APOLOGIA: The reader of this list is hereby
advised that the academic institutions
below give their non-Japanese faculty unstable jobs. Many of
these places have overtly discriminatory hiring practices towards their
full-time (joukin)
educators/staff on the basis of extranationality, or for
other reasons unrelated
to professionalism. This has been going on for more than a century in
Japanese academia, and applicants from overseas are advised to research
Japanese institutions of higher learning very carefully before
committing years of their academic careers to jobs in Japan which may
not in fact have a future.
Places listed below offer contracted work for foreign faculty, often capped with age and renewal limits, so that these staff are merely here on "revolving door" employment, having to spend the last year or so finding a new job (instead of doing something to further their academic careers, such as researching). Japanese full-time faculty, for the most part, do not have to face this problem--they have historically (and currently) almost always gotten "tenure" (in the US sense of "permanent lifetime employment") from day one of employment.
In other words, said employer does not look at a
foreign applicant
in terms of qualification, but instead of citizenship, and has refused
to change
or update their employment practices as per developments now a decade
old.
In 1997, laws including the Daigaku no Kyouin tou no Ninki ni
kansuru Houritsu
(see Kyouiku Roppou) were passed by the Japanese
Diet, which inadvertantly
clarify the treatment of foreigners in 1982's Kokuritsu mata
wa Kouritsu no daigaku
ni okeru gaikokujin kyouin no ninyou tou ni kansuru tokubetsu sochihou ("Special
Measures Act for the Appointment of Foreign Staff at National and
Public Universities")--click
here for page one of two)
Many Japanese universities in recent years have abolished
their
"Foreign Staff" positions--instead calling them "Language Instructor"
etc. positions. However, don't be fooled--they are still
unequal,
temporary, contracted positions which offer little (if any) possibility
for tenure and equal footing with Japanese faculty. (You
probably
wouldn't want to work in a place where everyone's employment is
unstable, anyway.)
Other universities, after perpetually contracting their full-time foreigners, have switched to contracting their Japanese full-time faculty as well. Then some of them insist that this is "no longer discrimination" since it applies across the board. Wrong. Lowering employment standards and conditions to the level of "foreign temps" is no improvement. Better would be for the universities to offer systems of "tenure" or tenure review ("up or out after six years" etc.). But that would cost money, which is undesirable for those administrators only thinking about the bottom line. Given the increasing tendency to treat universities as businesses, this slow erosion of tenure (in the face of a shrinking student body in aging Japan) to keep their faculty fireable--not to mention compliant, as they are now unable to speak their mind as freely for fear of future dismissal.
This is not the way things have to be. The fact is,
foreigners in Japanese universities are perfectly
able to receive
tenure anywhere. By law it is now clearly and entirely the
decision of the
university, not the
Ministry of Education, especially after the Houjinka privatization (houjinka) reforms
of the public universities. Despite claims of many schools
(particularly the former National
and Public Universities (kokkou ritsu dai)), ALL
Japanese institutions
of higher learning have, as the 1997 law explicitly states in Dai
2 Jou Dai 4
Kou, been empowered to hire whom they like (qualifications
pending Ministry of
Education approval) at whatever status they like (short of top-level kanrishoku
positions, such as gakuchou, in the
former National and Public Universities. The point
is that this includes foreigners as full-time (joukin),
tenured educational
civil servants (see above tokubetsu sochihou, Dai 2 Jou Dai 1
Kou--click
here for page two of two).
Any school which says otherwise (i.e. something like "foreign nationals by law may not be employed permanently in Japan as national servants--only on contracts") is lying. The others which regardless maintain a separate system for employing foreigners, such as gaikoujin kyoushi, gaikokujin kyouin, or the recent phraseology (since the MOE has asked for these positions to be phased out) of "native speaker positions", "foreign language teacher" etc, will similarly be judged discriminatory and listed forthwith in the Blackist of Japanese Universities.
Moreover, since chickens have come to roost and Japanese are
increasingly being "gaijinized" with contracted work, it is important
for people to know more about the loopholes being created in the
Japanese employment system. Click
here to see Academic Apartheid Update Oct 2005.
There are also some January 2004 revisions to the labor laws,
which require proper notification before employee dismissal, visible by clicking here.
If you have been on a contract, renewed several times, then are suddenly facing dismissal, you can find out more about your rights in this essay by Steve van Dresser, "The Employment Rights of Repeatedly Renewed Private Sector Contract Workers" here (written 1999, previously of the now-defunct Issho Kikaku website).
If you are looking for information on Part-Time Positions (hijoukin), please check out the Blacklist for Part-Time Teaching Positions at Japanese Universities, included as an addendum for reasons indicated there.
To the Educator: I encourage you not to apply to the belowmentioned universities for reasons stated . If you do, that is your decision, but be warned: I am reasonably sure that if accepted, you will wind up in a dead-end job, meaning one with no financial or professional stability, one which recycles its foreigners when they become uneconomical, and one which will not foster a long-term lifestyle in Japan.
For more details, I also encourage you to read three separate essays:
FOR THOSE WITH
SPECIFIC CONTRACT QUESTIONS:
At the risk of sounding like
a "Leftie", I recommend that people talk not to me but rather find out
what their options are through UNIONS (there, I said it). Fact is that
in OECD countries
worldwide, university tenure is being replaced by perpetual adjuncting,
as academia
continues to eat its young. The problem in Japan is that this
downsizing and denial
of tenure is essentially confined to foreigners. Even the most unfair
dismissals
(see Gallagher
Case, van
Dresser Case, and Kumamoto
Kenritsu Dai Case) are not being guarded against by
law, and Japanese court
decisions are continuously chiselling away at labor rights.
Substantiation here,
but meanwhile some links to the only things left to protect us: JAPANESE
EDUCATOR
LABOR UNIONS:
(click to page down)
IN SUM: I hate to say it, but many Japanese
universities run rackets with
their foreign employees, and there are standards out there that you
should know about.
More information about the Japanese university
contract employment in
general here.
Now for the Blacklist: I have checked, recorded, and substantiated the allegations below to the best of my ability. My reason for bothering: I hope that these instituions will change their employment practices and treat non-Japanese as institutional equals--the same way that Japanese nationals enjoy tenure or the right of tenure review as foreign instructors in OECD universities.
Unfortunately, employment rights are not merely granted--they have to be claimed in a system which has institutionalized discrimination since Meiji times (click here for substantiation). Only if you, the prospective employees, vote with your feet, applying solely to those universities which offer the best opportunities, will things change. Those progressive universities are in a GREENLIST (click here to go to it).
(for further explanation of my creed on pointing out discrimination, particularly my motivation on focussing on full-time positions in institutions of higher learning, please click here to scroll down to the bottom of this URL)
To the Universities: I have nothing personal against any institution, and will gladly remove a Blacklisted university, even move it to the Greenlist, upon receiving sufficient evidence of systemwide equal treatment of hired academics regardless of nationality. Quantifiable changes include:
1) Abolishing BOTH the gaikokujin kyoushi and gaikokujin kyouin (and the equivalent "Language Peacher" etc.) contracted positions at your school, AND/OR any system specifically designed as contracted work for full-time (joukin) faculty. Even though the systems differ in terms of duration of contract (one and three years, respectively), the fact is that both systems HAVE contracts, denying non-citizens job security, attendance and/or voting rights at the school kyouin kaigi, and nearly always tenure review. Employing non-citizens as part-timers (meaning hijoukin, explicity using this word only without any additional prefixes) is understandable, as Japanese are also employed under that status. However, the employment distinction between Japanese and non-Japanese employees on the basis of nationality must be stopped, because it is by definition discriminatory, not to mention a remnant of the fukoku kyouhei Meiji Era, where foreigners were hired, leeched upon for information, and "sent home".
2) Establishing a clear system of tenure review for non-citizen faculty, with a clear time period and objective evaluative criteria recorded on paper (not via, say, patronage or sychophancy of the gakuchou). Recommended is an "up-or-out" system (as seen in, say, America), where after five to seven years, the candidate is told clearly whether or not s/he will be granted tenure at the institution. This may be a double-edged sword, but it is far preferable to perpetual contract renewal and summary dismissal of said employee after decades of service--the common practice these days.
3) Granting tenure to current non-Japanese upon first hiring, or retroactive to current service. Quite simply, universities with full-time non-Japanese faculty should hire them the same as regular non-contracted full-time Japanese faculty.
Please Note: If you employ non-Japanese BOTH with tenure and as gaikokujin kyoushi/gaikokujin kyouin or whatever permutation thereof, you will be put on both the Blacklist and the Greenlist.
In sum, please tenure your full-time non-Japanese faculty. You will be blacklisted until you do.
--Arudou Debito, Blacklist and Greenlist Monitor
THE
BLACKLIST
(click on the university name to scroll down to the reasons
why said institution
is listed)
(Corrections, elaborations, or updates? Please notify me
here . However, please be advised that the list monitor
reserves the right to
reproduce below all correspondence from people
apparently speaking on behalf
of the schools, so as to keep all commentary public and "from the
horse's mouth".)
BLACKLISTING
DETAILS:
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Aichi University of Education
(Kyouiku Daigaku)(National)
LOCATION: Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey
from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
UPDATE: AICHI
UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION IS ALSO GREENLISTED.
CLICK
HERE TO SEE WHY
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Akita University (National)
LOCATION: Akita Prefecture, Northern Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey
from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and 2003 job announcement from the university.
http://wwwsoc.nii.ac.jp/jgg/osirase/akita-j.html
(or webarchived
here)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Asahikawa University (Private)
LOCATION: Nagayama 3-23, Asahikawa City, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: contract nonrenewal of foreign
faculty member, after 12
years of service, for nonprofessional reasons (stated by university in
court but
later denied in public: the need for "fresh gaijin"); refusal to grant
or consider tenure for non-Japanese faculty now or in future; despite a
court decision
(karishoubun) stating that their faculty member's
firing was illegal, and
that her salary and "status" must be restored retroactive to the date
of
firing until the conclusion of the lawsuit, with the university
agreeing in a court-sponsored
settlement to reinstate her, firing her again at the conclusion of the
school year;
internal teachers' union that has been ineffectual and conspiratory
against fellow
faculty member.
Stay away
from this school.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Gwendolyn Gallagher, plaintiff, gaikokujin
kyoushi (see http://www.debito.org/activistspage.html#ninkiseigallagher),
Ivan Hall's CARTELS OF THE MIND, pg 97, and publication feature (JALT's
PALE Journal) here.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Asahikawa Medical College
(Ika Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Asahikawa City, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
1998 RESPONSE FROM UNIVERSITY: (click
here)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Asia Pacific University (a division of
Ritsumeikan University, also blacklisted)
(Private)
LOCATION: 1-1 Jumonjibaru, Beppu City,
Oita Prefecture, 874-8755
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE:
Contract employment with caps. And
they will enforce them in court. Let's quote the university:
"In
relation to the demand for a preliminary injunction in order to
preserve the position outlined in the employment contracts of
former
full-time Japanese language lecturers originally
hired in April of 2002 and who had fulfilled their 4 year period of
employment, the Oita District Court (presiding judge: KAMINO Taiichi)
handed down its verdict on November 30th, unequivocally dismissing the
suit launched by the former lecturers. The Court in its
ruling
confirmed that Ritsumeikan, in its efforts to improve language
education at APU, was both reasonable and had cause in abolishing
the positions within the lecturer system
in order to plan for the creation of a new lecturer organization. As to
whether the decision to halt the employment of the lecturers was fair
and just, the Court ruled that:
The Court acknowledged that
the response of Ritsumeikan was fair, and thus summarily rejected the
former lecturers' demand."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Gloating announcement from
the university Vice President on
the APU website, dated
December 25, 2006, indicating that they had vanquished the "former
full-time" employees in court. Merry Christmas to you, too.
Original
link here. In case that disappears, downloadable
webarchive here.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Chiba University (National)
LOCATION: Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, next to Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners. A December 2000 job advertisement
indicates
that this may have been cut down to one year, as position was annual
renewable "foreign
lecturer" (gaikokujin kyoshi?). The age is also capped at below fifty
(despite
Ministry of Education guidelines disapproving of age caps) and "a basic
knowledge
of Japanese language and culture" (how they will ascertain this is
uncertain).
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and a December
2000 job advertisement from the
university on NACSIS.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Chugoku Gakuen University and Junior College (Private)
LOCATION: Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture, west of
Osaka.
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "Chugoku Gakuen has discriminated
against its
native speaking English teachers for many years and thus deserves to be
placed on the blacklist. Although racial discrimination is not a crime
in Japan, it is still intolerable. Neither myself nor my two immediate
predecessors were able to attain working conditions on a par with the
Japanese faculty. Academic credentials, publications, experience, and
student evaluations have had no bearing on our position. I feel
that have been discriminated against for years, and now,
after
seven one-year contracts, have been presented with a terminal contract.
To date no one has been able to provide me with a reasonable
explanation as to why I am treated differently. I have been refused
promotion from lecturer to assistant professor although most other
faculty are promoted after three years and generally become associate
professor after five. The most recent reason is that since my Japanese
is weak I cannot be on committees. Strangely enough I have been on one
committee for the past seven years. I was also told repeatedly that my
Japanese skills or lack thereof was not a problem, and when I offered
to attend classes if that would help my situation I was told directly
by the president at the time that I would never change salary or
position no matter what level Japanese proficiency I attained. This
year I did receive a salary increase (roughly 2% per annum if factored
over my period of employment), but this came with the terminal
contract. It is worth statiing that my two predecessors were capable
Japanese speakers and faced the same barriers as myself. The school is
now involved in an ongoing labor dispute with me and my union (EWA).
The school has become a hotbed of cronyism since a new
president
entered the picture last year. To the disgruntlement and amazement of
many faculty members, he has appointed a friend with almost no teaching
experience and publications as a full professor. This is only one of
the many positions filled without open competition or public
posting of open positions. Please add this facility with its opaque
policy making and discriminatory hiring practices to your blacklist."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Richard "Cabby" Lemmer,
faculty member at that institution.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Ehime University (National)
LOCATION: Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners. And when apparently starting up a
new center
of English language studies, it advertises the same positions of
Associate and full
Professors but with different conditions depending on nationality. It
requires the
candidate be a "native speaker of
English"
("eigo o bokokugo to suru hito"--nowadays avoiding the contentious
wording
of "for foreigners"), yet says that 3-year renewals only apply to
foreign
nationals (gaikoku kokuseki). The advertisement also avoids mentioning
if the contract
is terminal or renewable, which is against Ministry of Education
guidelines, or even
salary scales.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and a September
2000 job announcement from the
university on NACSIS in Japanese.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Fukuoka University of Education
(Kyouiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Munakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Gifu University (National)
LOCATION: Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Gunma University (National)
LOCATION: Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture, Central
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners, "according to the law" (houritsu
ni motozuki) in its job advertisements (which is false, since the 1997
Sentaku Ninkisei
Hou revisions allow foreigners to be hired with tenure even in National
Universities).
In a recent job advertisement, Gunma advertises the same position with
different
standards for foreigners and Japanese. A Japanese candidate would
apparently be hired
until retirement age, but a foreigner specifically must have contract
renewals every
three years.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and a May 2000
job announcement from the university
on NACSIS in Japanese.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Himeji Dokkyo University
(Private)
LOCATION: Kami-Ohno, Himeji, Hyogo, Japan
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: One-year contracts for full-time
"EFL teachers",
capped at two renewals (against Ministry of Education and Labor
Standards guidelines),
not to mention incommensurately heavy workload.
SOURCES OF INFORMATION: November 2001 job
announcement from the university from JALT's The Language Teacher
Magazine.
UNIVERSITY:
Hiroshima Shudo University (Private)
LOCATION: Hiroshima City
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes one-year renewable
contracts capped at two renewals
(despite Ministry disapproval of contract limitation), for "native
speakers
of English" (deftly avoiding the distinction of "foreign nationals"),
with a heavy workload and incommensurate pay.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 2002 job announcement
from Japan Research Career Information Network
NOTE FROM LIST MONITOR: This university also has a
history of firing troublemaking
Japanese tenured faculty (apparently because they were ideologically
left-leaning).
NOTE:
THIS UNIVERSITY IS ALSO GREENLISTED.
Click here.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Hokkaido Institute of Technology (Kougyou
Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Teine-ku, Sapporo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Refuses to grant tenure to foreign
instructors, granting
them only part-time one-year renewable contracts.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Arudou Debito/David
Aldwinckle, former part-time employee at HIT.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Hokkaido University of
Education (Kyouiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Sapporo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Hokkaido University of Education,
Iwamizawa Campus (Kyouiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Midorigaoka, Iwamizawa, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes one-year renewable
contracts for full-time foreigners,
under the age of 40, only, capped at two years total.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 Job announcement
from the university
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Joetsu University of Education
(Kyouiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Jouetsu City, Niigata Prefecture, Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "I was employed at Joetsu
University of Education for
seven years on a contract and after my fifth year there was told my
contract would
not be renewed; this after being told by the professor who hired me
that I could
'stay until I was put in the ground' ie. lifetime. When I objected and
asked this
man to back me up he said he never made the promise. Finally, the
president of the
university, an enlightened individual, decided that, since I had worked
in good faith
and done my job well, I should not be discharged until I found another
permanent
position, which I did two years after this unpleasant incident. You can
imagine the
mental anguish they put me through while they were debating what to do.
There have
been two other foreign teachers since I left, each has lasted five
years and then
been asked to leave. I urge you to include this suspect university on
your list so
that others are not subject to this discriminatory system."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: J.B Jones, former
educator at Joetsu University of Education
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kagawa University (National)
LOCATION: Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture, Shikoku
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kagoshima University (National)
LOCATION: Kagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture,
Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kanda University of International
Studies (Gaigo Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Chiba, near Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "Foreigners (with few or no
exceptions) are given non-renewable
three-year contracts."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: CM deWolf,
longtime resident and commentator on Japan
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Kanoya, National Institute
of Fitness and Sports in (Taiiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Kanoya City, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Kansai Gaidai University
(Gaikokugo Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: 16-1 Nakamiyahigashino-cho, Hirakata City,
Osaka 573-1001
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Has a remarkable job advertisement
where not
only are the "ESL Instructor Positions" non-tenure track, with one-year
contracts capped at five years, but also entail a heavy weekly workload
of "ten 90-minute classes, fifteen 60-minute classes, or a combination
thereof" (while tenured J professors rarely have more than 5-7 class
periods a week). Duties also include "student counseling, training for
speech contests, and other duties as directed by the school" (whatever
that means). And what professional with an MA in "TEFL,
applied
linguistics, or education with a TESOL focus", with international
teaching/living experience elsewhere, and fluency in two languages,
would settle for a piffling salary starting at "approx. 4 million yen
per year"? (which, believe me, is peanuts!!) Finally KGU
states,
"The university is interested in midcareer professional ESL faculty who
will make a serious commitment to its programs," without making a
serious commitment to the job security of the professional bilingual
educator. Talk about having your cake and eating it too.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 2007 advertisement from KGU
on TESOL, available at http://careers.tesol.org/jobdetail.cfm?job=2619083,
or webarchived
here.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kobe University of Commerce
(Shouka Daigaku) (Public)
LOCATION: Kobe, Kansai Region
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes gaikoujin
kyoushi system with 1-year renewable
contracts for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 job announcement
from the university
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kumamoto, Prefectural University
of (Kenritsu Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Unlike their Japanese colleagues,
all of the sennin kyouin
foreign teachers have limited employment terms. Moreover,
many of the full-time
(sennin kyouin) foreign teachers are employed as
Special Part-Time Irregular
Foreign Teachers. Employing full-time teachers on part-time contracts
is of course
contradictory. None of the full-time (sennin kyouin)
Japanese teachers at
the Prefectural University of Kumamoto are employed in this way. The
Kumamoto General
Union submitted claims to the University and Kumamoto Prefecture in
July 1997 asking
for an end to the discriminatory practices, and for all the full-time
foreign teachers
to be employed in the same way as their full-time Japanese colleagues.
Formal negotiations
between the Union and the Prefectural University began in October 1997,
and continued
until broken off by the President of the University, Teshima Takashi,
in February
1998. The University has rejected all demands, repeating only that
their employment
practices are 'appropriate' (tekitou). The
President said that this was a
problem concerning appointment, and that it was a management matter
which could not
be the subject of negotiations. The University has since imposed worse
contracts
on the Special Part-Time lrregular Foreign Teachers in an attempt to
crush the Union.
The one-year people were 'gaikokujin kyoushi' until
April 1998. According
to the 'new employment conditions' the job title is now 'gaikokugo
kyoushi', employed
under the chihou komuin hou as 'tokubetsu-shokutaku
no hijoukin -shokuin'--a
position title unique to Kumamoto Kenritsu Dai. Recent developments
have included
divide-and-conquer hiring tactics and union busting, as well as firing
only the women
educators in April 2000.
Stay away
from this school.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Kumamoto General Union, contact Cynthia
L. Worthington, President at 096-245-3419 (tel./fax), or Farrell
Cleary, Vice President
at 096-364-8694 (tel./fax).
FOR AN INFORMATION SITE WITH AND PRESS RELEASES IN BOTH
ENGLISH AND JAPANESE http://www.kumagaku.ac.jp/teacher/~masden/mamorukai/english/Ehome.htm
Publication features here: (JALT's
PALE Journal special
issues and updates) (Japan Policy
Research Institute article)
NAME OF
UNIVERSITY: Kyoto Sangyo University (Private)
LOCATION: General Education Center,
Kamigamo-Motoyama, Kita-ku, Kyoto City
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Offers full-time one-year
contracts
(specifically delineated as "Foreign Language Contract Lecturer",
limited to "native speakers of English") capped at two renewals
(violating Ministry of Education guidelines against capping contracts).
The job not only requires a heavy workload of 10 classes per
week, plus "contributions towards the development of the program and
carry out other administrative duties as requested" (whatever that
could mysteriously entail), but also "sufficient proficiency in
Japanese to deal with the administrative staff without assistance".
If the university wants a candidate of this quality and
dedication, it should offer more job stability.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Japan Research Career
Information Network (JRECIN) August 2006 job advertisement
from the university.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Kyoto Institute of Technology
(Kougei Sen'i Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Kyoto
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years only for foreigners. In an ironic turn of phrase, a 2000
job advertisement
from KIT offers a German-language teacher position to all
nationalities--but with
tenure for Japanese and contracts for foreigners; quote: "we do not
inquire
about nationality, but in the case of foreigners the term of employment
is three
years renewable" (kokuseki, seibetsu o towanai, tadashi gaikokujin no
baai wa
ninki wa 3 nen (saininka)). Language skills, often cited by other
universities as
a disqualifier for tenure, are not at issue, since KIT requires the
candidate to
be skilled (tannou) in Japanese. Moreover, in a 2001 advertisement, KIT
uses a mantra
that it is a national university, as if it is not allowed to give
foreign faculty
anything more than contracted employment. This is bait for the
oblivious. The university
legally can choose whatever faculty it likes for whatever position it
likes, yet
it continues year after year to grant tenure only to Japanese
candidates for positions
open to all nationalities. Conveniently, KIT omits that fact from the
English version
of its job announcements. This degree of duplicity compels the
Blacklist Monitor
to recommend you
Stay away
from this school.
SOURCES OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), a September
2000 job announcement from the university
on NASCIS in Japanese, and December
2001 and July
2002 job announcements featured in JALT's The Language Teacher Magazine
and directly
from the university in English and Japanese.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Kyushu Institute of Technology
(Kougyou Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997) and an April
2000 job announcement from
the university
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Kyushu University (National)
LOCATION: 6-10-1
Hakozaki, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE:
Institutes Gaikokujin Kyouin/Kyoushi system, meaning contracts for 2
years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Job
announcement (August 2007) for a native lecturer for German, published
on the homepage of the Japanese Society for German Studies (Nihon
Dokubun Gakkai). Contract to start in April 2008, limited to 2 years. http://www.jgg.jp/modules/news/article.php?storyid=320
(German text) (webarchived
here), pertinent sections translated by a native German
speaker as:
FUKUOKA-KEN:
The School of Letters of Kyushu University is looking for a full-time
native German language instructor to begin April 1, 2008. QUALIFICATIONS:
Native-speaker with an MA in German studies or teaching German as a
foreign language. Age below 40 years. Applicant should understand the
situation of German studies in Japan. DUTIES: Teach six
90-minute classes a week. SALARY
AND BENEFITS: According to rules for "gaikokujin kyoushi".
APPLICATION MATERIALS:
Resume, transcripts, essay about own research; application materials
will not be returned. DEADLINE:
September 28, 2007. CONTACT:
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yasumasa Oguro, Faculty of Humanities, Kyushu
University 6-19-1 Hakozaki, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka JAPAN 812-8581
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Matsuyama University, Department
of Humanities and Department of Economics (Private)
LOCATION: Matsuyama, Shikoku
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes 2-year nonrenewable
contracts for full-time foreigners
with low pay.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 and 2000 job announcements
from the university, and 2007 job announcements from the
university still offering 2-year contracts. See
http://www.matsuyama-u.ac.jp/gaiyou/sosiki/bosyu/kyouin/pdf/jinbun_2008_02.pdf
(English, at the same time offering positions for native German,
Chinese and Korean speakers with exactly the same conditions) (If that
website link disappears, see pdf document saved at http://www.debito.org/matsuyamadai.jinbun.2008.02.pdf)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Mie University (National)
LOCATION: Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, near Nagoya
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners. A 2000 job announcement suggests
that this
has been pared down to two years and capped at one more year renewal,
despite Ministry
of Education guidelines which discourage contract capping. And
a 2002 job announcement makes it even clearer--explicitly stating that
foreigners
get three-year contracts, while Japanese get tenure for the exact same
job position--despite
wanting qualifications including a PhD and Japanese language
proficiency regardless
of nationality.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and 2000 and 2002
job position advertisements
2002 CORRESPONDENCE FROM
THE UNIVERSITY (CLICK HERE)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Miyagi University of Education
(Kyouiku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, Northern
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Muroran Institute of Technology
(Kougyou Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Muroran City, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Nagano University, Ueda Campus (Private)
LOCATION: Ueda-shi, Nagano
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes 1-year renewable
contracts for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Vague
1998 job announcement
from the university
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Nagaoka Institute of Technology
(Gijutsu Kagaku Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Nagaoka city, Niigata Prefecture, Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Nagoya Institute of Technology
(Kougyou Daigaku)(National)
LOCATION: Nagoya, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Nagoya University (National)
LOCATION: Nagoya, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
UPDATE: NAGOYA
UNIVERSITY IS ALSO GREENLISTED.
CLICK HERE TO
SEE WHY
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Nagoya University of Commerce
and Business Administration (Shouka Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Nisshin City, Aichi Prefecture
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes 2-year renewable
contracts for full-time foreigners,
some with age caps at 35, despite Ministry of Education disapproval of
age capping.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Job announcements from the
university from 1998
and 2001
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Nagoya Women's University (Joshi
Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Tenpaku-ku, Nagoya
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes 1-year renewable
contracts for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 job announcement from
the university
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Niigata University (National)
LOCATION: Ikarashi, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyoushi (GK) system, meaning
contracts for 1 year for foreigners. Has history of capping contract
renewals at
one to three years, and bad faith in negotiations. Faculty of Education
hired GK
with repeated oral commitment, "stay as long as you want." One year
later,
and responding to Monbushou's's directive of "hire younger teachers,"
told
GK second one-year contract would be the last. Attorney intervention
and intense
lobbying activities at the University and in the community resulted in
three additional
years of contract renewals. However, GK got worn out by the annual
year-long efforts
to keep contract renewals coming, and took three-year contract with
private university.
Was replaced by younger GK whose contract was renewed three times.
University President
cited need for "fresh foreign faces" and the MOE's threat to deny
continued
funding of GK position if younger people were not hired. Union
supported GK in faculty
meetings, while the English Department, although personally supportive,
went along
with University without a single word of official protest.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Sharon Vaipae,
ousted Gaikokujin Kyoushi
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Ohu University (Private)
LOCATION: Koriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "Ohu University does not tenure
its foreign staff,
forcing them to sign a contract every two years, often with unfair,
discriminatory
changes imposed in contracts first seen at the time of signing
(typically within
a few days of the old contract expiring). This behaviour is currently
the subject
of a court case filed in Koriyama on 9th October 1998. Additionally,
this university
is not recommended to Japanese staff either, in view of the draconian,
feudal regime
under which it is run. The environment does not encourage productive
research, since
staff morale is at rock bottom, and sudden changes to the regulations
have resulted
in outrageous treatment: zero bonuses with no explanation (including
the Head of
Department), the cutting of Summer and Winter bonuses, and also the
cutting of monthly
salary according to the number of working days (5.5 days per week) on
which there
is no time-clock entry for a period of at least two hours [Bonuses are
stipulated
in the university regulations, but with the phrase "subject to
satisfactory
efficiency and diligence", which the university hides behind as an
excuse for
not paying up]. Currently, even paid holiday is not approved for any
teaching staff
on the Faculty of Literature. No wonder that, at the end of March,
1999, nine members
of the English teaching staff left (including the Head of Department
and all the
native English teachers)."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Ian Gleadall,
former employee at Ohu University, corroborated by a 1998
job announcement from the university and a FAQ
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Oita University (National)
LOCATION: Oita City, Oita Prefecture, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Okayama University (National)
LOCATION: Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture, Western
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Otaru Women's Junior College
(Joshi Tandai) (Private)
LOCATION: Irifune-cho, Otaru City, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyoushi system, meaning contracts
for 1 year for full-time foreigners only, with renewals capped at three
or four years
(1996).
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Charles
McLarty, former applicant to the school
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Ryukyus, University of the (National)
LOCATION: Near Naha City, Okinawa
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Employs foreigners as gaikokujin
kyoushi. Department
of English has vague criteria for evaluating job performance, fires for
personal
reasons (as witnessed in case Korst vs Japan in Naha District Court).
Weak system
of feedback or redress for subordinates, and will not talk to union
arbitrators.
Department of Law is also hiring foreigners only on three-year
contracts.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Timothy J. Korst, plaintiff
(details here;
plus Ryuudai fishy job position announcement here)
Publication feature
(JALT's PALE Journal) here.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Sacred Heart, University of the
(Seishin Joshi Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "Seishin Joshi-daiku (The
University of the Sacred
Heart), as I'm sure you know, was the Empress' alma mater. I've been
teaching there
as a part-time hijoukin since 1981 ... [I have a
full-time friend there who],
as he struggled to get by, ...was constantly threatened by the dear
sweet sister
who ran the English department, a Shakespeare specialist who later went
on to play
Lady MacBeth as the institution's president: she said that "foreigners"
had no place at the institution and that he should be prepared to
leave.... (She
apparently thought it was the Christian duty of all foreigners to atone
for their
manifold sins against Japan by slaving away at Seishin.)... I have
heard from the
Japanese regulars themselves there that only pure Japanese, untainted
by long-term
foreign exposure, can become real professors at Seishin. (There used to
be a Japanese-
American nun there, but even she was not allowed to attend regular
faculty meetings.
She was classified as a kyakuin-kyooju.)"
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: CM deWolf,
longtime commentator on Japan and employee of Seishin
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Saga University (National)
LOCATION: Saga City, Saga Prefecture, Kyushu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
RESPONSE FROM FORMER SAGA
UNIVERSITY EMPLOYEE,
a Dr. D.M.G. Preethichandra, who questions the ability of foreigners to
qualify for
tenured positions due to the "small
percentage of foreigners
getting qualified from Japanese Universities".
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Saitama University (National)
LOCATION: Urawa, Saitama Prefecture, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Sapporo Gakuin University
(Private)
LOCATION: Bunkyoudai, Ebetsu City, Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Although SGU has three tenured
non-Japanese on staff, those
two were tenured long ago. The English department hires all other
foreigners as gaikokujin
kyoushi on one-year contracts, explicitly (and unusually)
capped at two consecutive
renewals only. This means that after three consecutive years, all
contracted foreigners
must look for a position elsewhere.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Charles
McLarty, former contracted faculty at SGU, plus Nov 98
job announcement here.
1998 RESPONSE FROM INSTITUTION: (click here)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Science University of Tokyo
(Tokyo Rika Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Campuses in Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba,
Yamaguchi, and Hokkaido
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: "This university employs foreign
language teachers
on a contractural basis. Historically four years was the limit for
employment with
the rationalization that young instructors fresh from school are
better. This has
changed, but now tenure is being denied because of the untrue reason of
visa difficulties.
No changes are expected in the near future. This information is first
hand. I have
been employed by SUT for eight years and been quite frustrated by the
attitude of
the Board of Directors in regards to foreign tenure. "
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: James G. Friedman,
brave employee, Science Univ of Tokyo/Kuki Campus
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Shiga University of Medical Science
(Ika Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Kansai area
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Shimane University (National)
LOCATION: Matsue City , Shimane Prefecture, Western
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Shinshuu University (National)
LOCATION: Matsumoto city, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Shizuoka University (National)
LOCATION: Shizuoka City, Central Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners. Later data indicate that this has
been cut
down to two years, the maximum total of years renewable being six. This
is despite
Ministry of Education guidelines which disapprove of capped contracts.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997), and an emailed
job announcement dated November
1999.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Shokei Gakuin College (Private)
LOCATION:
4-10-1 Yurigaoka, Natori-shi, Miyagi-ken (near Sendai)
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE:
"This
was formerly Shokei Women's Junior College, which added the 4-year
college 4 years ago. We 3 fulltime teachers, each of whom has
had
over 10 years' employment at the college, were unexpectedly given
notice of our termination. This happened when we went to sign our
yearly contract. Our termination was in the contract, so we had the
choice either of agreeing to being fired within two years' time or
losing our jobs immediately if we did not sign. There was no
opportunity to discuss this. We were not told about this beforehand and
we were not given any reasons. A few days later one of us asked why
this decision had been made. The reasons were given
reluctantly:
they did not like the way we taught (not one person came to observe any
of our classes), we had not published (when in fact some of us had), we
had not attended meetings or done committee work (even though that was
part of our agreement when we were initially hired; we were given extra
classes instead) and we were not fluent in Japanese - meaning full
literacy skills - despite the fact that we were initially hired with
the understanding that Japanese reading and writing skills were not
necessary for the job.
"The situation at the college is such
that a new
administrator came from a state university to help this college survive
financially. But this college is a private institution and is designed
differently than he was accustomed to. However, he has made
sweeping changes that are not in keeping with the tradition of this
college. That is, he has put a stop to faculty involvement in decision
making, which was an integral part of this institution. Instead, he and
his friends from the state institution have meetings off campus and
then announce to the faculty what will be done. In other words, no one
has a voice here any longer except him and his friends.
"Even when the original teachers from
this college
tried to persuade him to keep the foreign teachers, he refused to even
listen to them. To make matters worse, no one explained to us foreign
teachers about the tax situation in this city. So, suddenly, we were
told that we would be responsible for paying a full year of taxes. In
other words, we have to pay to leave the school. We could
live
for about 3 months on the tax we have to pay. So, this is very serious
for those of us who do not have another job and are too old to get full
time work. All of this is a tremendous shock because, in addition to
having to pay taxes, the school is refusing to give us severance pay."
SOURCE OF INFORMATION:
Chris Cuadra (schri AT mac DOT com), Shokei ex-employee Anne Thomas,
Shokei teacher through March 2008 (e-mail withheld)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tezukayama Gakuin University
(Private)
LOCATION: Osakasayama-shi, Osaka
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Has a history of firing its
veteran non-Japanese staff en
masse and hiring "fresh" gaijin, particularly those who curry favor
with
the referee by using his textbook.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: Union of Tezukayama Gakuin,
supported by Education
Workers and Amalgamated Union of Osaka; contact
information
and further details here.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tokai University, Shonan Campus
(Private)
LOCATION: Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture, next
to Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Has two-year contracts for foreign
instructors (i.e. "native
English speakers") with no opportunity for tenure, capped at six years
total
(despite Ministry of Education disapproval of capped contracts).
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 2000
job position advertisement
in O-Hayo Sensei
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tokushima, University of (National)
LOCATION: Tokushima City, Tokushima Prefecture,
Shikoku
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Tokyo Agricultural University
(Noukou Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tokyo Metropolitan University
(Toritsu Daigaku) (Public)
LOCATION: Hachioji, Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Despite vague promise of tenure
track, institutes 3-year
renewable contracts for full-time foreigners, with application age
restriction of
35 years or younger, with heavy workload.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 job announcement
from the university
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Tokyo University of Foreign
Languages (Gaikokugo Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997).
NOTE: There are also tenured non-Japanese faculty at
this university. See
Greenlist entry here.
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Tokyo Suisan University (National)
LOCATION: Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tokyo Women's Christian University
(Tokyo Joshi Daigaku) (Private)
LOCATION: Zenpukuji, Suginami-ku, Tokyo
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes 2-year contracts,
renewable once only, for full-time
foreigners, with heavy workload.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: 1998 job announcement from
the university
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Tottori University (National)
LOCATION: Tottori City, Tottori Prefecture, Western
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Toyama University (National)
LOCATION: Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, Central
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical
University (Ika Rakka Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, Central
Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners, and allegedly has a history of
bad-faith negotiations.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997) and a 1999 email
from Lorraine Hanae Sakka,
former employee of TMPU.
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Yamagata University (National)
LOCATION: Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture,
Northern Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF
UNIVERSITY: Yamaguchi University (National)
LOCATION: Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture,
Western Honshu
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
NAME
OF UNIVERSITY: Yokohama National University
(Kokuritsu Daigaku) (National)
LOCATION: Yokohama
EMPLOYMENT ABUSE: Institutes Gaikokujin
Kyouin system, meaning contracts
for 3 years for full-time foreigners.
SOURCE OF INFORMATION: gaikokujin kyouin
no ninki ni kansuru chousa
(in response to a survey from
Gifu University, as of December
1997)
REFERENCES:
The Gifu Dai Survey on National Universities cited above is located here: (page one, page two, page three of three).
However, most submissions
that come in nowadays are from the
universities themselves
(job announcements) or from first-hand sources (those that have left
the institution
and have stories to tell, or those in litigation with legal
representatives). Mind
you, I am very selective and do not include everything I've been told.
Any questionable
evidence or breach of trust, and I refuse inclusion. This list must be
kept trustworthy
and not fall victim to rumor or slipshod research.
FURTHER
EXPLANATION OF MY CREED:
Why am I focussing in on Japanese institutions of higher
learning?
This is a troubling question, mainly because discrimination is endemic in the world, moreover highly-institutionalized and commonplace in Japan. If one talks about discrimination against foreigners in Japanese universities, why stop there? Why not include Japanese junior high and high schools? The JET program with all its contract limitations? Corporations which quietly refuse to hire ethnic Koreans or Burakumin? Institutions which refuse to pay even Japanese men and women equal salaries, and fire women when they get married (like most Japanese banks do)? Realtors, restaurants, swimming pools or onsen which refuse service to foreigners?
Why zero in on universities? Because even if discrimination abounds, one has to start somewhere or one gets nowhere. Moreover, a case can be made that the Japanese university system is egregious by any standards: Practically nowhere else in the OECD sees the degree of central control (via the Ministry of Education, or Monbukagakushou) over educational content and quality as the Japanese education system. Nowhere else else in the developed world has seen a government campaign to eliminate university tenure nationally, and specifically for foreigners (see http://www.debito.org/activistspage.html#ninkisei or Ivan Hall, CARTELS OF THE MIND). Nowhere else has seen such an effective implimentation of said policy, either.
Now with the above-mentioned 1997 policy "liberalizing" hiring practices (on paper, at least--but with Monbushou's stranglehold over National Public Universities' finances, and on grants and curriculum approval in all universities, it is easy to envision backdoor arm-twisting), it is up to somebody to inform people about the new options. Furthermore, it is paramount that universities themselves be encouraged to create better employment conditions, and one very effective way would be helping prospective employees become more choosey.
Furthermore, as Blacklist Monitor, I admit a personal bias. As a former non-Japanese (I received Japanese citizenship in October 2000) university employee (fortunately one of the few tenured ones, but my naturalization happened long after I got tenure), I have seen firsthand exactly what this inhumane and discriminatory policy environment has done to my colleagues in the field, and how recent contract job offerings (such as "Native Speaker Position") have expanded to include even the naturalized. That has helped to make me better informed and concerned about what's going on in this area in particular.
Hence, this list, of which I am the sole sponsor and editor, focusses on universities if and how they discriminate specifically against full-timers (joukin) based on nationality. If somebody out there wants to collate information on, say, realtors who advertise "no pets, no foreigners", or banks that fire women when they get married, be my guest. We are doing something like that on The Community Website. There is already a nacent Blacklist of Part-Time Positions (hijoukin) at Japanese Universities (an addendum to this list, for reasons elaborated upon there), and a JET Blacklist (run with no connection with this Blacklist whatsoever, except maybe for intent and moxie). Anyhow, with proper substantiation, I would be happy to create a list of places like these as well. But for now, I'm content with expending my energies on this field because 1) I know more about it, 2) I have enough information on it, and 3) it may indeed make a difference.
In sum, somebody's gotta start collating this information, for the sake of both the long-termers and the neophytes. It might as well be me.
Please use the information on this list constructively.
--Arudou Debito, Blacklist Monitor
CLICK HERE TO SEE TOKYO CLASSIFIED ARTICLE ON THE BLACKLIST
Submissions to both the Blacklist or the Greenlist are welcome. Application is here. I welcome input. For example, if you find some job advertisement which proves a university qualifies for either list, please send me the text, save me some time by rewriting the pertinent data in the format above, and a link. Please try to keep sources as close to primary as possible. Thanks.
If you're still doubting the veracity of the information on the Blacklist of Japanese Universities, please visit some links to some information websites, completely independent of this site, and check out recent job conditions for yourself. You might have to dig around a bit.
(Last
updated August 2007)
(Sorry for any delay. My hands are full with many
other projects.)
