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azarashi sushi
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku
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 Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2003 11:49 am Post subject: |
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Hello Forum,
Thanks for all the responses and advice ... It is greatly appreciated.
I wrote my original post shortly after my boss spoke to me about the 30 working days issue ... So I was a bit wound up.
It's often the case with resigning, so it wasn't a total surprise ... But after 19 months of hard work, there are no thank-yous, no congratulations ... Simply, "You've really inconvenienced us".
Nevertheless, I will give the new company a call on Monday morning and see if I can work something out. But if they can't wait any longer, then my present bosses will just have to deal with it.
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| He didn't know the owners were going to Thailand on holiday. He knew the school was closed |
Ping Pong! Exactly ... I was quite surprised because they never go anywhere. I stupidly thought it was a good thing resigning when we had a holiday, since it would give them more time to look for staff.
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| teachers are not supposed to come and go when they feel like it but according to the contracts they sign |
I've worked there for 19 months. Leaving before the end of the second year contract was never an issue as long as I gave them notice.
When I gave my 30 days notice, I genuinely thought it was thirty regular days. You would think it would be easier and much less confusing to simply write in the contract, "Please give us six weeks notice" rather than leave it up to the other person to work out that they mean 6 lots of Monday to Fridays plus any holidays.
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With the current economic climate, small eikaiwa can be greatly impacted by slight changes in staff working conditions. The grapevine is very powerful too and if this internal mess makes its way outside the school it could harm the reputation the couple have in the community which is sure to have an adverse affect on not only their business but any teacher who may succeed you.
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Shmooj, which rice paddy are you living in ?
I'm guessing you and I have had vastly different Eikaiwa experiences ... Either that or you've been kidnapped by the Eikaiwa propaganda department.
My bosses are a strange couple ... Happy to be running a business as long as it doesn't inconvenience them in any way. They've both been trained at the "F*** Off School of Eikaiwa Management" ... whose basic premise is "If you don't like it, you know where to go"
I kid you not ... Recently we overheard him saying this to an elementary school student.
Recently, during a meeting we were talking about one of my children's classes that I was having problems with. I suggested that the problem may stem from the inappropriateness of materials and the general lack of resources we had. Perhaps we need to change something or get some more materials. His response "There's nothing we can do . . . It's up to the mothers " . Well that's really productive!
When I first started, he was too cheap to buy a teacher's copy of the children's text books we use. When I asked him how we know what we should teach that lesson, his response was "Don't worry about it ... Just borrow one of the kids books when you get into the class and take it from there" Sure, teaching phonics and whatever is not cerebral stuff... But not even knowing WHAT I should be teaching that lesson before I entered the class struck me as a seriously bad attitude to the students.
The list goes on but is too long to write now (afterall it's Saturday night!)...
So I guess the whole 30 working days issue opened a bit of a can of worms ...
For 19 months I've watched this guy not give a damn about his business or students. And even now, the problem is not that he is worried how my resigning will affect the students, but rather that he may have to cancel his trip to Thailand.
I'm all for keeping peace and harmony but I feel that he is placing all the responsibility on my shoulders and isn't prepared to take any himself. He would rather I jeopardize my chances of getting a new job than miss out on getting drunk for ten days in a Bangkok hotel.
He is the manager/owner of a language school and has a much higher income than I do ... If he doesn't care, why should I?
But as I said before, I will speak to the new company and see what I can do.
Well, it's Saturday night guys... Time to go out !
Mata a s h i t a.
A.S. |
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shmooj
Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1758
Location: Seoul, ROK
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| Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2003 11:55 am Post subject: |
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Aaaahhhh now everything makes sense. 
Having heard the full story, I think you would have been quite justified leaving 18 months ago. 
Yes, I have had different eikaiwa experiences from you. Didn't know your rice paddy and mine would be so different so forgive me for ignorantly providing advice that was inappropriate. I forget too that you are in Tokyo and me in, well... in a rice paddy really 
My boss and his wife had a very similar attitude to yours when I first arrived 6 years ago but, thankfully, they were open to change. If they hadn't been I would have left very soon after I arrived. As it is I am still here.
Sounds like yours aren't open to change. Fair enough.
Keep us informed as to how it goes. It is fascinating to be able to get a glimpse of another's experiences through this forum. |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2003 1:13 pm Post subject: |
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[/quote]It is fascinating to be able to get a glimpse of another's experiences through this forum.[quote]
I agree. Isn't this form a lot of fun?
It is also much better hearing about someone else going through difficulties than going through it yourself. |
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Mr. Ishihara
Joined: 16 Sep 2003
Posts: 15
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| Posted: Sun Sep 28, 2003 9:00 pm Post subject: |
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Hello Gordon,
"I totally disagree. Are you implying that his students would be severely impacted if he left? He should stay for his students and work in a subpar school for them?"
It is possible for his departure to affect his students. One
example is if his employers are unable to find someone to
teach his students before he leaves, but if he stayed
an additional week or helped find his replacement his
students would not be left without a teacher. Only
Mr. Sushi knows the details of his situation, but in
my example above he still leaves but has made an
extra effort.
By these comments, I'm merely suggesting that
if Mr. Sushi shows that he has consideration for his
students it will be positively received by the
Japanese. In my experience, Japanese are very
sensitive to this type of thing. |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Sun Sep 28, 2003 9:52 pm Post subject: |
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Mr Ishihara,
How much notice is enough? If 30 days notice is not enough time, neither is 40. His boss obviously does not care for the students (vacation, laziness....) so that cannot be an issue for the school. |
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azarashi sushi
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku
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| Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2003 1:24 pm Post subject: |
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I'm merely suggesting that
if Mr. Sushi shows that he has consideration for his
students it will be positively received by the
Japanese. In my experience, Japanese are very
sensitive to this type of thing. |
I totally agree Mr. Ishihara! However, being sensitive and considerate is one thing ... Being a total sucker is another. My gripe is that the owners/managers don't care at all about the students or their business, but I am supposed to.
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| Isn't this form a lot of fun? |
Gordon... This is worrying! It confirms my worst suspicions about life in Shikoku!
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| It is also much better hearing about someone else going through difficulties than going through it yourself |
Sorry to disappoint you Gordy, but the story has a happy ending! I did ring the new company this morning but they couldn't be flexible on the start date. Luckily though, my bosses had advertised the position over the weekend and had been inundated with applications. They were still rolling in thick and fast today. The fax machine was running hot! They were so happy with the response they got ... therefore not having to give up 10 nights of drinking in a seedy Bangkok hotel ... that they weren't angry with me anymore.
Yes, teachers are a dime a dozen ... but I have to say "Thank God" that they are. It got me off the hook!
And see, everybody's happy!
I can't wait to start my new job!
A.S. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2003 8:10 pm Post subject: |
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| Congratulations, azarashi. Where is that school, and how did they advertise? |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2003 9:34 pm Post subject: |
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Don't get me wrong, I'm not enjoying your predicament, I've been in a similar situation myself and negotiated my way out of the contract, like I suggested to you. I really meant that it is enjoyable to help others, it sort of came out wrong. 
Glad you were able to start your new job on time. |
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Sherri
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 749
Location: The Big Island, Hawaii
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| Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2003 11:41 pm Post subject: |
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AS
After all this, do you think the owners of your old school have learnt a lesson? What I mean is that their contract goes against Japanese labor law and that if they want to avoid trouble in this area in the future, they should change their contracts. I was the DOS at a school that asked for 30 days notice in the contract. I would always explain to people before they signed the contract what that meant to us as a company (that we would appreciate the notice, but only 2 weeks were required by law). In the 8 years or so that I was in that position I can't think of a single instance when someone didn't give us ample notice--usually more than the 1 month which I always appreciated. Your employers would do well to explain this clause in their contract carefully to future employees before they sign!
Your employers certainly must be a bit green about business if they think that they can keep an employee against his or her own will. If someone wants to leave the company, basically you have to let them. If they don't give the notice required by law then you just don't pay them for the time they missed out on work and of course the bonus if there is one. There is very little else you can do unless you want to involve lawyers and courts. It is just not worth it and in the end, who wants a teacher who is unhappy teaching at their school?
I wish you luck in your new job and I hope your new employers have a more professional outlook! |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 12:13 am Post subject: |
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Sherri,
That is a good approach to managing a school. From the sounds of Azarashi's school, however, I think it wasn't a matter of them being green, but that they didn't care about their staff. Of course you'd always want to have happy teachers but his school didn't seem to care. |
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Dr.J
Joined: 09 May 2003
Posts: 304
Location: usually Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 12:56 am Post subject: |
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Call in sick while working for the new place.
DUH! |
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Sherri
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 749
Location: The Big Island, Hawaii
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 3:55 am Post subject: |
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Yes, I agree Gordon. I just wondered if there was a learning curve!
S |
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azarashi sushi
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 12:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Your employers certainly must be a bit green about business if they think that they can keep an employee against his or her own will |
Quite the contrary Sherri ... they've got the business side pretty well worked out. The problem is that they are unashamedly in it for themselves. The areas where they are lacking is commitment to education and interpersonal skills.
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| who wants a teacher who is unhappy teaching at their school? |
I probably painted a grim picture of my bosses ... But they aren't entirely stupid though. Over the weekend, when everyone had time to cool down, they obviously realised this themselves.
They know me ... I'm a very tolerant person ... But if something is blatantly unfair, I'm not the type of person to just sit there and babble "Daijobu desu".
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| I wish you luck in your new job |
Arigato !
... And now the sugoi mendokusai task of finding a new apartment !
A.S.
Last edited by azarashi sushi on Tue Sep 30, 2003 12:53 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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azarashi sushi
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2003 12:51 pm Post subject: |
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| After all this, do you think the owners of your old school have learnt a lesson? |
Probably not!
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| What I mean is that their contract goes against Japanese labor law and that if they want to avoid trouble in this area in the future, they should change their contracts. |
Well... all's well that ends well! But I think the problem is that there are too many people who want to live in Tokyo and are looking for jobs ... It's a bit of an employers market.
A.S. |
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