Job Discussion Forums

[mix]

I was recruited by ECC in Melbourne in June and was told initially that I could expect to be in Japan by August/September. This date was pushed back to October/November a little while later and then yesterday I received an email saying that none of their districts had issued staffing requests and that there would be no placements available until next year at the earliest.

I'm absolutely devastated and I don't want to push back my plans another 4-6 months, I want to go now. Can you offer any advice about alternative work to teaching in the short term? What would be my chances of finding teaching jobs, or any other work, if I were to go over without anything lined up?

Also if there's any other ECC people here who received that email, feel free to vent in here.

[dano_j]

That's no good! I also went to the interview in June, but I failed the grammar test. I have re-applied and ECC are holding more recruitment sessions in October.

I guess they can't give you a position if one isn't available.

[Glenski]

"I want to go now"

Uh, what's the rush? It's almost September, which means you have a very slight chance of getting some rare job for the October start date. Otherwise, after that there is darned little opening until spring (with interviews in Feb/March). Even if you see ALT jobs advertised now, they will likely be for April start dates.

Want something short-term? About all that's left is Westgate Corp., but I don't know what their hiring schedule is.

Otherwise, be patient like the other 99% of newcomers. It's pretty crowded here.

[Inflames]

Relax, ECC is generally a good company. If you can get something from them for next year I'd probably just wait.

[mix]

Appreciate the advice and I can understand that I may seem over eager in coming over, but the fact is that everything I was doing was geared toward heading over by October and I was given no inclination otherwise that it would happen. Now I'm stuck in the incredibly awkward position of being unemployed, living at home and having all my plans pushed back six months.

I'm considering looking at resort work in Japan and also ESL jobs in Korea and China but I've invested a lot of time into studying Japanese and I feel absolutely cheated and deceived by ECC in the way they've handled the situation. When I was accepted by ECC I naturally stopped looking for other teaching jobs and instead focused on my language study and earning money through part-time work. I've been almost in a state of limbo waiting for a placement and I feel that the past 3 months have been a complete waste and set me back a long way.

[Glenski]

[mix]

I was told that I should expect a placement in August/September when I was told I passed the interview. How else could I have read the situation? I was given no indication that the teacher demand was lower than expected this year or that there was a chance that placements can take up to eight months. I kept in constant email contact with the recruitment manager and I strongly believe that he led me on in regards to my chances of placement. I was told after I missed the first August/September placement that I was now at the very top of the priority list and would be found a placement in the next round.

[Apsara]

[Glenski]

If mix meets the age and financial requirements, yes, indeed.

[aynnej]

For resort work, you may want to check out the ski lodges. I went to Niseko in Hokkaido last year and noticed a good number of Australians working there. Think it might be a popular ski destinations for Australians, since the time difference between Japan and Australia isn't so bad (thus resorts might want to hire Australians as staff).

[Mr_Monkey]

[mix]

You're right they never guaranteed a placement, however, the recruiting session I went to advertised the fact that it was hiring for August/September placements and I feel that I wasn't given an honest or reasonable expectation of how long a placement was likely to take.

I'm exploring all options atm, but my head is still spinning from the disappointment. I think eventually I'm gonna have to accept that I'll need to find an office job for six months and tough it out. I guess it will give me the opportunity to apply to JET in December as well.

[Glenski]

Not being honest?
Far from it! They were as honest as could be. Reread your OP:

I was recruited by ECC in Melbourne in June and was told initially that I could expect to be in Japan by August/September. This date was pushed back to October/November a little while later and then yesterday [August] I received an email saying that none of their districts had issued staffing requests and that there would be no placements available until next year at the earliest.

I'd say they did their darnedest to keep you informed! If they told you to pack your bags and be prepared for a ship-out date of X, then you'd have something to complain about.

As for a "reasonable expectation", that's debatable, but you should have realized there was going to be a problem after the first delay, and especially since the market is in the shape it's in. I believe there have been other posted threads about such delays from employers here on this very web site.

[mix]

If I was well informed I would've been looking at other options. I find it hard to believe that my recruitment manager would've been unaware of the likely demands for teachers before he told me that there were no placements available for this year.

Sure maybe I'm slightly bitter atm. Shoot me. I've just had my plans completely destroyed and I have little idea of what I'm going to do.

[think_balance]