You are here

Home › Blogs › Shawn's blog

Weekly Playboy: NOVA tightens the screws on teachers

The Weekly Playboy gets into the act by reporting on Sahashi's dishonesty and teachers' rent woes. From the WaiWai column in the Mainichi Daily News:

Many of the roughly 5,000 NOVA teachers are furious at the way they've been treated.

"Our payday is the 15th of every month. Sept. 15 was a Saturday, so they were supposed to pay us the day before. But the only people paid on the 14th were some instructors in big cities like Tokyo and Osaka. I didn't get paid," a NOVA instructor of seven years experience tells Weekly Playboy. "After that, they told us by e-mail that they'd definitely pay on the 19th. But there was nothing. Then they said the 21st, but nothing again. Then they came out and said they'd pay on the 25th after the long weekend, but it still didn't come through. They just keep telling us all these lies."

Another NOVA teacher adds the problem is not just unpaid wages. For many of its foreign instructors, NOVA borrows an apartment on their behalf, deducts the rent from their pay packet and pays the landlord directly.

Up to now, the Japanese press has dutifully followed the unfolding events of the Nova story and appears to be sympathetic to the plight of the teachers. However, as far as I know, they have not yet made the leap into the near future when Nova goes bankrupt and Japan has 5,000 unemployed foreign teachers on its hands. When this happens, will the focus of the story switch to the teachers? Will they suddenly become a "problem" through no fault of their own? Let's hope not.

Japan: 
nova
Eikaiwa: 
Naked Theft

Comments

I'm sure panic would spread if 5000 teachers were fired. Tokyo Governor Ishihara would have a field day, warning of looting and pillaging from hungry, savage foreigners. Or living off their Japanese boyfriends/girlfriends/spouses while they spend the day in a drunken stupor.

This company is in a irreversible spiral....Nova is a very very desperate company that will say anything, lie to anybody, hurt anybody, screw anybody over...to survive.

Im wondering how long those teachers are going to be able to stay in Nova accomodations. Sure alot of teachers will quit if they dont get paid on the 15th...but alot more will stay behind, because hey have no money and no other place to live. But these landlords and building owners are beginning to realize that Nova is close to collapse and they will never get paid. The rate of evictions are just going to increase...so even if Nova did manage a miracle to survive..their teachers will have no where to live...so either way...Nova is finished.

Now with Australia and New Zealand no longer sending new teachers to Nova...and the word is out on the net about Nova's dirty secrets and financial failure...there will be no more teachers coming in...so those who leave Nova now..there will be no more new replacements. Not to mention the overwhelming crush of students coming in to book lessons before the doors shut. I have incredible sympathy for you guys aho stuck behind.

So, no matter what Nova does now...there is nothing it can do to reverse this trend. I think this company will soldier on for another month, but thats it.

Anyway, whatever happened to that "mystery investor" that Nova was talking about?? I guess he never showed up, but I think it was just another desperate ploy by this desperate company to survive.....I wonder what their next trick will be.

Hey Losers! There is no mystery investor. Wake up! Break, steal, cuss, fight, drink and fuck as much as possible for revenge.

What about; "ethics, integrety, morals, responsibility, the high road......?" and all the other bullshit excuses you have made up to continue follwing orders.

You aren't ever going to get paid again. You are going to be evicted in a month. You don't have insurance. Why in the fuck are you going into work everyday and acting as if there is not a problem. Do yourself and the rest of us a favor and sink this fucking ship as soon as possible. If you are fired, (which you won't be there is a no fire policy effect, trust me I know first hand)then you can collect unemployment sooner than the rest of us poor bastards.

Let's fuck shit up!!! It's fun and it will benefit us economically.

yeah thats a great idea. You make a good role model. If you quit or call out everyday you give yourself no ground to stand on, including the rest of us. This reckless behavior will fuel the already xenophobic media, which for better or worse, is tied up with dead sumo wrestlers and another incompetent prime minister. If you want to have a case in Japan your proposed method is the worst thing you could do.

Undoubtedly foreigners have a stigma in Japan. There is way to do things and and win, and there is a way to do things and lose. Think about your end goal before you go out causing anarchy. Its not just you.

No, he's right. Sink this fucking shit hole. Fuck NOVA 100%.

I am not going to argue about screwing with NOVA. But I am more concern that if alot of people took fucking with NOVA seriously, how that would reflect on us the foreign population in japan. Lets just fuel the xenophopia that some people have for foreigners. And this isn't about taking the "high road". For those of you that quit, great. You are getting on with your lives and doing what's best. Those of you that are staying, I guess you guys are stuck or hoping for some luck or miracle. But the company done themselves in. Come to terms with that and make your plans for your next step soon.

I am no Gaijin patriot if you will. We swim in our own shyt, and I guarantee you that if people go beyond reasonable bounds it will hurt more than just those involved. Be intelligent, if you loot, do it quietly and protect your own ass. The J-courts, and J-Cops.. are famous for always picking the J side of things if there is an incident. Funny thing is if teachers get caught looting etc... I guarantee you there will be no support or sympathy from the Gaijin side. The smart guys will get their stuff quietly and cover their own arses.

GL ALL. You due unfortunately represent others in the foreign community.

But I do that already!

You guys, go ahead and sink the ship.
As for me, I'll wait patiently for her to hit the bottom of the ocean before I go and collect my unemployment wages.
Beware that you won't get any unemployment wages for quite a while, if anything at all, if you're fired for professionnal reasons... you naughty pirates!!

I double that, sink the ship....MUTINY!!!!!
We`re damned if we do and damned if we dont, foreigners will always be seen as scum, dont think minor superficial actions will change the Japanese view of us. It is DEEPLY ingrained into their heads, these people have a strong oral tradition of story telling from generation to generation and what they say is that we can never understand them, we are barbarians, we eat with spoons, we have opinions, we debate important issues, god forbid.

No Gaijin support if you are caught stealing and looting. Gee when is it ever ok to support that from any side. As for the thinking that its always bad so don't even bother, then why bother to get out of bed every morning. So NOVA screwed us. Wow. Well its over now so do something like quit and get the next job instead of playing the victim and pleading for understand of all the crap you would like to do and justifying doing more crap to just to satistify yourself. This fuck everyone and just take care of yourself thing is just so sad since it seems so common with so many people.

You wouldn't happen to have a mohawk, would you?

Tomorrow we play show & tell.
Us Novaites have been through hell.
Our eyes transfixed with dirty looks,
we smell the scent of cooking books.
A pinch of truth 3 cups of lies,
4 tablespoons of close your eyes.
A liberal dash of shadow plays
make up this bitter bouillabaisse.
Open your wallet monkey dude,
more smoke & mirrors or bubblin crude?
Has Lafayette now joined our side?
Will German friends come save our hide?
You've bungled this, now step aside.
Let more able hands decide, or we'll
consider patricide.
Have the dark clouds disappeared?
Not for you, you're ever-smeared, by all
the countless deals you've queered.
Get those feet against the flames,
we wanna see 'em charred & seared.
Things have come to quite a state,
under this shifty reprobate.
Will there be a cleaner slate...........
.......................................................
.....or will Willy Wonka close the gate?

Fri, 10/05/2007 - 11:03 — Anonymous (not verified)

So teachers have been paid late recently and that really sucks. Meanwhile - former teachers aren't being paid at all!!! Do you know this? Does anybody know this? People who left Nova months ago still have not received final payment. That's unfair too!

Know your rights!! Do whatever else but know that Japanese law states that the landlord must give 6(?)months notice on evictions, and they must help pay for finding a new apartment.

I knew I wasnt getting paid when I decided to quit...so I left without no notice at all...I handed in my resignation and went home..that was it. I knew if I give a 30 day notice...I would never get paid. I was working for free anyway. My friends who quit in July and August never got paid, and they are still in Japan.

So all of You out there still at Nova...dont give a notice..just walk off the job...and when You leave, loot some Nova shxt while You walk out the door and throw it away at 7-11.

Dont count on the legal system to help You...dont think about being a "tough guy" and fight it out...you'll lose more money and waste more time...just fxcking leave.

I agree with some other posters here. You have two choices.

1. Quit with no notice. Just leave.

2. Stay and be professional.

If you think you're not going to get paid, then just leave immediately, before all the others start hunting for jobs too. If you stay and do some of the things you're proposing, you're just a bunch of children. Cut your losses and go. Or stay and work. Don't stay if you think you're not getting paid. That's dumb.

By the way, the quality of the Nova children (my coworkers) is the reason that I left the company. Not the best human beings I've ever met.

I see that Nova maggots are polluting other eikaiwa schols with their arse-kissing.At Berlitz yesterday one brown-tongued lizard said he had already bought Berlitz books and another brought comments from his students in his resume.60 Nova maggots crawled their way into the interview seeing if their bum-bandit tactics work.Why is it that Nova breeds the most loathsome, disgusting, backstabbing pricks the world has ever seen?Arent you all ashamed to be part of that system and to create a generation of arse-licking robots?
Just get out of here and stop polluting the water for the real people around here.

Nova, Berlitz, ECC.. same shit.. and same flies flying around it.
So you're a pretty nasty and pretentious bug, insulting your fellow insects like this.

I heard there'd be an announcement regarding Nova on October 5th.
Has anyone heard anything about this?

Wrong!I dont work for any of those toilets, you shit-licker.Why would i insult my paradise when you lot are wallowing in the sewers of the eikaiwa world?

Former teacher I know have been paid in full. Both of them. This is a fact.

CEO Nozomu Sahashi was due to make an announcement but he has postponed the statement until next week

An announcement was supposed to be made this week according to my Japanese staff and many assumed it would be today. As of 9pm there had been no announcement. All information coming out of the company now is speculation. The fact of the matter is that only a very select few know what is going on and they have a communication blackout in place. RAAMs, TIs, Japanese staff and instructors don't know what is happening for sure all we can do is take educated guesses. I don't think it is a surprise to anyone but the Die-Hard Nova fans who have been with the company for a decade and are scared of losing their [overpaid] salaries that the company will not survive even at a reduced capacity. The chances of it going under are pretty close to 100%. The real question is when?

I find it to be incredibly frustrating listening to people who believe the phantom announcement will eventually bear good news. Why wait? What is a single advantage of waiting? Every day that goes by is another nail in the coffin for the company's reputation both domestically as well as internationally. Every day of silence results in more teachers leaving and more students cancelling. No one has faith in the company and the lack of communication from upper management shows that they are no different.

I will not advocate violence (although I will not lose sleep if it occurs)but I believe that we need the names of those at the top. We need to know what they look like and we need to ensure they are shamed forever. Post names and pictures on the net. Print out wanted posters and post them up at schools and around your town. If you see them let them know how you feel but don't lose your temper. They have no conscience but lets ensure their actions have long lasting consequences. Lets ensure that they truly are unemployable. Lets ensure that their reputations are so well known that they will never be able to start another business ever again. Lets make sure they feel uncomfortable wherever they go!

I have a new job. This whole issue was stressful for me but it was the best thing for me. I no longer teach English and have a real job and a real salary. While I hted many things about Nova it wasn't all bad. Unfortunately, my creer was stagnant and in a strange way they did me a favour. but I know they intended to hurt me in order to profit themselves. They have hurt my friends, both employees and students and i am a vindictive and vengeful person and I for one will not let their actions slide so easily.

Impose long-lasting, face-losing, suicide-inducing consequences!!!

Never forget, Never forgive an you will be as happy as me!

Has anyone given thought to the fact that the only way this company might survive is if the teachers leave in droves, effectively down-sizing itself and giving the NOVA 'authorities' less of a headache. You are basically doing them a favour. Why else would this so called announcement keep being put back a few more days?

Last news said that the Jasdaq has considerated that the datas reported by Sahashi were insufficient and that he must come back on the next 19 th October.

an eye for an an eye....you know Gandhi said??
Whats the point of vindication? This is what the situation is. If there is justice to be served there will be justice served in some manner. Justice is too big of an concept for the general public to handle (as many of you on this site have so clearly demonstrated)....I have doubts the government can even handle it.
This doesn't give anyone a free pass to rape and pillage. Cool down, stop pointing fingers, deal with what you've got and move on. Otherwise, you are no more or less a winner than you are a loser. In other words, you have not learned from this experience. Ask yourself where would you rather be? On the same end you are fighting or on the side that is you claim is virtuous.

What else would you be doing than screwing more students out of lessons and making it more difficult for a company which already has a slim chance to function in a meaningful way to get back on its feet? At first i had the same opinion. I might get jacked out of 6 weeks of salary. I like teaching this is what im here for. Keep in mind your unemployment benefits are calculated from your last three months of payment of work. Im not saying you're wrong but if you have been paid, then give it the benefit of the the doubt we still don't know the outcome of what was supposed to happen today. You might be doing yourself a disfavor.

I just quit two days ago. I don't care enough to "give them a headache" to work for free for the next month or two. Give myself a big headache, to give them a bigger one, is that the idea? Its all going down the tubes so fast, who gives a crap enough to stay, anyway? Only complete morons, bored shxt-disturbers, or completely impoverished sad-sacks with no other employment possibilities nor any sense of entrepreneurial know-how would remain there at this stage.

Ok. Whats your suggestion then?

Re: Anonymous Sat 10/06/2007 00:17

"Has anyone given thought to the fact that the only way this company might survive is if the teachers leave in droves".

I couldn't believe people actually believed this, let alone believe it now! Let's look at this logically; teachers leaving reduces costs. But for every teacher that leaves, the ability to make sales is further reduced. A major cntributing factor that led to the govt imposed ban was that Nova DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TEACHERS to fulfil its contractual obligatins with students! Nova promised the govt as well as students MORE teachers and have been doing their best to recruit. Every teacher that leaves will spread a lot of sh*t about the company when they get back home. All students can see that Nova is sinking and cancellations are snowballing and confidence from every member of Japanese society is rapidly falling. The Nova name is dead commercially. Downsizing by not paying salaries, school rent, creditors, banks, suppliers, students and business partners as well as stealing employee rent money is not a good business strategy by any stretch of the imagination. How has Nova's negative publicity generated by its appalling recent actions been at all positive for students, potential and actual instrutors, J staff, shareholders, or any other stakeholder?

What fucking business school taught you that everything you have read and know about Nova's actions is in any way a positive corporate strategy in the short, intermediate or long term? Downsizing is something Nova has never been happy with as closing schools makes the company look weak. There is no clause in the Nova contract stating instructors will be entitled to redundancy pay by the company so why not lay people off properly and save the company from a global media shit storm?

"...giving the NOVA 'authorities' less of a headache."

Yes I am sure that this brilliant strategy has reduced the stress experienced by upper [mis]management. Government sanctions, global media condemnation, a terrible reputation, numerous law suits etc would sure help me relax!

"Why else would this so called announcement keep being put back a few more days?"

Well you have a water tight case there! How can anyone argue with such logic? Well let me give it a try. How about personal assett protection? How about desperation and fear? How about instilling hope in short bursts in order to keep the masses working another couple of days? The fact of the matter is there are numerous commercial, legal and psychological reasons why a company may want to postpone bankruptcy and liquidation as long as possible. Some criminal actions that would apply in our countries (and more than likley here) include, trading while insolvent, reckless trading, fraud, theft, tax evasion to name but a few. A few more days of shreding, creating cover stories, seeking legal advice or planning to flee the country are ot as dramatic as they initialy appear.

I know everyone is entitled to an opinion but at least make sure you try and think things through. I have no choice but to label you a moron or a Nova supporter! I too am a fool because I have only just realised that i have wasted 10 minutes of my life attempting to deal with this severely misguided issue.

Yeah maybe we should sit on our behinds and let karma do its work. Justice is obviously too big a thing for an individual, government or society to achieve. I for one believe that we need to speak up against injustices and not give into them out of insecurities of hopelessness. The world has been changed by individuals who were committed to righting wrongs! What side would like to be on? The side where I stand up for my rights, fight for my principles, and don't let people shit on me or those that I love. Even if I lose at the end of the day I will know that I stood for something and I stood by my principles. That to me is a victory in and of itself!

Senior Nova management hasn't accidently caused this situation. This asn't caused by exernal factors but internal greed at the highest level of the company. Nova didn't accidentally spend instructors' rents. It was a conscious decision, they knew that the result would be homeless people in a foreign land. People that trusted them. They consciously and deliberately hurt us. If you were not affected (I live in private accommodation) then you are fortunate. But Nova would have taken your rent money too were they able to. I know there is a special place reserved or me on the bottom rung of hell and I am sure I will be in fine company with Nova's upper management.

My history isn't so good so if possible could you kindly give me just some historical examples to convince me that you are on the right path: that revenge does work? And if i could be so humble could you also teach me what "Revengence" means....it doesn't seem to appear in my dictionary... but i guess its is a strong word that strong uncertain men use. Perhaps the word REVENGE would have sufficed?
while you're going through your encyclopedia Britannica could you find some examples of when revenge has led to a better outcome? sorry i would like to be educated?
i think you might as well?
just a guess....
thank you

So you're willing to sacrifice yourself in order to ensure that the ship goes down with you? No Dude, it's time for you to be selfish! Take care of yourself! Nova won't!

The world is full of pathetic pacifists. It is very easy to say "turn the other cheek" and claim the moral high ground but where does it get you. Nowhere. Especially in a case like this where the government doens't give a shit what happend to instructors. Remember that they Labor Standards Office wouldn't even accept a complaint from instructors until the Union and media rocked up. In this situation acting against Nova with force is not revenge, it is self defence.

So, you are looking through history to find similar examples. A large organization with strong political ties taking advantage of employees who are unable to defend themselves because of an inadequate legal system. Not hard to find.

Not to take action now would be stupid. The reality of the situation is that Sahashi will avoid declaring bankrupcy for as long as he can because until he does there is a chance that the company will be bought out and he will cash in. All he has to do is keep suggesting that there is a chance of surviving and hoping that people will continue to turn the other cheek when he screws them over. So, what to do? Simple. The company will not operate without instructors. I'm all for posting their info and pictures and finding them.

Benefit of the doubt. How can there be any doubt? Are you on drugs?

The company has not paid rent on instructors’ apartments for months. It has not paid suppliers. It has not paid staff their salary which was due on the 27th of last month. It has not paid staff their bonus that it promised to pay then this month. It is not only broke now but massively in debt. Furthermore no one will lend the company money because it defaulted on so many of its past loans. It is operating at a loss. It owes students millions of dollars for cancelled contracts. It has less than 9 days to pull off some kind of miracle and generate the cash needed to pay instructors.

Benefit of the doubt you say? Unbelievable.

Ah, now this is going to lead into a philospohical debate about the ethics of revenge. It is unlikey either side will be persuaded because "a better outcome" is a subjective measurement. You will no doubt subscribe to the ideal that 'an eye for an eye' has only ever led to circular feuds and a total cost that exceeds the initial wrong as well as the idea that revenge and justice are two separate and distinct ideals.

Personally, I believe that stories that involve the infliction of a great deal of pain and suffering upon a person who has wronged you severely can indeed be a victory, albeit a personal one not shared by historical interperetations or judgements of society. The idea of success is personal and the internal feeling and knowledge that you have restored a sense of balance is a personal success. I understand the notion that 2 wrongs don't make a right and that my sentiments are indeed petty, but my idea of success doesn't come from how society now or in the future will judge me but by the own personal standards that I judge myself.

If I was to kill someone who raped my sister, it would no doubt be argued that that action result in no victory. At the end of the day my sister still would have been raped and the death of a person is never a successful outcome. I couldn't possibly argue that it would make me feel completely better. But I would feel successful in the fact that I didn't sit by and instead hurt my enemy as much as I could. I am certain that throughout history there are many people who have achieved petty satisfaction from such acts and their success is not really for you or me to judge but within themselves as an evaluation of how much relief and/or saisfaction they could obtain.

The idea that revenge and justice are separate and distinct is not new to me. However it is not school of thought to which I subscribe. Oh, what a neanderthal I must be! The fact that every action conceived by our contemporary 'civilised' justice systems contains elemens of retributive action may surprise or even disgust you. Even restorative justice contains certain elements of revenge albeit in milder forms.

I make no apologies for my position that I would rather enter a process of shaming those who have wronged us instead of sitting back and letting nature set things straight. Maybe God's judgement is enough?

Sitting idly by is not an option for me. When I write of revenge, I don't seriously mean the infliction of serious physical injury but an intentional shaming process that makes those responsible accountable for their actions and alerts others to their past negative actions reducing their ability to perpetrate the same offences in the future.

I fear that you are too serious and moraly superior to be convinced by anything I have to say but I don't feel that my words have been wasted or that I am alone in my thinking. Your attack on my title of revengance was petty and displays your considerable lack of a sense of humour. I feel it is safe to assume that since half of your comment was dedicated to discrediting me through the playful use of an imaginary term that you are no more open minded than me.

The fact of the matter is that we live in a society where revenge has been a major part of the criminal justice system for ceturies and in some ways still is. Katakiuchi 敵討ち has bee an important part of Japanese social control and while you may 100% disagree with it, I for one don't. I believe in proportionate retaliation. I believe we must act and let those in Nova senior managemnet know that while they may have pocketed a small fortune at our expense, it comes at a heavy social cost. If you truly believe that we shouldn't even do that then just sit there and do nothing. And please give me a historical example of when that worked!

life is hard and often unjust. it's the small, personal victories that make it all worth while. I once lived in a shared flat with an absolutely vile person who stole money from me, amongst other things. It came to the point where if I didn't do something to exact revenge I would have gone crazy and resorted to physical violence. Instead, I cut up all the individual's video collection,which was extensive, shit in a suitcase containing all their 'winter' clothes and pissed in their shampoo bottle before taking another dump and lightly rubbing my arsehole with their toothbrush. I then left. It was all extremely petty, but whenever I look back to that time, I do so with a cheeky grin on my face, whereas had I done nothing, maybe now I would be full of bitterness towards that person. Now, I just smile and imagine the lightly coated bristles on the toothbrush edging closer to the teeth... Basically, people who disagree with personal revenge are not human. They are gods and good luck to them. For us mere mortals though, my advice is this: if someone fucks you over, like NOVA, you should at least try to get in a few rabbit punches, despite the fact that you are gonna get clobbered.

If you didn't know about it, there's an Eikaiwa Wiki that YOU can add to! It even contains a list of Nova branches that are closing or have closed (you can add to this list too).
It's at:
http://eikaiwawiki.servebbs.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

And what if you do such things for revenge while Japanese customers and media are watching? Is it the same then? No, it makes all of us foreigners look just as bad as some people say we are. Honestly, I'd be embarrassed to be put into the same group as many of you.

And there are many ways to get revenge without committing a crime, as some are advocating theft and other vandalism. But best of luck to you, mere mortals, and have fun in jail or the line to get deported.

haha. I wouldn't consider myself either a moron or a nova supporter. I also don't believe that NOVA is likely to surivive which is why I used the word 'might'. Maybe a different phrase like 'the slightest possibly' would have been better ..but you get the drift. I am glad to say, that bar a few unnecessary words, the response generated from my post are much more interesting than the bollocks posted on most of these sites. Thank-you.

Sorry.typo ..'the slightest possibility'

Wow... You are sure full of spite and don't seem to be happier than any of us, poor eikaiwa teachers.
Anyway, just let us deal with our own shit and ... get a life!

The thing many are forgetting is that even with a massive downsize, the fact remains that Nova has sold millions of tickets without having the cash reserve to cover the wages to service these lessons. Downsize all they like, but they are still sitting on one enormous pile of debt. It is no different than a restaurateur receiving money for a filet de boef from a customer, spending the money at the local knockshop, and having only mustard in the refrigerator for the poor sap waiting for his steak.

All you guys that have this dillusion Nova can survive had better really st down and see the reality.....NO MONEY NO MONEY NO MONEY.....not only is there NO MONEY, there is NO MONEY to pay for the 400,000 current students that are owed lessons.....WAKE UP and GET OUT NOW!

Subscribe to Comments for "Weekly Playboy: NOVA tightens the screws on teachers"

LJ is currently using a spam filter, which may eat legitimate comments, particularly those containing URLs. If you are having trouble posting a comment, email LJ.

© Let's Japan.org 2000-2007


Copyright 2022 letsjapan.org