Job Discussion Forums

[markholmes]

Japan's largest language school, Nova, just closed 200 of its 900 schools and laid off 2000 teachers. There is a possibility the company may not survive at all. That means the market there is pretty much flooded with out of work English teachers. I'm wondering how many will turn up in Taiwan in the coming weeks.

[SEndrigo]

Wow that is big news indeed. When I was over in Japan, which wasn't that long ago, Nova was having financial problems and it was a big news all over the country, not just to English teachers.

I'm not surprised that happened, though...when they cut salaries from 250,000 to 220,000 yen a month, you knew the proverbial fan had been hit...ha ha.

Don't you think though, that most of those teachers would go to Korea first, seeing as there's more money to be made in Korea? Just a thought...

[TaoyuanSteve]

I think many of the people there want to be in Japan and, so, will attempt to locate other jobs in Japan. The market over there can absorb a fair number of the lay offs. Of the left overs, many will likely go home and some will possibly go to another country-- not necessarily Taiwan. I don't foresee the local market here being over run with Japan foreign teacher refugees.

[ghost]

When you have lived and worked in a country like Japan - teachers would be foolish to come to polluted, scooter crazy, Taiwan. The money may be decent in Taiwan, but the quality of life is nowhere near the Japanese level.

Ghost in Korea

[markholmes]

I would have to disagree with you Ghost, on the grounds that I met many people who had come from Japan to Taiwan (myself included), but never met anyone who had gone the other way.

2000 redundant teachers is the tip of the iceberg. There are potentially another 7000ish if Nova goes under completely.

Food for thought, nothing else.

[forest1979]

I doubt if there will be a large influx of TEFLers into Taiwan regardless of Nova's demise. For a start there are near places, e.g. Korea, the Japanese market is probably robust enough, as already said by another poster, to swallow up drips and drabs of teachers across Japan, and who the hell, especially if you're European would come to Taiwan when the value of the NT$ is so weak. A few years ago one Euro got 30NT but now its worth over 46! The Pound Sterling a few years back was worth 50NT, now its 67.

[BJ]

I remember when the pound was at 38:( ah those were the days lol.

[stillnosheep]

[SEndrigo]

haha yeah, well, now it's official: NOVA has gone under!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7063205.stm

What I think will happen is most of those people won't come to Taiwan or Korea...rather, they'll either go home or look for another job in Japan, thus driving salaries lower than they already are over there (The standard salary there is 250,000 yen a month, and lower in many places, like the 220,000 it was at NOVA).

[Miyazaki]

A Canadian union rep. in Tokyo just reported in an interview with the Toronto Star that the EFL job market has been flooded with teachers looking for work.

5,000 - 6,000 TEFL'ers just hit the streets looking for work last week.

That's a lot of people looking for jobs!