It seems that around this time every year, people in the Interac office attempt to cut save another few yen at the expense of the people that are actually out in the classroom doing all of the actual work. They call teachers into their office and attempt to
force
them to sign resignation papers.
DON’T let Intearc/MAxceed force you to sign anything that says you agree to non-renewals.
If they plan on non-renewing you, force them to do the honorable thing and actually fire you so that you can claim your unemployment benefits as you look for a new job.
Also, don’t forget that according to Japan’s Labor Standards law, you do have the right to fight your dismissal by an employer. This is a direct quote from the “Foreign Workers’ Handbook” published by the government that can be found here:
http://www.hataraku.metro.tokyo.jp/sodan/siryo/H23_handbook_all.pdf
Dismissal (Page 34)
Dismissal is when an employer unilaterally terminates his/her employee’s employment contract. In accordance with Civil Law, an employer as one party of an employment contract has a right to propose to terminate it. However, as dismissal affects an employee’s life, Japanese labor laws impose severe restrictions on dismissal.
Dismissal in the Case of Workers Hired for a Fixed Period and Termination of Consecutive Employment (rejection of contract renewal) (Page 40)
An employer is not allowed to dismiss employees with a fixed period of contract before the contract expires, except for in cases with an unavoidable reason (Section 1 of Article 17, Labor Contract Act), or when a company goes bankrupt (Article 631, Civil Law).
In case of an employment contract with a fixed period, termination comes with its expiry. However, the so-called “termination of consecutive employment” has become a serious problem. This is where a contract with a specified period has been renewed several times and a company has continued to employ an employee for a certain period, only to suddenly terminate the contract (upon its expiration) and displace him/her.
The “doctrine of abuse of right of dismissal” does not always apply to fixed-term employees. To avoid trouble associated with termination of contract, a ministry notification sets the following requirements for employers.
1 Employers are to clearly state the renewal or cancellation of contracts, and the criterion for contract renewal.
2 Employers are to give at least 30 days prior notice when terminating contracts for employees who have been employed for over one year on a contract for a specified period.
3 When employees request a clear statement on the reason(s) for the termination of their employment, employers must comply promptly in writing.
4 When a fixed-term contract employee, who has already been employed for over one year through contract renewal, arrives at a new contract term, the employer must make an effort to extend the contract period as much as possible, according to the substantiality of the contract and employees’ wishes.
Past judicial precedents (concerning legal conflict involving contract termination) show that some contract terminations were recognized depending on certain surrounding elements (e.g., objective overview of business, procedures and realities of contract renewal, etc.) as seen as a whole by the court.