Job Discussion Forums

[astrotrain]

Need advice, hope the experienced gents here can help.

I signed a 2 year contract with this school back in Sept of last year. Due to a family emergency I had to book a last minute flight back home. I was working in an International Department teaching a subject. After things settled down i contacted the school to provide a brief notice and marks I already tabulated up to departure but haven't really talked to them since.

I am not looking to go back, the city I was in was far too underdeveloped, the school was not licensed to teach an AP program -they were not registered with the AP College board, the students barely spoke grade level English couldn't understand the textbooks nor the teacher, the previous subject teacher prior to me was showing movies during class for the entire 2 semesters hence a lot of disciplinary issues, needless to say I felt I was wasting my time and skills being there with no value added.

I have read some other posts about other teachers here who unfortunately experienced far worst student disciplinary issues (violent acts against them). My experience there was not on that level but yikes compared to my previous school in China it was like I was in the twilight zone for a good 3.5 months.

Sorry to digress, my main question is I am back in Canuck country, family issues dealt with and looking for Sept starts, will I run into issues getting a new work visa? Leaving early might have gotten me black listed since I need a release letter, closure of my FEC, recommendation letter etc. Last I heard from the school they closed my residence permit.

[cormac]

Just go to a different province (not a neighboring one). I highly doubt you'll have any official issues.

You jumped ship. Plenty of teachers have done the same and managed to get work again.

[astrotrain]

Thanks Cormac,

No way in hell I want to work or set foot in that province again, even the capital city in which you transfer from to get to the town I was in was dirty, rude, crude and uncivilized.

If there is a nxt time I am only sticking to big cities tier 1 or 2, and resume due diligence which I neglected on this one due to seeing my gal there sooner.

I was and still concerned about future visa issues due to this but I believe another poster "originalprankster (?)" moved from school to school about a 1/2 dozen times within a year but he is still in China while I left.

[theoriginalprankster]

Good on you for leaving. There are some hell schools and cities. Plenty other. Xiamen, Zhuhai, plenty more.

[cormac]

We often hear about a blacklist for teachers, but TBH from conversations with Fao's or business owners, it's never once come up. Even when it comes to the PSB, many of their records on foreigners are not made available nationally, and come down to whether someone can be bothered to do all that paperwork. In my experience, Chinese administrations may love paperwork, but the employees tend to minimize the need for it (which is why they demand exactly the right details on everything)

[geosmiley]

I'm not sure about the advice you are receiving here. There would be a visa in your passport that would give it all away. How would you get around the visa in your passport?

[cormac]

[geosmiley]

Whether it's a criminal offense or not is irrelevant, this isn't a liberal western democracy. A criminal offense is whatever the police say it is.

Here in Hangzhou you first register within 24 hours. Then a few days later the International Department takes your passport for a day or two and goes to the police station to have your Z visa put inside. The International Department and the Police peruse where you've been and what you've done before, particularly in China. It's a simple matter for the International Department to compare your resume to the visas in your passport and see if there is something amiss. That is just one possible scenario and it doesn't have a good outcome.

I've never heard of a blacklist either but it wouldn't surprise me if there isn't one coming. Things are obviously changing here in China.

I'm not arguing that you won't get away with leaving an unpleasant position. It stands to reason it's common. However, it's also logical to consider that you may not and just because you got away with it in the past isn't proof that you will get away with it in the future.

The previous visa is there in your passport for anyone to see and question and if I were hiding something it would make me nervous.

I have no idea how to handle this. I hope you're right that it doesn't matter but if you're wrong.......

[teenoso]

I have recent experience of this - I left my last employer 2 years ago, a month before the contract ended , because of various issues.
Found a job last year in another province, but the new uni wanted a recommendation letter from the previous uni . The FAO refused to give me any kind of letter because I left before the end of the contract, so the new job fell through. I contacted the city FAO where the previous uni was, but they couldn't help.

Still haven't figured out how to solve this problem, and find legal work here. Maybe private training centres would not be so demanding on the paperwork, but it could be the government education office in the province which needs exactly the right paperwork.

So it can be a real thing, if you don't leave a job in good standing. Even if you returned to China with a new passport , with no evidence of the previous work visa, it might still pop up on the computer system at some point in the application process for a new job.

[cormac]

[astrotrain]

[astrotrain]

[quote="cormac"]

[cormac]

[nimadecaomei]

The problem is you need the release/recommendation letters not for your new school, but for the government to process your new docs. Without it they will not do it. Somehow you need to get these, either the new employer can pressure them or you can look into other legal recourse I guess. Not sure as I have never faced the situation.

[cormac]