Job Discussion Forums

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

http://forum.japantoday.com/Change_in_contract_%26_working_conditions_%2D%2D_Hobson%27s_choice%3F/m_479798/tm.htm

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

It's clearly not Nova, but do you have any idea which of the big four it is Glenski?

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

It is not clear to me that it is NOT NOVA. In fact, based on what was written about the change in hours, and from other forums I've visited with similar posts, it is NOVA.

Related discussion on ELT News.com:
http://www.eltnews.com/community/?board=legal;action=display;num=1113269542

If I'm wrong, so be it, but the fact remains that changing hours in that way is fast becoming a rat's nest of problems.

From ELT News.com
Major Eikaiwa's Seen Avoiding Insurance Shake Up
The investigation by the Social Insurance Agency into hundreds of English conversation schools nationwide looks unlikely to produce any real change. It seems that the major chain schools will be able to continue skirting the law relating to full-time employees, at least in its present form (see below). The investigation was looking for schools that fail to enroll their teachers in the company insurance scheme or fail to provide teachers with sufficient information on such schemes. The agency said it was looking at over 750 schools across the country, but the main focus was on the big five.

The biggest eikaiwa school operator, Nova, employs some 6,000 foreign teachers. It recently issued a directive to all teachers that two minutes before and after classes is designated as time for preparation or cleaning up. The remaining time between classes is "free time." The result is that teachers classed as full-timers "work" less than 30 hours a week; Berlitz Japan says that its regulations stipulate that full-timers work 28 hours a week, though in reality the figure is said to be over 30. Only 42 of the company's 1,200 foreign teachers are said to qualify for the employees' insurance scheme; ECC's stance is that none of its 700 or so foreign teachers work more than 29.5 hours a week, and so none qualify for the scheme. Aeon plans for about one third of its 650 foreign teachers to be enrolled. Geos, which employs about 600 foreign teachers, says it has not decided how to respond to the agency.

A Social Insurance Agency spokesperson said, "We expected this investigation to lead to a big increase in enrollment, but even with the new criteria it hasn't happened. There will probably continue to be confusion, but we have made progress in that people are more aware of the criteria." (from an article on asahi.com)

(Foreigners with resident status in Japan -- with some exceptions -- are required to be enrolled in either the national (kokumin kenko hoken) or company insurance (shakai hoken) schemes. The Social Insurance Agency last month clarified its criteria that anyone working at least three-quarters the hours of a full-time employee (40 hours a week) is entitled to join the shakai hoken scheme. Such employees pay 50% of their insurance premiums, with the employer covering the other 50%. Shakai hoken enrollment is usually lumped together with the employees' pension scheme. Regional and individual variations in the various schemes and differences in translation have led to widespread confusion regarding the various schemes. The main force behind the calls for change are the labor unions.)

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

I don't see how it can be Nova because the original poster wrote:

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

sorry, yamanote senbei, I just see that as a carefully worded statement to avoid being confronted by NOVA.

As I wrote, if I'm wrong, so be it. The fact remains that juggling work hours, whether by NOVA (as in my links) or anyone else, is a slimy way of getting around a law, yet it is being done.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

You could be right about it being Nova, but I don't really find the original post that carefully worded. If they wanted to avoid mentioning who their employer was they could have done it in a better way.

It looks like all the eikaiwa schools will probably do the same thing, make everyone part-time.

guest of Japan · Joined: 28 Feb 2003 Posts: 1601 Location: Japan

I've recently heard of AEON implementing a system as described in the original article.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

Does anyone know anyone who works for AEON who can confirm this?

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

yeka · Joined: 24 Oct 2004 Posts: 24 Location: Japan

I work for AEON*Amity, and yes, as of today we had to make a decision about our schedules and other issues regarding the insurance.

However, I think our options were different. I was given the choice to either keep my working schedule and get paid the same or increase my hours and get compensated for the extra money that would come out of my paycheck every week.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

So yeka, do you think that the original post was from someone working for AEON or for another company? It might be that different regions have different work rules.

yeka · Joined: 24 Oct 2004 Posts: 24 Location: Japan

It's possible, because it does sound like the options that the AEON empolyees were given. All this hit the fan last Wednesday with Amity, I'm really not sure about when AEON employees found out. That post is dated June 20th, so it's about the same time...

However, given that I have heard rumors that the Nova teachers also have the option of reduced working hours, I can't say for sure.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

Does anyone here work for Nova and can confirm this?

Zzonkmiles · Joined: 05 Apr 2003 Posts: 309

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

Thanks, what are the three options, Zzonkmiles? And does everyone's gross salary remain the same with each?