Regarding the Oct. 28 letter "Bureaucratic disaster all around": The author is most correct in predicting the ramifications stemming from the Nova scandal. The economic impacts as a result of this fiasco will be felt for some time, and at a time when the last thing the economy needs is a financial blow.
This scenario is nothing new, nor is it surprising to foreigners who have lived here for a few years, such as myself. Greed and dishonesty know no bounds with those Japanese employers who regularly engage in shortchanging their employees and sidestepping their contractual agreements. Of the five English schools I've worked for since I've been here, four have not paid me my salary in full or have attempted not to do so.
All have attempted to wiggle out of their agreements regarding insurance premiums, and all of these companies, at one time or another, have used the assumption that foreigners don't know their legal rights to impose illegal fines and penalties, and to withhold owed salaries. Only after I mentioned getting the labor union involved was I finally paid, sometimes as much as four months later. I have come to realize that I cannot trust Japanese employers. Let this be a warning for those thinking about starting a life here.
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