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Benesse Corp. bigwig bashes underling in meeting
An executive from correspondence education giant [and parent company of Berlitz and Simul] Benesse Corp. faces punishment after he punched a middle manager during a meeting last month, the company said. The executive, a 53-year-old man whose name has not been released, has apologized to the lower-ranking manager who he hit. But Benesse Corp. officials…
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Is it all over for Nova?
As ‘eikaiwa’ giant plans school closures amid credit crunch, some fear the worst The dark clouds that have been hanging heavily over us will be cast aside,” reads the English translation of Nova Corp. CEO Nozomu Sahashi’s memo faxed to staff Friday. “I said previously ‘the darkest time is before the dawn,’ and finally the…
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May 25th Mini-Koudou Demos
Rain or shine, Nambu members turn out when called, and more than 20 people participated throughout the day in the Mini-Koudou demos last Friday, May 25. Action began with a multi-union demo in Kasumigaseki. Hundreds of unionists surrounded the Ministry buildings in support of dismissed JR workers who have been fighting for decades. Listening to…
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Reinstate the Sapporo Four!
The fight against union busting at the Berlitz-ELS Sapporo Language Centre continues, with two demonstrations held recently in Sapporo and Tokyo. In Sapporo, union members leafletted in front of the Berlitz-ELS LC on March 12. The union continues to receive strong support, with a new member joining the original Four, and students as well as…
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Strike and Nationwide Protest against Union-Busting at ELS-Berlitz in Sapporo
Demonstrators gathered in front of ELS-Berlitz schools in Sapporo, Fukuoka, and Tokyo last Saturday to protest dismissals of four union members at the Sapporo ELS-Berlitz school. Friends and students joined union members to hand out over 600 leaflets during a strike at the Sapporo school, while in Tokyo, Berlitz teachers and other union members called…
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National Union Voice
The Summer 2006 edition of the National Union Voice has just been published, with updates on our Berlitz and Nova Branches, as well as detailed information on your rights to Employee’s Health and Pension Insurance (Shakai Hoken), recent changes in National Health and Pension Insurance & social security treaties, and more.
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Begunto Trick-or-Treats with Berlitz in Omiya
Flash Demo at Berlitz Omiya Branch Teachers Disciplined For Trivial Reasons The disrequest system at Berlitz is just one example of threats to job security faced by teachers in the eikaiwa industry. HR representatives claim that a pattern of complaints concerning any particular instructor can lead to discipline, and that six to eight official disrequests…
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Berlitz Tokyo Union Protests Pay Freeze
Across the Tokyo region, Berlitz language teachers are striking. Members of the Begunto Union, the Berlitz teachers’ union in the Tokyo region of Japan, are striking against management actions regarding a pay freeze and introduction of new work contracts they see as less than satisfactory. http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?article_class=3&no=243288&rel_no=1
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Nationwide Probe of 750 Language Schools
The evening edition of the Asahi Shimbun carried a story by Ari Hirayama about a nationwide probe of 750 language schools suspected of not enrolling foreign teachers in shakai hoken (employee pension and health scheme), not only on the front page but as the top story. It even beat out Saddam Hussein’s indictment. Bob Tench,…