Job Discussion Forums

[leftx47]

I'm looking at an eikaiwa contract and had a couple of questions about the termination clause. (If it makes a difference, it would be my first year working in Japan, and I would need the employer to sponsor my visa application.)

First:
"Upon unprofessional and/or illegal behavior, Employer reserves the right to immediately dismiss the teacher without further pay."

This one's not a big deal, but I thought Japan had a 2 weeks notice rule? (Although I would understand if it didn't apply in the case of illegal behavior...)

Second:
"Teachers must cancel their Employer sponsor working visa immediately when they leave Employer before completion of the term."

I'm not planning on quitting or anything, but I thought one of the benefits of Japan (as opposed to Korea, say) was that the visa belonged to the employee so a bad boss couldn't hold that over you?

Also, a general question, if you sign a contract with a clause that contradicts Japanese labor law, does the contract then take precedence over the labor law? Can you sign away your rights in Japan?

Thanks for any advice.

[wayne432]

[Mr_Monkey]

As far as contractually requiring you to cancel your visa, how do you suppose they could enforce it?

[Glenski]

If you do something illegal, why would the employer want you to stay with them? They are your sponsor, so it reflects badly on them. No problem at all in firing you on the spot. Happened when a couple of NOVA teachers got arrested for drugs.


As far as forcing you to cancel your visa, they can't do that, and they have no right to do that. However, they can disavow themselves from continuing as your sponsor.

[leftx47]

Thanks for the responses.

I wasn't planning on either committing a crime or quitting , but I wanted to make sure I understood all of the contract provisions.