Hello everyone,
I hope this post finds you well. I’m here to share a job offer that has left me a bit puzzled and looking for some guidance.
I (27F) recently received an offer to teach English at a school located in Tokyo, two hours from Shibuya station. While the opportunity sounds promising, there’s a rather unique condition attached to it that I’d like to discuss.
The school requires its English teachers to reside in the same vicinity as the school’s location. The reason provided is quite intriguing: the school’s director considers himself the “dad” of the English teaching team. This arrangement supposedly ensures that he can readily assist teachers by providing transportation home or to the hospital if ever needed. Interestingly, this stipulation is said to be relaxed only for teachers who are married, as their spouses can presumably fulfill this role.
As someone who is currently a student and have been a bit desperate to secure a job to support my visa requirements and future plans, I find myself torn. On one hand, the offer provides much-needed stability, but on the other hand, I’m apprehensive about the potential implications of this condition. It does come across as a bit unusual and perhaps even a cause for concern.
I’m turning to this community to seek advice and gather insights. Has anyone encountered a similar situation in their career? I would greatly appreciate hearing your thoughts, experiences, and perspectives on this matter. :/
Thank you all in advance for your time and input!
by Naenonae
37 comments
Not sure if two hours from Shibuya is still
considered Tokyo, but the situation sounds a little weird. Not uncommon for schools to provide nearby housing for their teachers, but from how you describe it, sounds like the owner could be controlling/on the micro-managing side. Plus, they should provide you with a place to stay or at least help you secure a place beforehand in any case. Might wanna look for another option if you’re getting a weird vibe.
Sounds like a massive weirdo. Not the first time I have heard of this kind of thing though. Dont be surprised if you start getting LINE messages on your days off to make sure you arent meeting up with boys.
IMO Your personal life and your work life should be separated by an enormous wall, defended by machine gun turrets, and a moat.
Lol he means he wants to keep an eye on your private lives and butt in all the time.
This condition is not at all uncommon, but it’s definitely a red flag.
The reality is that smaller schools want teachers living nearby so off-duty teachers can be called in at the last second for an emergency cover.
Does the school reimburse your travel commute? I don’t think it comes to very much, but perhaps they’re trying to limit their transportation claims…
The only other thing I would try to keep in mind – it costs a fair bit to move. Key money, deposit, insurance, guarantor fee, etc.. the ballpark figure I’ve heard is you need close to 5 months of rent upfront (that you’ll not be getting any of that back…). If you’re coming in from somewhere else it’s a cost you’ll incur; but if you’re already here, it’s quite a fair bit to put out just for a job. If they’ll cover that, then yes, I might be game, but it’s not something I would fork out if I’m comfortable where I am, and the commute is reasonable.
In some cases, they could potssibly be getting some kickback from your rental apartment close to the school/company housing. (eg: It only costs X; but they’re charging you Y and keeping the difference).
🚩🚩🚩
He could be harmless buuuuut I think that’s a little weird and makes me think there could be a lot of potential overstepping of boundaries (best case) and actual workplace abuse/sexual harassment (worst case)… especially because married people are somehow exempt.
I mean.
This guy is either super nice and just wants to make sure his employees can arrive to work timely and efficiently. Not too crazy. Tokyo is a competitive location, it’s the default spot for every single foreign teacher except me appearantly (too big, too busy).
Or this guy is a whacko creeper. Hiring young women he can perv on while off the clock. And he’s gonna use his position to hold power over you.
Honestly? My faith in humanity votes for option 1, but my knowledge of humanity leans towards option 2. Unless you can chat with someone who has actually worked there the only way to know for sure is by getting out there and doing it.
He could’ve presented this in two ways.
1. Overbearing boss who likes to control
“Since our past teachers have often come in late and quit because they found something closer to them, we require teachers to live near the vicinity of the school”
2. Creepy weirdo geezer
“Hiyaaaa. I’m your Japan dad. Since you don’t have a husband, I’ll be the one taking care of you so I need you to be near my side at all tiiiiimes.
Both bad, but He chose number 2. Remember that if you decide to sign a contract with this weirdo.
Run . They want you tied to them .
Do not take this job, I took a job at an eikaiwa when I first moved here that was like this….it wasnt a rule it was more like my manager just being nice and helping me find a place….which my dumbass fell for, I was a 10 minute walk from school
Well I started dating a coworker (my now wife) and she got suspicious after a few months, and started following me home to see if my wife was coming with me, so we would always have to walk to the station together, go our seperate ways and meet up later, and one night I looked out my window and saw her car parked on the street
And I remeber once I went into work, and she said you know you arent supposed to eat and walk on the street in Japan, and I was like idk what you’re talking about
and she told me she saw me coming from my apartment in the morning doing it….and when I asked how the fuck she would have seen that she said she had to run an errand over there that day
So yeah…………there are a million eikaiwa jobs in Japan….dont take that one
Not too out of the ordinary for Japan. Legally , you need not oblige, but he may find a way to not hire you if he senses you’re not OK with the status quo.JET participants are often wrongfully told they need to live where the BOE tells them. It’s not required but strongly urged.
I worked at a small eikaiwa for a while where the owner had a house near the school that he rented to me, and there wasn’t anything sexually sketchy about it or anything, but I did get comments whenever I had people over, etc. He also did the “I’m you’re buddy!” thing which ended up being used to make me feel guilty about not wanting to give 250% of my time and efforts to the school, and to drag me into dinners with him during my private time (also not sketchy, just not much fun).
I can’t comment on your particular school ‘cause I dunno anything about it, so that’s just my personal experience with a similar situation.
I would run a mile.
Hard pass.
“…the school’s director considers himself the “dad” of the English teaching team.”
I wish I could be in the interview the room when the director asks, “Who’s your daddy?”
A train commute of 30 minutes is “in the vicinity”.
And there’s no need for an employer to mind an employee for personal appointments. He’s full of guff.
Assuming you’re within the 23 wards of Tokyo, you don’t need an employer to help you with anything outside of work. You’ve got municipal offices, international associations, lots of foreign resident support on social media, and good medical facilities where you can get care in English and other languages.
I read ‘considers himself the dad’ and stopped reading. Sounds like a set up for micromanaging and a toxic work environment
Wanting their employees to live close by is a legitimate concern; they don’t want people getting stuck in traffic.
Wanting to be your employee’s “dad” is NOT a legitimate business concern.
Check out the demographics of the teaching staff. If they’re all young, single women… you should run
Is this school actually a sex cult?
I mean, two hours out of Shibuya can make for a very secluded compound deep in the woods.
You can almost make it to Shizuoka City driving 2hrs from Shibuya
Never heard of such a thing. I’m way too old for that. And if I was looking for such a thing I would bestow that honor upon the person of my choosing. They wouldn’t appoint themselves as such. That’s weird.
If he wants to be my *sugar* daddy then that’s a completely different scenario.
Massive weirdo
Would you take a job like this in your own country? Then use your common sense and better judgement in the exact same way.
Keep in mind that some people might try to bullshit you that Japan is an entirely different culture where weird shit like this is normal – it’s not.
I honestly cannot describe right now how incredibly creepy this man sounds.
Like most have said, this is strange.
Likely, you have:
A) A really weird teacher that is really weird around everyone and everyone just accepts it because they’re old, close to retirement, and/or have an extreme amount of clout in the area.
Or
B) A control freak micro-manager that performs weekly colonoscopies testing your regional pronunciation of English, requiring you Katakanize your words, and/or making you the other teachers’ personal assistant for almost everything. (Sober Taxi driver for Bonenkai, giving you solo secretary work for all paper announcements, requiring you to “stay late” unpaid to be a “team player”).
This wreaks of messed up.
TL;DR
Run
That is textbook definition of grooming.
Sounds like the typical small, scammy eikaiwa that will do sketchy things like take your passport, refuse time off or many worse things.
You have answered your own question – unusual and a cause for concern. He is a weirdo. Walk away.
It would be interesting to see the gender make up of this weirdos teachers, I imagine most would be female.
>the school’s director considers himself the “dad” of the English teaching team
>Interestingly, this stipulation is said to be relaxed only for teachers who are married
That’s a huge red flag.
A company shouldn’t ask you to relocate, unless it’s too far to commute. Example Tokyo – Osaka.
Usually they have a budget for transportation allowance up to x, and you pay the excess from your pocket.
I would run away from a job like that. He wants to be the “dad” because he wants to treat them like children, control them, and show up at their house to check on them.
Do you have another choice? This is the real question. If you do, go for it.
Otherwise you gotta make a decision about this proposal. Is it weird a huge red flag? Yes, but refer to the question above and ask yourself.
And if you happen to accept the proposal, there is nothing anybody can do to interfere with your personal life, unless you allow it. You can also quit at any time, you aren’t a slave. You could very well secure your visa and look for another job, for example. How feasible is this? I don’t know..
This sounds like a control freak! I wouldn’t trust that at all! I’ve been working in Japan as a teacher for 6 years and I’ve seen enough Japanese management and owners of schools be total creep bags! Be careful.
Maybe I’m cynical and jaded but this seems shady and ripe with potential for controlling and invasive behaviour in the best case scenario.
RED FLAG. Especially if you are a female teacher. Girl. Don’t do it. Apply to a different eikaiwa or school
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Do you intend to stay in the teaching field long term?
I (23M) just accepted a position at an Eikawa, and the school is providing me housing within walking distance of the school. The director also does his best to help foreigners integrate into Japanese society. He offers two (optional and free) weekly Japanese classes for the teachers at the school. And he/his wife have a standing offer to help schedule appointments, fill out paperwork, etc. In my interview with him, I asked why he is providing this much assistance. And he told me “I’ve found that when I support my new teachers, they tend to work better and harder than when they no support.”
That could be what this guy is getting at, but it almost sounds like you have to find your own housing and etc. I want to say that it’s weird, but I don’t know for 100%. I personally would look up employee reviews of the place online before you accept the offer.
This is done to save money on transportation on their side and for them to have more control over you. It also ensures that the teacher won’t be late due to transportation or other reasons because you are in walking distance from work.