What happen if you break an AEON contract?

I have signed a contract with AEON, but I had a company call me for an interview that I would rather work for if they offered me a job. What does AEON do if you break a contract with them?

Well, it's common sense that contracts are not for breaking it.

I suggest you read the contract content very carefully. At least you shouldn't just break it without consent and disappear without notification to AEON, as that's not the way how human society works in Japan. You shouldn't create extra problems for the people who believed in you.

You could have talked honestly about other possibilities and asked for some time to consider other offers.

It's not really about the punishment or retaliation from AEON side which matters. It's about your human quality which is in question. In Japan people applying for jobs are very serious about such issues, when they choose a different company after informal agreement they apologize to the recruiter. Things might be different if you've already signed contract with them.

PS If you are working only for money and business ethics and learning proper working attitudes don't matter for you, you might as well look for another opportunities in a different country.

AEON is just a supermarket chain but it is a respectable company in Japan. You probably won't earn much with AEON but you will be taught business ethics in the Japanese way, which is highly evaluated across the world.

I am really excited to work for AEON but I had that offer and I will be turning it down. I had some friends tell me to break the contract and told me that I should just go for the other company, but I like to stick to my commitments. I was feeling unsure because of those friends. Thanks for posting back.

It's not an "offer" anymore, but it is a signed contract at this point in time, right? Don't break it. If you had the offer from AEON and if you received another offer while you were thinking about signing it, that's different - still you should be formally apologizing to AEON if you had made verbal commitment - but with a signed contract, it's a no-no. If you break it, that means AEON could do the same (in the opposite direction) to other potential employees, meaning, making an offer, agreeing to hire, and just drop the contract only because they found someone more qualified several days later.

I am really excited to work for AEON but I had that offer and I will be turning it down.

So if I read that correctly, you decided to go with Aeon?

I had some friends tell me to break the contract and told me that I should just go for the other company, but I like to stick to my commitments.

Just to add, that your friends gave you some potentially disastrous advice. What really matters is whether or not you already signed the contract and what the contract actually stipulates (always good to know what your contract says). Theoretical worst case scenario, if you broke the contract Aeon could legally prevent you from taking the other job as well as get you blacklisted from teaching jobs in Japan for several years.

Be aware that it is pretty common for private english schools like Aeon to have a non-complete clause in their contract that can prevent you from taking another teaching job within a certain time period after stopping your first job (often 2 years). Check your contract to be sure as this could affect you in the future.

AEON could be a supermarket chain as well as a private teaching establishment.

What you should do is read the signed contract. What you shouldn't do is just break it without mutual consent with them.