Japanese teacher’s colleagues shocked after he is arrested while moonlighting at host club
By Ryan General
A junior high school math teacher in Japan who was secretly working at a host club was arrested after allegedly soliciting a plain-clothed police officer to patronize the club.
The teacher, who lived with his parents, had reportedly been working at a host club two or three times a week since around August 2022.
In Japan, a host club is a type of entertainment establishment where customers pay to spend time with male employees, known as hosts, who provide attentive and flirtatious conversation, pour drinks and play games.
On Feb. 11, the teacher allegedly approached a female police officer in plainclothes who was standing on a street in Nagoya‘s Naka Ward. Aichi Prefectural Police revealed that the man talked to the officer, asking if she would like to come to the host club.
The officer arrested him on suspicion of violating the prefecture’s nuisance prevention ordinance, which prohibits excessive touting.
While the case was forwarded to Nagoya District Public Prosecutors Office as a potential violation of Japan’s amusement business law, the teacher was not indicted and was released on March 3.
In Nagoya, public employees need to seek permission from authorities with appointive power if they want to work at commercial enterprises.
Part-timers, however, are not subject to such regulations.
The man in his 20s earned 2,829 yen (approximately $21) per hour working 20 hours per week as a part-time teacher at a municipal junior high school. As the man is not a regular city employee, he is not prohibited from having a second job outside of his normal work hours. Still, the Nagoya Municipal Board of Education found the incident shocking as its members “did not expect him to be a host.”
“He did not display any problematic behavior at school,” an education board official was quoted as saying. “We hear that he had been taking his teaching job seriously,”
While the board is reportedly considering imposing disciplinary action on the man, the members are careful not to violate his rights or discriminate against his chosen occupation.
“It’s very hard to decide how we should view the (teacher’s) side job as a host,” another member of the board explained. “We will consider establishing certain regulations, but it’s something we can’t easily decide on.”
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