Japan Press Weekly

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2023 December 6 - 12 [LABOR]

Tokai University teachers and staff union goes on strike to demand higher wages

The Tokai University teachers and staff union on December 6 went on a strike to demand a wage hike for university workers, including part-time lecturers.

According to the union, not only academic staff but also other university employees have not had a wage increase for 31 years. The average pay of part-time lecturer per class is 30% lower than that of those teaching at other major private universities, such as Waseda University and Keio University. The union demands that the university management offer a more than 15% wage hike for non-regular teachers and an increase of at least 10% in base wages for regular teachers and other university staff.

During the strike, the union held a rally in front of the main gate of the university’s Shonan Campus in Kanagawa’s Hiratsuka City.

A part-time lecturer who took part in the strike, Obara Makiko, said, “Tokai University has forcibly carried out unfair dismissals of non-regular lecturers. I hope that our strike action will attract public attention and force the university to revise its stance toward the union.” A male part-time teacher said, “The number of classes I teach this year decreased to 1-3 from the previous year’s 14, causing a 93% income drop. I can’t make ends meet.”

A British part-time instructor, who suffered an unfair dismissal, said, “I haven’t had a pay rise in 16 years and my employment contract was suddenly terminated. It is totally unacceptable. Raising our voices against the injustice is important.”