EMERGENCY ADVICE FOR TEACHING STAFF Nova’s president has been removed from his position as Company CEO and Mssrs Yoshisato, Lundqvist and Watanabe have taken over as representative directors. Today the company applied for Company Rehabilitation at Osaka District Court, with lawyers Mr Higashibata and Mr Takahashi appointed as receivers. Handling of the assets, as well as income and expenditure will be done only with the court’s approval. Late wages will be decided on by the court, and unfortunately will not be paid any time soon. Nova president Mr Sahashi’s share of the stock has fallen to around a quarter, and it is unclear who owns the company at the moment. Whether or not the company can be rehabilitated will be decided on later by the receiver, and we cannot comment on this. The fact that the company has applied for this Corporate Rehabilitation does not mean that teachers are ‘dismissed’, and the status of teachers has not changed and are still ‘unpaid employees’. It seems the receiver has ordered all schools closed for the day. This does not mean a cancellation of the employment contract, but just an order to stay at home. Please keep careful records of your working hours and make copies of your timecards if possible. Regarding Unemployment insurance, the way this situation has developed would come under the 1-week waiting period to claim benefits. However, we are not sure anyone in Head Office will issue separation papers (‘Rishokuhyo’). The receiver will confer with the court and union over payment of wages. Even without separation papers, Hello Work will make them, but in fact proof of wages is necessary and not so easy. If you are in a hurry, take your pay slips to Hello Work. Unemployment Insurance can be claimed for up to a year, so those who can claim 90 days of benefits have 9 months to make their claim. Open Meeting for Staff and Teachers KANSAI, MONDAY, 29 October 2007 1:30 – 3:30 English Meeting only 4:00 – 6:00 Japanese Meeting only 6:30 – 8:30 English Meeting only The meeting location is different from the last two times. This meeting will be held at: PLP KAIKAN: Osaka-shi, Kita-ku, Tenjinbashi 3-9-27 JR Loop Line Temma Station or Subway Sakaisuji Line Ogimachi Exit 4 If you cannot find the meeting place, stay put at the station and someone will pick you up in time for the meeting. Our sister union in Tokyo will also be holding an open meeting for teachers and staff on 28 OCTOBER at 7:00 at their offices. You can find a map at www.nambufwc.org Unpaid Wages After the bankruptcy procedure, if it is deemed that the company cannot pay back wages, employees with back wages owing will be eligible to receive 80% of such wages. This procedure will be done by the receiver or whoever is in charge after today. We will explain more at the meeting on Monday. IF YOU ARE LEAVING JAPAN or MOVING HOUSE this is very important. The procedures for your back wages and any unemployment insurance documents that you may need will be sent by the receiver, but only if he can find you. IF YOU LEAVE without a forwarding address, you will not be found. IF YOU ARE A NOVA TEACHER ANYWHERE IN JAPAN AND YOU ARE LEAVING OR MOVING, please send the following information to nova@generalunion.org: Name, Employee Number, Branch, Old Address, New Address, Email, Telephone. WE WILL PASS THIS INFORMATION ON TO THE RECEIVER. Unemployment Insurance You are currently not dismissed, but once dismissed you will need to file for unemployment insurance. The ministry has now put two services in place for non-Japanese speakers. In Osaka please call 06-6344-1135 and in Tokyo 03-3204-8609 Here is some basic information about your rights to unemployment insurance provided to us by the Ministry of Labour. You are eligible to receive benefits if you are fired as long as you have paid into the unemployment insurance fund for a minimum of 6 months (one month equals at least 11 working days). If you meet the above conditions, you should be eligible for benefits, but PLEASE CHECK WITH THE NUMBERS ABOVE BEFORE DOING ANYTHING. YOU CAN ALSO CONSULT THE LABOUR BUREAU IN ENGLISH AT 06-6949-6490 ON MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS JOINING THE UNION We hope that those who will be remaining in Japan join the union. It’s easy to see why a union is necessary in this industry so we do invite you all to join. We understand that paying union dues will be difficult for NOVA teachers and staff at the moment so the General Union Executive Committee has passed the following new dues policy for NOVA teachers and staff: Joining as of 14 October: 1,000YEN per month until you get a new job. Joined prior to 14 October: FREE until you get a new job. THIS POLICY WILL BE REVIEWED IN THE THREE MONTHS You can join the union by visiting this link http://www.generalunion.org/join If you wish to pay your union dues using PayPal, click here. More information can be found on this website regarding bankruptcy protection.