Job Discussion Forums

artimidorus · Joined: 10 Nov 2009 Posts: 10

hey all,

so here is my situation. I may have gotten a job with borderlink. BL is my last choice, though, as i have heard nothing but bad things about them. I applied to RCS nad Altia, and they both told me to apply again in Dec. If BL does offer me a job, i dont know weather i should take it or not. If I DO take it, and sign a contract, and another better place hires me, what can I do? I doubt i can just say nevermind to BL. and what about the visa? if bl sponsors my visa, and someone else hires me, how does that work? and is it even worth it to hold out for a "better" company? I mean, i hear BL is bad, but im getting the idea that most of the ALT companies are bad.

my other idea, which i am sure has been brought up before, is going to Japan w/ BL, wait for them to do me wrong, and then cut outta there and find a job somewhere else. I don't really want to do that, but do you think i have a shot at getting hired within Japan with a work visa?

The thing is, I really REALLY want to get to Japan, and I would feel horrible turning down a job offer to work there, even if it with BL, so i really don't want to say no. But, I think I can do better than BL. but then again, I dont know because I hear they arent hiring like crazy like they used to. Any ideas, suggestions, help, insight would be MUCH appreciated! Rolling Eyes

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

robertokun · Joined: 27 May 2008 Posts: 199

Just say no.

My suggestion: If you want to come ASAP, find a job at an eikaiwa school. ALT'ing for a dispatch company is not the way to go.

artimidorus · Joined: 10 Nov 2009 Posts: 10

hmm, so, lets say I do go, arrive in japan with a work visa, and immidiately look for another job at a small eikaiwa. do you think they will even hire me? what if they ask why I have a visa, who sponsored it, why did i break contract with them? would going there and breaking contract make me unhireable to other companies? or would they be cool if i explained that I had to leave my previous employer cause they were abusing me and other employees?

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

cornishmuppet · Joined: 27 Mar 2004 Posts: 642 Location: Nagano, Japan

ShioriEigoKyoushi · Joined: 21 Aug 2009 Posts: 364 Location: Japan

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seklarwia · Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 10:39 pm Post subject:

ShioriEigoKyoushi · Joined: 21 Aug 2009 Posts: 364 Location: Japan

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cornishmuppet · Joined: 27 Mar 2004 Posts: 642 Location: Nagano, Japan

Those are the jobs that NO ONE should be applying for. Around 230,000 - 250,000 is perfectly liveable, though, and really, if you have no experience you shouldn't expect more. I agree that 230k is cutting it fine but as an ALT you have your evenings and weekends free to get some privates. Plus you won't feel completely wasted at the end of each day like you will with an eikaiwa.

Even if you get a rubbish ALT gig, chances are that you'll still get holiday, and at least part payment during school holidays when the kids aren't there. The best part of it is having two or three weeks off two or three times a year to actually see Japan. Most eikaiwas couldn't spell the word "holiday" and most eikaiwa teachers rarely see more than the end of a bar.

And remember, 90% of the bitching about ALT gigs has nothing to do with the schools but with the dispatch company management. These people are NOT HUMAN. They are jumped up scumbags who get a kick out of screwing other foreigners, but if you keep your head down you might hear from them once a semester at best. The people you will be around 99.9% of the time are your Japanese co-workers in your schools, and while you might get one douche bag out of a group of, say, six Japanese Teachers of English (JTEs) chances are you'll get on well with all of them. I've worked in fourteen schools (elementary to high school) and never fallen out with anyone. Some of the nicest people I've ever met have been my JTE co-workers.

seklarwia · Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 9:26 am Post subject:

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

robertokun · Joined: 27 May 2008 Posts: 199

Yeah, as was mentioned ALT work can be a piece of cake, but --and I don't think there is any debate about this point-- dispatch companies are scumbags. It is by definition their job to rip off ALT's and take their cut of the BOE money. That's the reason these companies exist. Then the BOE can sleep well at night knowing they don't have to deal with any foreigners.

If you get a crappy eikaiwa job, you leave and get something else. Your students are adults and kids who study in their private time. Teachers come and go all year round.

If you get an ALT job with a crappy dispatch company (Which they really all are. You have to be just to compete in that game,) do you just up and leave a school full of kids and teachers that you have been working with and may feel close to, to go get something else?

I've done ALT and eikaiwa work. While I liked both of the actual jobs, working for the eikaiwa company was way better than working for the dispatch company. And this was with a company that a lot of newbies used to whine about.

Whether you work for an eikaiwa or a dispatch company, you get 10 days of paid holidays after six months. Sure, eikaiwa aren't going to get the same holidays that the public schools get, but break periods in the school system are hardly a holiday. When it was summer "vacation" the kids at my school still had to go to class, just on a different schedule, save for one week. For Fall break they got three whole days. Teachers didn't get any. And at least in eikaiwa you should have enough money to take a vacation when you can get it.

Of course opinions are always going to vary on this issue, but that's my two yen. If the OP didn't feel the need to go ASAP, they should have done a JET app, which should be closing for the next school year really soon.

I think that ultimately, Japan is a country that has too strong of an appeal for a lot of people. So many people REALLY NEED to come here, so they take anything they can get and the cycle perpetuates itself. Nothing personal, but who wants to bet that the OP doesn't take the job with BL if they offer it? I'll give you two to one.

seklarwia · Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 3:16 pm Post subject:

robertokun · Joined: 27 May 2008 Posts: 199

Seklarwia,

Sounds like you really lucked out as far as a dispatch position goes. I wonder what your health benefits and accommodation are like. Mine, and many other dispatch jobs I've seen offer nowhere near what it seems you're getting. One only need check the ads on gaijinpot and even on here to see how bad things are getting.

Congrats on what seems like a pretty good non-JET setup you've got going for you. Unless you live with a significant other or family or something and get free accommodation, spending freely and still saving 100,000 a month on an ALT dispatch salary blows my mind. You're location is going to be awesome in the wintertime, too, so there's another plus.