Claiming that the "Special Pay Law," which stipulates that teachers are not paid overtime, is a factor in long working hours, a group of teachers and experts has requested the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to make drastic improvements.
On the 16th, a volunteer group of teachers, experts, and others submitted a request to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) with approximately 8,4 signatures.
The "Special Pay Law" is a law that stipulates the salary of public school teachers, and in exchange for an additional <>% of the monthly salary, overtime pay is not paid.
The petition argues that the lack of overtime pay prevents time management from working and is a factor in long working hours, and calls for drastic improvements, including abolition, such as obliging employers to strictly manage working hours, including overtime, and paying overtime pay.
Yuji Nishimura, a teacher at a prefectural high school in Gifu Prefecture, said, "There are a lot of tasks that someone has to do in schools, and teachers have no choice but to take on them out of a sense of responsibility.
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) will discuss the revision of the Special Pay Law based on the results of a survey on teachers' working hours, which is expected to be announced this spring.