Job Discussion Forums

David71 · Joined: 05 May 2017 Posts: 4

Hi there,

So I have been in Japan for 4 years, working as an ALT with a small dispatch company, and I am all set to leave in a couple of months.

I have been organising my pension documents as I obviously want to get the refund when I return to Australia, and I notice that my boss has been stating my salary as 210,000 yen rather than 250,000, presumably to lessen his pension payments each month.

My dilemma here is whether it is worth raising this issue before I leave.

Of course, usually I wouldn't hesitate to complain, but in all honesty, this company has been great to me over the years. Supportive, transport paid for, full holiday pay, etc.

I had already figured out that my boss has been over charging me in terms of my monthly rent, but I have always let that slide because I do get a decent bonus at the end of each one year contract. However, I now realise that this over-charging for rent, coupled with the under-paying of his pension obligations each month, has been a way to 'save up' money to enable the 'bonus' at the end of each year.

So in effect, I haven't 'lost' any money throughout the course of my contract, as my bonuses have negated any losses from my boss' dishonesty. But it is annoying now because it has hit me that my pension refund is going to be significantly less than it could/should have been.

Would you risk souring things? Or just put it down to experience? And does anyone know roughly what the difference would be on a pension refund of 210,000 over 3 years, and 250,000 over 3 years? I worked it out to be around 100,000 yen or so.

Thanks for reading.

David

Harp · Posted: Fri May 26, 2017 1:31 am Post subject:

I'm pretty sure that's fraud and if not a criminal offence then surely a civil one.

And if he's doing it to you then he'll be doing it to all the other employees (assuming you're not to only dispatch worker he has), which will mean he's saving himself a pile of cash as his company's contribution to the pension will be less.

I'd go and ask him about it and after he's given you his excuse tell him you're off to ask the labour standards office for their opinion. The last thing he'll want is them sniffing around if he is on the take, so he may offer you something, then it becomes a moral choice; take the money or blow the whistle...

David71 · Joined: 05 May 2017 Posts: 4

yurii · Joined: 12 Jan 2017 Posts: 106

taikibansei · Joined: 14 Sep 2004 Posts: 811 Location: Japan

It is really hard to know if something illegal has occurred just from the OP's description--it could be something nefarious, or it could be an example of the standard practice seen with many Japanese employers (including most full-time university positions). While something of a pain (as a higher monthly salary could have come in handy on occasion), I receive over 20% of my yearly salary in the form of bonuses--their addition allows me to reach my guaranteed salary total each year.

now_or_never · Joined: 28 Sep 2016 Posts: 3

I'm not sure what you mean. Are the deductions taken from your salary more than those registered with the pensions office? Or, has he just been taking pension contributions from your salary based on a 210,000 yen salary?

David71 · Joined: 05 May 2017 Posts: 4

David71 · Joined: 05 May 2017 Posts: 4

now_or_never · Joined: 28 Sep 2016 Posts: 3

timothypfox · Joined: 20 Feb 2008 Posts: 492

Since the amount in question is possibly 100,000 yen less than expected it is not terribly big. I would honestly only pursue this if you decided to remain in Japan. Resolving this could take time, and the boss could get sticky with you about "not" cleaning the apartment properly and Donald Trump up the charges on the cleaning charge you have to pay. (Not sure if your arrangement is that you have to clean up after yourself or not - but it is common practice for landlords to charge a fee that they set after looking over the place as to what you "owe" for cleaning and minor repairs.) Just my two thoughts - unless you are strongly driven by social justice...

The Transformer · Joined: 03 Mar 2017 Posts: 69

Can you account for this 40,000-yen difference in salary? Does he pay you a basic salary of 210,000-yen, then have 40,000-yen of allowances on top? Deductions are probably based just on your basic salary, not allowances.

If there is nothing in your contract along those lines, then he's breached the contract and violated labor law, not to mention been unethical in not informing you about what he was doing.

If I were in your shoes, and you say you haven't lost any money overall, I would probably let it drop, especially for the sake of being able to get a reference. Having said that, I think it would leave a sour taste in my mouth, having been strung along and lied to like that, and I don't know that I'd want to work for them again.

If you're no better or worse off overall though, I'm not too sure why he wasn't straight up with you about it. It's not as if you were losing out.