The union members have made the following demands on the Y:

• Negotiate all working conditions including hours of work and work duties with the union.
• Provide the General Union with an office on YMCA premises (just like the other YMCA union has).
• Provide money for the training of teachers.
• Provide a 5,000 pay increase for teachers.
• Provide more job security for part time teachers at the International High School.

These demands are quite far reaching in that the union has now asked for total collective bargaining over all working conditions at the YMCA. Also, this is the first time in the General Union’s history that we have asked for clear funds for teacher training at an eikiawa school.

The YMCA could make history in the eikaiwa industry by making funds available to teachers for teacher development as opposed to the foolish in-house training programmes offered by most Eikaiwas. A victory over training funding would be a first in our industry and large step in achieving quality education for students and proper training for teachers.

Teachers at the YMCA, who already enjoy a twenty hour per week teaching cap and thirty five days of paid leave, would continue to expand on the working conditions that already the best in the industry.