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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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 Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 10:18 pm Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
| Yes, these are things that bother me too especially the 2 months notice. I thought according to labour laws I only have to give two weeks? |
This is unfortunately not a set in stone thing that you can wave in front of an employer in defense. In the first year of your work with an employer, there is no real set time limit by law that you need to give for notice. A month is sufficient, though, for reasons I have stated. If you are so inclined, see if the employer is willing to negotiate if he wants more than that. After the first year, 2 weeks is all you need to give. I forget the particular statute/civil code that supports that.
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| If I wanted to leave the job before 12 months how quickly would I need to get another employer to sponsor me before I will loose my work visa? |
You don't lose your visa until it expires, even if you quit or are fired. Technically, immigration asks for 3 months as the maximum time that you find another job on that visa, unless there are extraordinary circumstances (See this link, Q&A item 17 http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html ), but I have never heard of anyone being called on this. Besides, they don't knock on your door to say "time's up!"
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| Also what is the name of the letter I would need to obtain from the employer before I can get another employer to sponsor my current work visa? |
rishoku-todoke 離職届, or Letter of Release. By law, they must give it to you immediately upon your request. See article 22 (wording says "retirement", but it amounts to the same thing): http://www.jil.go.jp/english/laborinfo/library/documents/llj_law1-rev.pdf
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| If I was based at one location would the employer still pay for my travel expenses? |
It seems that they would pay at least part of it, as they described. Depends on where you live.
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| I think this it a pretty good deal since here in the UK for the majority of jobs available you do not get any kind of travel expenses paid for you. |
There is no law to help you in Japan with this, but the majority of employers seem to pay for commuting expenses. They just do it in various ways. Mine reimbursed me for my train pass when I worked at an eikaiwa, or paid me a token amount for minimal train fare at another employer.
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| What type of penalties could they be talking about? |
Typically, an employer who tries to do that will deduct a certain amount from your paycheck. Labor laws say they can't, or at least within certain limits. See articles 16 and 91.
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| Also do you have any other links about labour laws or is this one sufficient? |
This copy of the labor laws is sufficient. If you have questions that aren't answered there, talk to the nearest labor standards office.
http://letsjapan.org/wiki/List_of_Labor_Standards_Offices_(LSO)_in_Japan
http://nambufwc.org/info/utu/UTU.Info%5B2ndEd.2%5D.pdf
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| When they say proof of full insurance I will be able to get that just from having/once I have my alien registration card? |
Like I wrote earlier, on your first day here (Mon - Fri), go to the ward office to sign up for your alien card, and at the same time decide what health insurance you want. There are 2 types:
shakai hoken: This should be offered by employers with more than 5 employees and includes pension plan. Required by law, and employers pay half of your premiums.
kokumin kenko hoken: If the employer is too small, or if you are self-employed, you get this. Failure to enroll will mean that if you do so down the road, you could have to make up to 2 years of backpayments. Some employers try to get out of shakai hoken copayments by claiming some insipid rules that don't exist. For example, they will claim that they are not entitled to offer shakai hoken if you work less than 29.5 hours/week. See this link for more advice: http://fukuoka.generalunion.org/alt/index.html
Shakai hoken payments will be larger than kokumin payments in the first year. Kokumin goes by what you made in Japan the previous year, so your first year here they ask for a token 2000 yen or so, and after that it can go up tenfold.
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| I don't have much experience which children so the chance to get some training for this age group would be good. |
Take "training" with a grain or carload of salt. It may not be as good as you expect, nor may it be applicable to any other employer's teaching system.
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| Well it does seem like there are quite a few problems with Shane English School. If I am successful at the interview stage I will have to think long and hard whether or not to accept a position with SESJ depending on what other offers I may receive. |
Just be careful not to ask too many questions.
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Could you please have a look at the Working Conditions stipulated by Peppy Kids Club and tell me if you see anything on there which doesn't seem too right like you did with Shane's? Also based on the information provided by both schools which one do you think is better?
http://www.ittti.com/work/pdf/swc5.pdf |
I'm eating breakfast now. Later, ok? |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Thu Jan 06, 2011 9:00 pm Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
| This is unfortunately not a set in stone thing that you can wave in front of an employer in defense. In the first year of your work with an employer, there is no real set time limit by law that you need to give for notice. A month is sufficient, though, for reasons I have stated. If you are so inclined, see if the employer is willing to negotiate if he wants more than that. After the first year, 2 weeks is all you need to give. I forget the particular statute/civil code that supports that. |
Thanks for clearing that up for me Glenski. Well the only thing that would bother me about the 2 months notice would be the fact that I would have to stay in their apartment longer that what I would have to.
| Glenski wrote: |
| You don't lose your visa until it expires, even if you quit or are fired. Technically, immigration asks for 3 months as the maximum time that you find another job on that visa, unless there are extraordinary circumstances (See this link, Q&A item 17 http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html ), but I have never heard of anyone being called on this. Besides, they don't knock on your door to say "time's up!" |
Oh ok thanks again for clearing that up. One thing though, could I get any job on the visa I would be issued by the employer? By that I mean I may have an instructor visa but could I work in a bar/shop/hotel etc until I find something else?
If the employer refuses to give me the Letter how can I make them give it to me? Could I contact someone to help me get it i.e. the general union for example?
| Glenski wrote: |
| There is no law to help you in Japan with this, but the majority of employers seem to pay for commuting expenses. They just do it in various ways. Mine reimbursed me for my train pass when I worked at an eikaiwa, or paid me a token amount for minimal train fare at another employer. |
But surely if the employer states in the contract that they will pay for travelling expenses they have to pay it right? If not that would be good grounds to quit right if they don't uphold their end of the contract.
| Glenski wrote: |
| Typically, an employer who tries to do that will deduct a certain amount from your paycheck. Labor laws say they can't, or at least within certain limits. See articles 16 and 91. |
Mmm...if I did decide to quite hopefully I will have another job lined up.
Thanks for this!
| Glenski wrote: |
| Take "training" with a grain or carload of salt. It may not be as good as you expect, nor may it be applicable to any other employer's teaching system. |
Yes I have heard of other employers using their own teaching methods so you could be right there.
| Glenski wrote: |
| Just be careful not to ask too many questions. |
I'll be sure to ask the right questions. But not so many that I scare them off.
| Glenski wrote: |
| I'm eating breakfast now. Later, ok? |
When you have time is fine:
http://www.ittti.com/work/index.html
http://www.ittti.com/work/pdf/swc5.pdf
Thanks for your help Glenski!
One last thing I was contacted by International Education Services (IES) after having sent them a speculative email with my cover letter, cv, degree etc about current opportunities. The would like to set up a time to conduct a Skype interview with me once I complete the necessary tasks such as get my references sorted and complete this questionnaire.
I was just wondering if anyone has any information on International Education Services (IES) because that would be very helpful.
Thank you for your help. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Thu Jan 06, 2011 10:14 pm Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
| Glenski wrote: |
| You don't lose your visa until it expires, even if you quit or are fired. Technically, immigration asks for 3 months as the maximum time that you find another job on that visa, unless there are extraordinary circumstances (See this link, Q&A item 17 http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html ), but I have never heard of anyone being called on this. Besides, they don't knock on your door to say "time's up!" |
Oh ok thanks again for clearing that up. One thing though, could I get any job on the visa I would be issued by the employer? |
Employers don't issue visas. They sponsor them. Big difference. Visas are issued by immigration.
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| By that I mean I may have an instructor visa but could I work in a bar/shop/hotel etc until I find something else? |
Technically, you are supposed to ask for special permission to do work that is not within the description of your visa. See the link on special permission as well as the list of documents link.
http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html
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If the employer refuses to give me the Letter how can I make them give it to me? Could I contact someone to help me get it i.e. the general union for example? |
A call from immigration or the labor standards office usually helps. Sometimes immigration will just see your situation and stubborn employer and waive that necessity.
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| Glenski wrote: |
| There is no law to help you in Japan with this, but the majority of employers seem to pay for commuting expenses. They just do it in various ways. Mine reimbursed me for my train pass when I worked at an eikaiwa, or paid me a token amount for minimal train fare at another employer. |
But surely if the employer states in the contract that they will pay for travelling expenses they have to pay it right? |
Yes.
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| Mmm...if I did decide to quite hopefully I will have another job lined up. |
Very sensible and practical. Sometimes it doesn't work out that way, but as long as you try to plan ahead, good.
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One last thing I was contacted by International Education Services (IES) after having sent them a speculative email with my cover letter, cv, degree etc about current opportunities. The would like to set up a time to conduct a Skype interview with me once I complete the necessary tasks such as get my references sorted and complete this questionnaire.
I was just wondering if anyone has any information on International Education Services (IES) because that would be very helpful. |
I applied to them more than once. Never even heard back from them. Considering my background was exactly what they were asking for, I don't have the best of feelings toward them. Have not heard much else beyond that from others.
http://forum.gaijinpot.com/showthread.php?37827-International-Educational-Services&highlight=international+education+services
http://forum.gaijinpot.com/showthread.php?62326-International-Educational-Systems-%28school%29&highlight=international+education+services |
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Apsara
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 2142
Location: Tokyo, Japan
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| Posted: Sat Jan 08, 2011 1:49 am Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
Oh ok thanks again for clearing that up. One thing though, could I get any job on the visa I would be issued by the employer? By that I mean I may have an instructor visa but could I work in a bar/shop/hotel etc until I find something else?
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As Glenski says you can apply for permission to do other work, but bar/shop etc work is so far outside the permitted activities on the Instructor visa that I very much doubt permission would be granted.
Bars known to hire foreigners are popular targets for raids by police looking for people working with the wrong visa/no visa, so it's really not worth trying to fly under the radar. Any trustworthy employer won't hire you if you don't have the right visa/permission in any case. |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:55 pm Post subject: |
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| Apsara wrote: |
| dgrey1986 wrote: |
Oh ok thanks again for clearing that up. One thing though, could I get any job on the visa I would be issued by the employer? By that I mean I may have an instructor visa but could I work in a bar/shop/hotel etc until I find something else?
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As Glenski says you can apply for permission to do other work, but bar/shop etc work is so far outside the permitted activities on the Instructor visa that I very much doubt permission would be granted.
Bars known to hire foreigners are popular targets for raids by police looking for people working with the wrong visa/no visa, so it's really not worth trying to fly under the radar. Any trustworthy employer won't hire you if you don't have the right visa/permission in any case. |
So the only way for me to work freely in a job other than teaching would be to have a Working Holiday Visa right? Well like I said before if I am unable to get an employer to sponsor me for a Work Visa I will just apply for a WHV. Thanks for your help though and it seems the WHV would give me flexibility in the type of work I can do. |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 6:37 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for the link Glenski. I will be sure to read up on how I can get the special permission if I ever need it in the future.
A call from immigration or the labor standards office usually helps. Sometimes immigration will just see your situation and stubborn employer and waive that necessity.[/quote]
Thanks for clearing that up.
| Glenski wrote: |
| There is no law to help you in Japan with this, but the majority of employers seem to pay for commuting expenses. They just do it in various ways. Mine reimbursed me for my train pass when I worked at an eikaiwa, or paid me a token amount for minimal train fare at another employer. |
Well I guess this is one benefit to working in Japan as opposed to somewhere else.
I remember reading that you had applied to them in another post not too long ago. It is difficult trying to find information about this company online but I will keep checking.
Oh by the way were you able to have a look at the work conditions with Peppy Kids Club Glenski?
I also have been given confirmation that I will have another chance at an interview with Interac in the next couple of weeks. I will search for the forums for tips and advice about the best way I can pass this interview.
Thanks for your continued help and support. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 12:17 am Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
| Oh by the way were you able to have a look at the work conditions with Peppy Kids Club Glenski? |
The deal looks pretty fair overall. I had some questions that you might want to consider.
1. bonuses. Based on "performance". Yeah, right. I wonder how they judge this. Maybe ask a current teacher, not Peppy, whether it's fair.
2. Average classes per day = 3-4, max =8. Since each one is an hour long, that could make for a long day if it's the max. I'd ask how often that occurs and what they do for breaks, let alone time between each lesson. See article 34 of the labor laws. http://www.jil.go.jp/english/laborinfo/library/documents/llj_law1-rev.pdf
Also, what are you expected (not allowed) to do when you are not in the classroom?
3. An hour-long lesson is a long time to keep a tiny tot occupied and interested. You might want to ask how they do that.
4. Ask what the 1-2 staff meetings per month entail. (I'd be curious how long they are, and whether you are paid to attend. I wouldn't expect you'd get paid for it, and it'd be the pits if it were a long meeting or inconveniently scheduled on your day off.)
5. After the 2 weeks of training they put you in an apartment and set up a bank account. Where do you stay in the meantime? If you find a place of your own, will they serve as guarantor and set up a bank account earlier? (They pay key money on their own apartments, but I doubt they will for one that you find.)
6. "In the summer time, we hold a special intensive program in which teachers may be scheduled for as many as 8 consecutive days." I don't care if it's special or not. Eight days in a row is a breach of labor laws. See article 35 of the labor laws. Do they try to wriggle out of this with some sort of compensation?
7. "While it is rare, some teachers are assigned to classrooms in which a few nights stay at a hotel are required each month." Who pays?
8. "Teachers who reside in Japan for less than 1-year (non-residents) are taxed at approximately 20%." Says who?????
9. "Teachers who hold visas with work restrictions are eligible for a monthly salary of �215,000 per month." What sort of restrictions are they talking about? Sounds like some sort of weird discrimination here (against labor laws of equality). If you don't think this will apply to you, don't bother asking.
10. You get 10 paid vacation days per year. That's good, and according to labor laws, employers aren't even obligated to give them to you in the first 6 months, so if Peppy does, that's their decision. However, are you happy with them deciding which days are in this bunch for half of your paid time off? "Of these 10 paid vacation days, 5 days are set in the school year. The remaining 5 days are flexible and can be taken at the teacher�s discretion." Are those school holidays or real days off? Sounds like the former.
11. Medical insurance. They say "50% subsidy", but also "This applies only to principle policy holders of Japanese National Insurance (Kokumin kenko hoken)". That's just downright odd. Shakai hoken is what they should be offering you because that's what they are obligated to pay half of. If they truly pay half of your insurance if you are on kokumin, that's cool and not required, but I would verify what insurance they offer. They also wrote "Teachers are responsible for obtaining comprehensive medical insurance coverage for the duration
of their employment period", which makes me think that they are trying to get out of their legal obligation to provide shakai hoken. |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2011 9:58 pm Post subject: |
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I have just had my interview with Shane English School and Peppy Kids Club. I believe both of the interviews went fairly well and I am hopefully one of them if not both will give me a job offer.
I had to complete and take with me to the interview a pre-interview task which was quite similar to the task I had to do before my CELTA course interview.
The interview mainly consisted of standard interview questions relating to teaching both children and adults. The recruiter asked me to explain how I would teach certain elements of the text book to a children's class. These children would be around the age of 3 and could not speak any English. I simply said I would focus on using flashcards (with drilling), games and songs to get them involved in the lesson.
Here is a copy of a typical schedule at SESJ. Anyone that has worked at SESJ is that about right or is it pretty incorrect? The amount of hours and days in the schedule seem fine to me. I would prefer a bit of a later start time though.
Shane English School Typical Schedule:
http://img137.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=11435_SampleSchedule_122_414lo.jpg
I asked the recruiter about the amount of holidays an employee was entitled and then he showed me the calendar. There seem to be quite a few days I would get off through out the year if I decided to pick SESJ over PKC.
Shane English School Calendar:
http://img288.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=11431_2011SchoolcalendarforTeachers_1_122_198lo.jpg
I was under the impression I would have gotten less days than that off work. Although are the amount of days on the calender realistic? He gave me the impression that these did not include my 10 days off I get per year or at least not 5 of them.
After we had finished talking about general stuff to do with the teaching aspect of the job he started to tell me about the company and things related to living in Japan. He asked me if I had a preference of where I wanted to be based but I told him that they mainly work in and around Greater Tokyo and Kanto Region which was fine for me.
I asked him about being enrolled on to Shakai Hoken and he said normally the company does not like to do that because they have to pay 50% of the premiums. I told him that if I was in Japan for more than a year which I plan to I would have to go on to it anyways and I would have to pay back payments because I wasn't on it from day one. He agreed with what I said and told me he could ask head office about this and see if they could work something out.
The recruiter said he would get back to me on Tuesday to inform me either by phone or email whether or not I was successful and to offer me a position in Japan. He said I would have around a week and a half to decide whether or not I would like to accept the position.
- - - -
My interview with Peppy Kids Club was quite different to SESJ and lasted a bit longer too. I got there around 13:55 and didn't leave until 16:25 which was around 40mins longer than my interview with SESJ.
My interviewer was very nice and friendly and made me feel very comfortable. The first thing she asked was if I brought the extra materials she had asked for such as my Degree, CELTA cert, 2 references and anything else that could help me. I gave her all of those plus some photos of me with some of my students as well as a newspaper article of me whilst I was in China. She seemed quite impressed with the photos and the article.
I was then asked to complete a writing task as well as a grammar task. She said it would take around 15 minutes but I can take more time if I needed to. The writing task consisted of me answering 5 or 6 questions about myself, why i want to work with PKC and why do I want to come to Japan. The grammar test was quite simple since it was just identifying some common punctuation, grammatical and spelling mistakes. I took about 25 mins to finish the task because I wrote a bit too much in the written part of the exercise. Whilst I was doing the task the recruiter went to copy my materials.
When she came back she gave me a bottle of water and then we went through a power point slide show about the company in a bit more detail. A lot of the information in the slide show answered some of the questions I had. I was also shown a typical schedule of a teacher at PKC and usually they start (or their classes start) at around 14:45/15:45 I cant remember which one it was but the classes finish around 19:45 each day. After I saw that I thought the hours were great considering that I would be paid 250,000 per month. She also told me that you just wear casual clothes in class and only wear a suit when you have an office meeting which is around once a month.
After the slide show she showed me a DVD featuring a typical lesson at PKC. The video featured a male teacher playing games and doing some of the typical activities with the students. We then proceeded to go through some routine interview questions regarding my background, teaching style, classroom management and area preference. She told me that my (a teachers) preference is quite low on the list for PKC and can not always be granted. She said I will not know where I am placed either until a few weeks before I am supposed to depart.
During this part of the interview we often spoke causually and off the record about myself. At one point we were talking about the JET programmae and I told her I had applied but I was unsuccessful. I said I probably didn't get through because of the reasons I wrote about why I wanted to go to Japan/teach in my statement. I told her that I liked the drama Kinpachi Sensei and that made me interested in the school system in Japan. She was surprised that I had even seen Kinpachi Sensei but thought it was a good reason to want to come to Japan. We then started to talk casually about other dramas I had seen and again she was surprised when I said I had seen Iryu: Team Medical Dragon 1- 3 because 3 has only just finished in Japan. But she did say Kinpachi Sensei was one of her favourite dramas and so was Iryu.
After the interview questions the recruiter asked me if I needed a break but I said no however she said she did and laughed and left the room briefly. Her colleague then came in to the room to take some photos of me. We then started talking casually about me and some of the good and bad things that happened to me in China slipping in and out of Japanese as we did this. The recruiter then came back to the room and asked me if I was ready for my demo lesson. She asked if I needed any flashcards but I told her that I had my own flashcards that I made using Photoshop and then printed them as photos at Boots. I performed my demo lesson to her colleague who pretended she was a 5 year old child. My demo lesson consisted of teaching the child animal names using the flashcards. I drilled the names of the animals a few times with the student repeating after me. I then hid the words and tried to elicit from the student the name of the animal.
The only questions I really asked were about teaching the younger children and trying to keep them focused for that amount of time. But I was told that the Japanese Teacher would be with me during lesson with the youngest children.
Overall I feel the interview went pretty well. I was told by the recruiter that she would notify me next week once my referees had been confirmed. She also said that they were hoping for an April start for me because they don't have enough time to do everything for March and there weren't any training sessions then either. I really hope that I am placed somewhere near Tokyo or Osaka but if that doesnt happen I will just have to deal with it. At least on the bright side I will have the opportunity to experience another part of Japan.
I will have another interview on Tuesday with Interac. I hope that goes well too so I have even more of a chance getting to Japan.
Although I am still deciding which offer to accept if both SESJ and PKC give me a job offer. I will have to way up both the pros and cons for both. Anyone who has worked at either which one would you recommend or could you give me some pros and cons about the two?
Thanks for all your help. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2011 10:16 pm Post subject: |
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The bigger national holidays seem generally normal. What is a big strange is how few days off you have in March. Usually, March has no classes even though schools are open. It is usually a time for teachers to clean offices and attend a lot of prep meetings for the coming semester.
Big thing I would find out is whether you get paid in full, in part, or at all for all days off.
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| I asked him about being enrolled on to Shakai Hoken and he said normally the company does not like to do that because they have to pay 50% of the premiums. |
Doesn't matter if they "like it" or not. It's the law. Typical stupid reaction from an employer. Up to you to decide whether to take action on this (by going to a union or labor standards office). You wouldn't be the first to do it or to ignore it. I don't know the standard reply these days from Shane, but I wouldn't be surprised if they say, "Sorry, but you are not considered a direct employee of Shane, but a subcontractor instead, so we cannot offer shakai hoken." Another typical way these companies try to wangle out of their responsibility. I suggest you read up on it. |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2011 10:24 pm Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
The bigger national holidays seem generally normal. What is a big strange is how few days off you have in March. Usually, March has no classes even though schools are open. It is usually a time for teachers to clean offices and attend a lot of prep meetings for the coming semester.
Big thing I would find out is whether you get paid in full, in part, or at all for all days off. |
I will confirm this with him if they offer me the job.
| Glenski wrote: |
| Doesn't matter if they "like it" or not. It's the law. Typical stupid reaction from an employer. Up to you to decide whether to take action on this (by going to a union or labor standards office). You wouldn't be the first to do it or to ignore it. I don't know the standard reply these days from Shane, but I wouldn't be surprised if they say, "Sorry, but you are not considered a direct employee of Shane, but a subcontractor instead, so we cannot offer shakai hoken." Another typical way these companies try to wangle out of their responsibility. I suggest you read up on it. |
He did try to say at first that I am just working under 30hrs for the company to enrol me on Shakai Hoken. But I told him it doesn't matter how many hours I work and that it can also depend on how many employees the company has which is over 5 I told him. Well I think it is over 5.
One thing I will ask him in an email is if I will find out where I am living before I get to Japan that way I can try and arrange some accommodation either an apartment or a guesthouse. He thought the reimbursement only from the home station was fair due to them having to pay out a lot more money in travel fares if I lived 100 miles away only because my rent was cheaper. I think the 78k is a bit mad considering with PKC I would never have to pay more than 55k which is more reasonable. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:12 am Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
| Glenski wrote: |
| Doesn't matter if they "like it" or not. It's the law. Typical stupid reaction from an employer. Up to you to decide whether to take action on this (by going to a union or labor standards office). You wouldn't be the first to do it or to ignore it. I don't know the standard reply these days from Shane, but I wouldn't be surprised if they say, "Sorry, but you are not considered a direct employee of Shane, but a subcontractor instead, so we cannot offer shakai hoken." Another typical way these companies try to wangle out of their responsibility. I suggest you read up on it. |
He did try to say at first that I am just working under 30hrs for the company to enrol me on Shakai Hoken. But I told him it doesn't matter how many hours I work and that it can also depend on how many employees the company has which is over 5 I told him. Well I think it is over 5. |
You need to read this, too.
http://fukuoka.generalunion.org/alt/index.html
http://www.generalunion.org/law/healthandpension.htm
Personally, I think it's outrageous that companies think they can count only the hours you are in a classroom as their work hours. If you are on the job 40 hours a week, doing whatever, you should get paid for it. But employers don't see it that way all the time. I did student interviews, planned lessons, and did various office paperwork when I wasn't in the classroom. That's all related work with a capital W.
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| One thing I will ask him in an email is if I will find out where I am living before I get to Japan |
Don't expect to learn this more than 2 weeks before you go. If you do, that's fine, but many bigger outfits can't make that determination early.
Last edited by Glenski on Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:57 am; edited 1 time in total |
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:56 am Post subject: |
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I have a question, what are the main differences between Shakai Hoken and Kokumin Kenko Hoken? Also I read that the premiums on Kokumin Kenko Hoken are likely to be around 2000yen for the first year but how much will they be in the 2nd year if I am making 250,000 yen per month? Also how do these insurance plans compare to say InterGlobal or any other private insurance company for example?
Thanks again |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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dgrey1986
Joined: 08 Aug 2010
Posts: 45
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2011 5:12 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for the info. There doesn't seem to be much difference between Kokumin-Kenkō-Hoken and Shakai Hoken apart from the 60% pay if I am unable to work which Kokumin-Kenkō-Hoken does not offer. I would also have to contribute to the pension scheme as well if I was on Shakai Hoken.
I think that PKC offer Kokumin Kenkō Hoken because I would technically be working part-time hours maybe 12 - 15 per week. But now that I think about it they offer to pay 50% of it which is quite good. The first year I would only be paying around 1,000yen and then the second year would be around 10,000yen if I decided to stay with PKC.
EDIT: I have just noticed on the 'Work Conditions' document for PKC it says that the 50% Medical Insurance Subsidy is only 40,000yen per year. So in my second year for the first 4 months I could possibly pay around 10,000yen but after that I will be paying the full 20,000yen per month for 8 months. So I would basically be paying around 200,000yen per year for Kokumin Kenkō which I guess isn't too bad since I would be earning around 3,000,000yen per annum.
Has any got any experience with the Health Insurance issue in Japan. What would recommend is best joining the National Health Service or getting my own private insurance plan?
Thanks again
Last edited by dgrey1986 on Mon Jan 17, 2011 9:56 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009
Posts: 1546
Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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| Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2011 9:50 pm Post subject: |
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| dgrey1986 wrote: |
Thanks for the info. There doesn't seem to be much difference between Kokumin-Kenkō-Hoken and Shakai Hoken apart from the 60% pay if I am unable to work which Kokumin-Kenkō-Hoken does not offer. |
Your company should still enroll you in unemployment insurance and send you the certificate even if you are not receiving Shakai Hoken.
| Quote: |
| I think that PKC offer Kokumin Kenkō Hoken because I would technically be working part-time hours maybe 12 - 15 per week. But now that I think about it they offer to pay 50% of it which is quite good. The first year I would only be paying around 1,000yen and then the second year would be around 10,000yen if I decided to stay with PKC. |
Companies only have to make co-payments on Shakai Hoken; you cover 100% of payments on Kokumin Kenko Hoken. |
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