Hi all,
I’m planning to move with an ALT dispatch company spring 2023. There are likely others like me on this subreddit, but I was originally slated to be leaving this spring, and due to my dispatch company having more ALTs than spots to fill I’ve been scooted back a year.
This wouldn’t be so bad (I have a good job I enjoy well enough and am generally happy at home) except for one thing; my brother is getting married next year. I had originally planned to be able to fly home to be there for it, as it would have been within my second year abroad.
I have heard however that taking an extended trip shortly after you start a job in Japan is a pretty substantial faux pas, but since the wedding was originally going to be in my second year abroad rather than my first I wasn’t worried about it. Now though, the wedding is set for September, and I will likely be moving in March. Is that enough of a space of time that I could realistically plan on taking a few days to go home for a wedding?
Thank you for any input!
9 comments
How long are you going to be away? If it’s a week or more right smack in the middle of the school year, I would say no, especially if you’re working as an ALT at a public school.
Sorry, ALT company is not going to like it. School/BOE is especially not going to like it.
Sept 18th 2023 is a public holiday, part of Silver Week. Unfortunately Autumnal Equinox day is on a Saturday next year.
Not sure if that helps you or not.
I’d say best thing for you is to be upfront with your time off requirements. Submit it as early as possible.
For the most part the danger time is your first 3 months, although some companies will say first 6 months. But you do get (at least) 10 paid holidays per year that you would need to use (although your company may force you to take 5 of them at their discretion).
I think current border restrictions and the possibility of future ones make that question very difficult to answer.
There are a lots of public holidays that you can combine with your first year paid holiday that is probably 10 days. In regards if you are allowed or not it depends on each company but in Japan due to its “live to work” “work to death” culture some Japanese old guys may not have a positive view about it. But just be honest and ask your manager, in some companies I work in the past I’ve used fake “family ill” reasons to go back. Unfortunately in japan the laws doesn’t help the employees about overtime work and taking vacations, you will notice everyone want to take long vacations but no one takes it or else they will be f…cked up by the group. That group way of thinking also makes me crazy always. But anyway try to talk to your manager
Tell them in advance (as in, now). If they say no, don’t take the job. Make sure you have everything in writing.
Then when they inevitably backpedal when the time for vacation comes up, you can shove the email in their faces and tell them you gave about 1.5 years of notice about this particular vacation.
Then, if they still double down on saying no, quit, leave for your brothers wedding anyway and don’t come back.
I think that strictly speaking once you have been employed for 3 months Japanese law entitles you to paid leave. It won’t be much if you’ve only been there 5 months, but it should be enough for a brief trip back home as long as you don’t have to do any quarantine type bullshit.
Most ALT companies act as if any kind of days off by their teachers are the end of the world, especially if they during are term-time. But honestly, that doesn’t matter, for 2 reasons:
1. they bulk hire people and there will almost certainly be some other teacher (or even multiple offenders) who will do much worse than take a few too many days off. As long as you do an otherwise good job, you’ll be fine.
2. ALT companies have a notoriously difficult time retaining the same Board of Education contracts from one year to the next, if you stay multiple years it’s unlikely to be with the same combination of ALT company + city, so, clean slate.
With any company you work for, the more notice you give the better, especially if you’re taking an extended period of time off. But I would say 6 months is plenty of time – I flew back home for a couple day around 3 months after I started working, but I had told the recruiter when I interviewed, and also my supervisor when I started. I worked as an English teacher and these companies have processes and teachers on standby for situations like this. Having said that, this was pre-covid so recruits were coming in and out of the company regularly, but I would say the staff resources would be low atm.
I mean, I moved in April and had to go home because I was a bridesmaid in a wedding in July — but I made sure to mention this regularly from when the interview process got “serious,” when I accepted the job, when I actually moved and started (I put in the days off immediately) etc. I also am not a teacher/working in education etc. — so I think WHAT kind of job you do is the key factor, not whether or not something like this is tolerated. Normal corporate job? Most would be understanding. Foreign company? Probably not an issue. Teaching English? Probably near impossible.
In a few too many companies in Japan, it’s never acceptable. The company expects that you use only your legal minimum of 5 days of paid leave a year, and save up the rest as it rolls over from year to year before blowing it all at once for one long holiday when you leave.
Of course that’s a bullshit norm enforced by lazy managers who don’t want to deal with the hassle of shuffling schedules around when someone is gone. You are legally allowed to use your paid leave when you like, although you’re right that vanishing soon after you arrive doesn’t leave a great impression.