Samuel Bloom holds a sign and distributes fliers asking people to sign an online petition calling for Kyoto Prefecture to directly employ dispatch ALTs working at its schools, in Kyoto’s Minami Ward, Dec. 20, 2025. (Mainichi/Saki Hidaka)
KYOTO — In Kyoto Prefecture, seven assistant language teachers, called ALTs, went on strike in November 2025. They wanted better pay. These teachers are sent by dispatch companies to work at prefectural schools. They do the same job as other ALTs, but they earn more than 1 million yen less each year.
In Japan, ALTs are hired in three main ways. Some come through the Japanese government’s JET Programme, some are hired by private dispatch companies, and some are hired directly by local governments. In Kyoto Prefecture, 31 of the 41 ALTs are in the JET Programme, but 10 are sent by a private company. The seven teachers who went on strike are in this group.
The seven teachers are from Britain and the United States. They are in their 20s to 40s. They earn 210,000 yen a month and a small yearly bonus of 60,000 yen. Their total yearly pay is about 2.58 million yen. JET teachers in Kyoto earn about 4 million yen or more each year. They also get help with housing and daily life, and they can stay in their jobs for up to five years.
Kyoto started using private dispatch company ALTs in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it was hard to bring new JET teachers from other countries. But even after the pandemic, the system stayed. The prefectural education board says private companies can find new teachers quickly if someone leaves, so schools do not have to wait long.
The private company for Kyoto Prefecture changes every year. This means some ALTs must move or find a new company again and again. Many of these teachers have years of experience, but their jobs are not stable. One teacher, Samuel Bloom, 36, said, “It feels like the people responsible for education are being decided by annual bids — like we’re products.”
After 18 days, the seven teachers reached an agreement with their company. Their pay went up by about 16%, to 240,000 yen a month and a 120,000-yen bonus. But this is still much lower than JET teachers’ pay. The teachers also want Kyoto Prefecture to hire them directly.
An expert, Yoji Kambayashi, said ALTs should not be seen only as “English machines.” He said people should think about them as teachers and improve their working conditions.
(Japanese original by Saki Hidaka, Kyoto Bureau)
Vocabulary
assistant language teacher (ALT): a teacher who helps with foreign language classes
strike: when workers stop working to ask for better conditions
dispatch company: a company that sends workers to other workplaces
hire: to give someone a job
bonus: extra money paid in addition to salary
bid: an offer by a company to do work for a certain price
product: a thing or service that you sell
working conditions: things like pay, hours and treatment at work
AloJapan.com