Sep 26

Update 09/29/10:  Turns out Interac is not “belly up” afterall.  According to a comment received (posted below):

When companies merge and/or or change their names in Japan, they send out announcements that the previous entity is dissolving. I would get announcements like this from a fund-managed client of mine in Tokyo twice a year. My contacts there never changed.  Interac wants Maxceed and Selti and Selnate to all be called Interac for marketing purposes. Nothing has changed.

JetWit apologizes for any confusion.

The General Union Interac Branch announced last week that private ALT recruitment and dispatch firm, Interac, plans dissolution. Having been bought up by Advanced Partners, AP intends to dissolve and liquidate the company.

The fall of Interac, in the midst of questions about the future of the JET Programme, raises interesting questions and concerns. As one of the largest private dispatch companies to go under– Interac has about 1,500 ALTs in the Japanese education system. Will any boards of education choose to direct-hire their ALT, or are we looking at a massive influx of jobless former ALTs as their contracts expire? Will other dispatch companies step in to fill the void, or is this a signal of the end times for the work of ALTs as it exists today?

With the JET Programme’s unclear future, and the private sector’s dispatch model cashing out– what does the future really hold for native speakers in the classroom?

The General Union announcement is available here.

Lengthy (albeit colorful) commentary is available on BigDaikon.


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