Founded in 1991, the is a labor union headquartered in
Osaka,
Japan. Membership is open to all nationalities and all workers. It has members working in trading companies, factories and restaurants but the majority of members are teachers and staff who are employed in language education at
private conversation schools, high schools and universities in the
Kansai and
Chubu regions of Japan. Union members work at universities such as
Ritsumeikan University, and language schools such as
ECC,
Berlitz and
Gaba. Recent years have also seen the union launching major organizing drives among
South American workers in Japan, along with Filipino workers.