CLAIR News May 2022
As of March 21, all of the semi-emergency measures across the country have been lifted.
We should all continue to thoroughly observe basic infection prevention measures such as avoiding the “Mittsu no mitsu” or “three Cs” (Closed spaces, with poor ventilation; Crowded places, with many people nearby; and Close-contact settings, such as close-range conversations), as well as maintaining social distancing, the wearing of masks, and good hand hygiene.
In order to prevent the resurgence of infection, we should observe these measures during any travel which crosses prefectural borders, and act to avoid the same situations in the workplace.
In other regions, please similarly observe these measures during any travel which crosses prefectural borders, and avoid travelling if you have any symptoms such as fever. It is also important to make efforts to help prevent infection through initiatives including hand-washing and hand-hygiene, cough etiquette, social distancing between workers, ventilation of workplaces, disinfection of places touched by many people, ceasing attendance of work if there are any symptoms such as fever, testing of those with light symptoms through antigen kits, use of online meetings to avoid business trips, staggering of lunch breaks, measures in company dormitories, etc.) and avoidance of the “three Cs” (see: above), while using example cases as a reference.
For further information, please refer to the national and local governments’ official websites.
Cabinet Secretariat website:
https://corona.go.jp/en/
Vaccine booster shots (a third shot) for COVID-19 are scheduled to be carried out between 1 December 2021 and 30 September 2022.
For details, please visit the following webpages from the Japanese government and local municipalities:
Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/covid-19/vaccine.html
CLAIR requests each JET Programme participant to register for the Safety Confirmation System (Emergency Call) and Contact Information Survey. These are two separate systems. Please register to both using the links below.
Safety Confirmation System:
https://asp2.emc-call.jp/clair/index_en.html or
https://asp2.emc-call2nd.jp/clair/index_en.html Your login ID and password are both the final nine numbers of your JET Number, omitting the first two digits (20).
Contact Information Survey: https://goo.gl/u1gVT2
Login ID: JET Number (11 digits beginning with 20)
Password: Date of birth (YYYYMMDD)
*For JET Programme participants who were originally scheduled to arrive in Japan in 2021 please use your pre-arrival JET number that starts with 2021.
Emergency Pocket Guide for JETs
To ensure your safety in Japan, please take the opportunity to ensure that you are prepared in case a disaster occurs.
CLAIR has compiled an Emergency Pocket Guide for reference in the event of a disaster. Please keep it with you at all times. Please ensure that you fill out the important parts and keep it with you in case of a disaster.
*CLAIR distributes the Emergency Pocket Guide during orientation for new arrivals.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/emergency-support/
In the event of a disaster CLAIR will confirm the safety of JET Programme participants using the Safety Confirmation System (Emergency Call). It only takes a few moments to confirm your safety via the email you receive. Please make sure you respond regarding your safety situation when a safety confirmation email arrives, as it otherwise takes time for Host Prefectures/Designated Cities to confirm the safety of each individual JET Programme participant in the affected area(s).
In any given year in Japan, there will be somewhere which has had an emergency warning issued. The country is also prone to large earthquakes. At the moment Japan is entering a period of increased chance for emergency warnings to be issued as a result of heavy rain and typhoons. Because of this, we are asking JET Programme participants and supervisors at each contracting organisation to confirm information registered with the Safety Confirmation System and to check how to respond to a safety confirmation request should an email arrive.
Once again, if you receive a safety confirmation request email, please respond to it right away. Safety Confirmation requests are sent out based on Host Prefecture/Designated City, so participants may receive safety confirmation requests even when they are not physically near the site of a disaster. In this case, a response is still required from each individual to whom the request is sent.
With the aim of enhancing mental health support for JET Programme participants, CLAIR offers the JET Programme Mental Health Counselling Assistance Programme. This programme provides a partial subsidy (50%, up to 30,000 yen per year) for counselling costs incurred through consultation with mental health professionals not covered by health insurance.
The coverage period for this year is from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023. The application form must arrive at CLAIR by 7 April 2023 (Fri).
JET Programme participants can also receive free counselling offered by CLAIR via Web Mail and Skype. If you wish to use these services, please access them using the URLs below, input the ID/password, and follow the instructions for registration. Up to 7 Skype sessions are available between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023. We recommend starting with web mail, which has no limits on usage.
Web Mail and Skype Counselling
Website:https://jetcounseling.com/
Login Information:
Username: jet
Please see email version of CLAIR News for the password
All JET Programme participants are strongly advised to register with their home country’s embassy or local consulate, and/or through your embassy run travel registration scheme while living in Japan, as your embassy may be able to help you and your relatives obtain necessary information and check on each other’s safety in times of emergency. Please check the website of your home country’s embassy or local consulate for more details:
https://www.mofa.go.jp/about/emb_cons/protocol/index.html
CLAIR provides grants to JET Programme participants who wish to improve their English teaching skills by obtaining online certification for Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) or Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). This year’s grant information was sent to all contracting organisations in April. Please ask your supervisor for this information. Alternatively it can be download from the JET Programme website.
The deadline for submitting your online course registration form to CLAIR is 27 May 2022 (Fri).
https://jetprogramme.org/ja/tefl/
The application period for the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) first test date (scheduled for 3 July 2022 (Sun)) finished on 15 April 2022 (Fri). Test results will be sent out in early September 2022. The deadline to submit your documents to CLAIR is 28 October, 2022 (Fri).
The application period for the second test date (scheduled for 4 December 2022 (Sun)) will begin in late August 2022.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/jlpt/
It is possible to apply for online Japanese Language Courses. Please check the Japanese Language Course Guide on the official JET Programme Website, and apply through the Contact Information Survey page.
Please note that from April 2022, the application deadline and course start dates for the Japanese language courses will be changing. Please consult the Japanese Language Course Guide available at the above link to get the most up-to-date information.
Participants who apply before the 10th of any odd-numbered month (e.g. March, May, July) will be able to start their course on the 1st of the following even-numbered month (e.g. April, June, August). Once your course has started, please remember to plan your study schedule ahead of time.
http://deli3.study.jp/?multi
https://jetprogramme.org/en/languagecourses/
Japanese Language Course Exchange Event
CLAIR will be holding regular online exchange events for those studying through the Japanese Language Courses. These events will offer the chance to meet other course participants, practice Japanese and ask any questions of each other. More information will be available in due course to those who are registered on the Japanese Course study site.
For JET participants who arrived in summer, it is almost time to extend your period of stay, so please check the dates written on your Residence Card (especially JET participants in their third year who will be reappointed for another term).
For information on extending your Period of Stay or changing your Status of Residence, please refer to page 69 of the General Information Handbook (GIH).
https://jetprogramme.org/en/gih/
JET participants finishing their appointments in 2022 should refer to CLAIR’s online After JET Guide for information about how to prepare for your successor, move out of your apartment, deal with “reverse culture shock” and prepare for your next career move.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/ajg/
JET Programme participants finishing their appointments and returning to their home countries may be eligible to receive a pension refund (lump-sum withdrawal payment). For more information, please refer to pages 169-175 of the 2021 edition of the General Information Handbook (GIH). jetprogramme.org/en/gih/
Information is also available in English and Japanese on the following website: https://www.nenkin.go.jp/international/english/index.html (English) https://www.nenkin.go.jp/index.html (Japanese)
Is your house or apartment covered by property insurance (kasai hoken)? If you do not know, please check with your contracting organisation supervisor.
There have been several cases where JET participants were forced to pay for the damages to not only their own, but also their neighbours’housing when there were water leaks or other problems (if a water leak occurs, damage to the property of neighbours is covered by the JET Accident Insurance Policy Liability Endorsement, but damage to your own property as well as damage to the structure or building can only be covered by property insurance). Whether or not to purchase property insurance is the choice of the JET participant. However, if you are liable for damages, the costs can be very high. Therefore CLAIR recommends that JET participants enroll in property insurance.
