo' classes.

I think there are more direct hire types of jobs in Kansai than Kanto.


In his case they didn't pay a fine. I think they had come to the end of the contract with the dispatch company and they didn't renew and secretly hired him.
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budgie



Joined: 22 Feb 2005
Posts: 40

PostPosted: Sun Apr 19, 2015 4:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Maitoshi wrote:
Pitarou wrote:
nightsintodreams wrote:
Interac employees sign two contracts; one in Japanese and one in English.

My guess is that there is a clause in the English contract that says something like: "This translation is for your guidance only. The Japanese language version is to the authoritative contract."

Can anyone confirm or refute this?


Either way, isn't the Japanese language contract the "real" contract under Japanese law, regardless of the English version?


Amy language is okay as long as the details are legally binding. According to the foreign worker's guidebook however, any contract with illegal provisions is entirely invalid:

http://www.hataraku.metro.tokyo.jp/soudan-c/center/all-e2008.pdf

Unfortunately as outlined in the book English to Go, most companies are offering illegal contracts or conditions. There's a chapter on Interac in there.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00W7XV32C
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steki47



Joined: 20 Apr 2008
Posts: 1029
Location: BFE Inaka

PostPosted: Wed Apr 22, 2015 2:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

rxk22 wrote:
I wonder if, since you are technically laid off, can you collect unemployment? That may get the govt to notice


Yes, you can. I did a 9-month contract with Interac running from May to early Feb. I collected the documents and went to Hello Work mid-Feb and collected 90 days of UI.

I think I was the only ALT in my area who did that but I have since told the others about that option. Also told them about the trilingual Brazilian guy who works at our local HW who was incredibly helpful with everything.

Not sure the government took notice. Or, if they did, would do anything.

Sorry to bump, this topic grabbed me.
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