Dear ALT, Do you have any job concerns?

Maybe we can help!
We are Kyoto Cyber Union, a group of school teachers and workers in Kyoto municipal schools.

As you are aware, until last year all ALTs in Kyoto City administered municipal schools worked on a contract direct with Kyoto City Board of Education. However, as of this year Kyoto City has contracted out its ALT staffing to a recruitment agency that manages contracts and compensation conditions.

Have you noticed any change in your conditions?

All aspects of your contract, including holiday allowance, travel expenses, working hours, length of contract and health insurance, are no longer the responsibility of Kyoto City Board of Education but are at the discretion of a recruitment agency.

Our concern is that the primary objective of a private company is to generate income and increase profits. We warn that, as a result, the rights of personnel that it is managing is of secondary importance.

An extreme example of our argument was well documented in the media last year when Japan's largest language school company, NOVA, went bankrupt. One of the largest issues to come out of that scandal was the sudden cancellation of thousands of contracts for language teachers.

It is possible that a similar situation could occur here in Kyoto. This adds one more unnecessary uncertainty into the lives of ALTs. We think that Kyoto City Board of Education should take full responsibility for ALTs working in its schools. This does not happen under the current system.

As well as ALTs, the position of Computer Advisers in Kyoto municipal schools work under these contract conditions. These people face similar concerns as you regarding their contracts and conditions.

We are Kyoto Cyber Union, a group of workers who are ready to listen and advise people concerned and troubled by their contract conditions. We invite you to contact us with anything at anytime regarding your contract. We have worked for Kyoto City for many years and may well be able to offer you some useful advice.

Email (gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc also acceptable) to me:

Email Address:info[at]kyoto-union[dot]net
Spam mail measures: 　　[at] is @　　,　　[dot] is .

Kyoto Cyber Union

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