Trainwreck

It's like you just hafta scratch your head and laugh.. what else can you do really...

It was only ever gonna be good for a couple of checks. Anyone with a basic understanding of supply and demand could see there was no profit here. The only surprise is how lightweight this G company is. Did they really expect anything different in the first 6 months? Japanese simply can't do business.

Mistake number one was getting too many of the pretty faces back behind the counters. Take a look in any Aeon / Geos. There is one face in there (not bad looking but clearly not selected solely on the quality of their looks).

Secondly they allowed the Japanese upper management back in. Trained by Nova since they graduated, completely useless!!

In our November 10th come back to work get together the Gcom president was cracking jokes about how disorganized old Nova was. Chump! Laughing on the other side of your chubby company crashing smug Jap face now no doubt!! Best thing about it is unlike Sahashi (undoubtedly sunning himself on a virgin Island beach right), this fat cunt will probably be at hello work with us when G COM FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY EARLY IN AUGUST!!!!!!!!

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Lubed-ring-piece:

At MM, I believe most people were given the choice of staying on or going on standby. I myself went for Option B and was given the choice today. Not many people I asked went for the standby option so time will tell if some of us are forced to be, like in the branches. A few people who only have a month or two left on their Visa weren't asked though.

A couple of people were also laid off today as their contracts expire this month.

As for Nova apartments, I'm still lucky enough to find myself in a Nova apartment with a private place lined up - figured I'd take advantage of the free board. I've been told I'd have to move out by the end of the month, so someone at LS should have already told you if you're safe or not. Always an idea to double check though!

General vibe of MM is shared really - where's the damned security? Here's to hoping we all see something positive out of this whole mess!

Very funny comment (above). I laughed at this one.
I'd buy Mr. Inoshishi a drink, if I saw him at Hello Work, and then not give it to him!!! HAHAHAHAHA I'm so cool!!! Damn that would be clever.......

Who let the schizophrenic patient onto the forum??

What is so great about Japan to put up with this again and again? If you cannot get a job with at least a somewhat stable company, GO HOME OR TO ANOTHER COUNTRY!

If you are married or have other strong commitments to keep you here, you should have a visa and be doing mostly privates anyway.

It was pure foolishness to expect some crappy little company like G comm to be able to take over a much larger, failed company in a competitive field like this and get anywhere.

Nova, G Comm, RIP!!!

You better start if you want to be a long term resident. Scroll down for the Japan Times article, "Long-term Residents May Face Language Test"

I am starting to get the impression of a government conspiracy.

Think about all of the events that have taken place over the last 12 months. Possibly even as far back as when Sahashi was looking to expand to 1,000 schools. It's easy to believe that it was just poor business savvy but maybe there is much more to it than what seems so blatantly obvious. Come on, do you really think this whole ordeal is about one little monkey on a bridge? Yes, the monkey is the monkey, but who is the organ grinder? I believe that Sahashi is a mere scapegoat, for lack of a better term, and do you actually believe that he will get what is due? On the written statement to the Labor Standards Inspection Division, they actually ask if you want criminal charges imposed on Sahashi for not paying wages. What kind of question is that? It should be clear under the law whether or not there are grounds for indictment. I can see it now, "Public opinion was opposed to pursuing legal action against Mr. Sahashi and NOVA Corporation."

Anyway, public opinion is being formed and propagated. It doesn't look good for us mere minorities and the common denominator for it all, in my opinion is not G-Comm., G-Ed., or G-Corp., but G-Ministry.

Here is the article from the Japan Times.

The Japan Times: Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008
(C) All rights reserved

Long-term residents may face language test

By KAHO SHIMIZU
Staff writer

The government may require long-term foreign residents to have a certain level of Japanese proficiency, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said Tuesday.

The Foreign and Justice ministries will begin discussing the envisioned Japanese-language requirement, Komura said without providing further details, including when the talks will start or who would be subject to the obligation.

"Being able to speak Japanese is important to improve the lives of foreign residents in Japan, while it is also essential for Japanese society," Komura told reporters.

"I think (the potential requirement) would be beneficial because it would not only prompt long-stay foreign residents to improve their Japanese ability but also promote awareness among people overseas who are willing to come to (and work in) Japan to study Japanese."

A Foreign Ministry official in charge of the issue stressed that the idea is not exclusionary. "It is not about placing new restrictions by imposing a language-ability requirement," the official said on customary condition of anonymity.

Someone with high Japanese proficiency may be given favorable treatment in return, including easing of other existing visa requirements, he said. "(High Japanese proficiency) may actually make it easier to come and work in Japan," he said. "We want to provide incentives for foreigners to learn Japanese."

A Justice Ministry official said the discussions are neither intended to expand nor restrict the flow of foreign workers to Japan.

He also said the requirement should not be uniformly applied.

"We don't want to prevent talented foreign workers from immigrating," he said.

Some media speculated that the move is intended to expand the acceptance of unskilled foreign workers, given Japan's shrinking population and expected long-term labor shortage.

But the Foreign Ministry official said the government's stance ? which is to issue work visas for foreigners applying for specific jobs that require particular qualifications while restricting foreigners seeking manual labor ? remains unchanged.

According to the Foreign Ministry official, the two ministries hope to reach a conclusion on the matter within a year.

The idea of a language requirement emerged as part of the government debate on the conditions of a large number of foreign nationals of Japanese descent in such areas as Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, which has a large population of Brazilians of Japanese descent.

Many such residents, who are often engaged in manual labor because they obtained ancestry visa permits that allow them to do so, are not covered by the social security system and their children are not enrolled in schools.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20080116a1.html

No contract renewals for anyone due for renewal in Jan or Feb seems to be whats going on in the MM center.

They all just got demoted to instructor.

I was told by my IAM that i was going on 60% but the AMG would come to my branch to formally tell me though she had been requesting english terms from him on how to tell me. Then my IAM says i am not getting involved in the 60% business as gaiji more specifically the higher foreign managers told him they think its illegal and cant be done. Also people in my branch were told there are lists from g.comm and that anyone whose contract is up feb,march, april is going not being renewed. To add to this he is back on the schedule as of next week and has been offered a package of 1month extra pay and a plane ticket home to leave... apparently a mention of being a union member puts the wind up G.comm after 94 members who were told they couldnt get jobs were reinstated after protesting to g.comm... g.comm fear the union?? apparently so. SO, if 60% is illegal then there wouldnt be a lot we could do about it gaijin in japan always 2nd best.

To say G Com is 'haemorraging funds' sounds very dramatic, but it belies the fact that all that's happened was planned right from the beginning. There have been no surprises at all in how things have developed. If they were intending to open 200 hundred schools and hire all the teachers, the money lost until schools brought in sufficient revenue was always going to be a necessary investment. There can be absolutely no doubt that what they are doing now was premeditated from the start.

1) GComm had to have been aware of the possibility this would happen, and I agree these actions were premeditated. I don't think it was Plan A, but it was definitely part of a plan.

2) We all were given so many opportunities to get out. This shit started in September, 4 months ago. I know a lot of people are hard up for cash, but, that doesn't mean you have to keep throwing yourself into quicksand. If you're not, and haven't been, or have given up on finding another job, I have absolutely no pity for you whatsoever. They say fish or cut bait, but there are no fish here, and increasingly little water. Cut bait.

3) I completely and wholeheartedly agree that the government is taking increased measures to ban unwanted gaijin. Defining 'unwanted' is hard, but I'm sure what we'll discover as those talks progress is that it's basically uneducated/unskilled, loud, long term expats who tend to form communities that don't attempt to blend in with Japanese society, i.e. who resist the grindstone, maintain their cultural identity, and refuse to shut up. I think older Japanese just hate the idea of gaijin banding together and forming communities. They're worried about the neighborhood going to shit. I guess they figure if you've learned Japanese, you've already taken a huge step towards conformity. The ratio among my friends of not speaking Japanese and speaking Japanese is oddly similar to the ratio of my friends who make asses of themselves publicly/start fights/ignore all social convention and those who don't. I think they see that too.

None of these things are conspiracies, yes it's planning, yes it's being talked about behind closed doors, but it's not like it's difficult to see where any of it is meant to go.

I was an option b person and am now sitting back collecting the unemployment insurance. I think that those people whoe went back to g-men wont be able to collect unemployment because they havent been paying into the fund for a minimum amount of time with the new company. good luck to you all.

Now that I have severed all ties with NOVA GSPOT I hope... I can`t wait till it goes bankrupt. Hopefully when they go bankrupt it will get rid of all you dirty, smelly, STD carrying gaijin.

P.S.

I hate Fat AUSSIES and KIWIS the most

get a life....loser.

I think the best way to check if G.com has been paying our unemployment insurance is by contacting the General Union, they should be able to check as they are in contact with G.com management.

Regarding option A eligibility for unemployment insurance, I think that what counts is that you have been working and paying into the scheme for a minimum of 6 months, regardless of the company you were working for. So, should you lose your job now with G.com you should be eligible

Apparently, the student lists were worth quite a bit to the trustees. I have been told that the branch staff are unable to call former students directly to ask them to come in and register with G. Education because the trustees had the information removed from all of the branches before the re-openings. As a result, the staff have to wait for former students to call or visit in response to advertisements, word-of-mouth or information on the G. Communication homepage. This has made it difficult to sign up former students quickly and will certainly have an impact on how many instructors are permitted to remain when the 40 students to 1 instructor policy is put into effect.

No need to apply a simplistic world view to a corporation that got big through take-overs. I'd say ego had a part in Iyanoshi's strange venture but not stupidity. There was absolutely no way they could expect to fulfill that promise and not be in their current position now. Despite the 25% discount offered to students, (which meant that increased student numbers wouldn't have made much difference to the bottom line) they weren't likely to return in droves because Oct-Dec was always the quietest time for us in terms of sales and lesson bookings. In that period many are too busy with year-end commitments to book lessons. After Dec things pick up steadily and peak in march-may. The people at G Com had to know that. There have been NO SURPRISES so far. They never intended to employ all the teachers.

I heard through the grapevine that a list of union members was passed on by Nambu to the G-man by request of the G-man, the union demanding that these people be reinstated! Now here is where it gets interesting! Yeah, they were called back, maybe given an interview, then were placed on the standby list but under the category, NON-rehire. And for those of this group whose contracts are coming up for renewal, out-of-luck as they will not be offered a new one!

But would someone tell me this? If the G-man fears the union that much, then why do those members tail ends, hurt to the touch!!

Seems that G-man may be just stalling any union action for the time being to avoid bad press attention! There are people who read these comments and know what is fact, what is not! Come on people, share the knowledge!!

you can all shut up only 400 mill speak english as a first language. canadajin learn mandarin over 800 mill! granted there is probably another billion english speakers but only through it being there second language, they took the time to learn a new language you should try the same.

Sorry, I meant to write "live" and not "leave" ...

"Japanese simply can't do business" ?! That's completely meaningless. Isn't Japan a major economic power ?

Hey there! I don't really agree with the whole "why don't they understand me" bit, but I just wanted to let you know that you made my night with that rant! I had a great time reading it, and I feel your pain :D

Me too thought it was 10k Dont you have a Canadian bank account with Cirrus/ star that you could have used at an international ATM???? the banks charge 4000 k for everything.

Your story has touched my heart.post your address so I can send you a money order for the 4,000 yen the bank kept.

you're pathetic!
plain and simple.
if u don't like japan.. then leave. who said u have to stay here? go back home and let mommy support ur ass @ 100%.

what are you people actually investigating?

Hey george. I was initially interested in the group too, however due to the points you stated I came to the conclusion that it wasnt worth bothering with. I get the impression its for attention, trying to make out like a secret group etc.
at the end of the day its not like any japanese court is gonna vote to give any of us cash is it?
good luck anyway!