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UK employment - Could you help with info please?
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 4:18 am    Post subject: UK employment - Could you help with info please? Reply with quote

I am a British English Language Teacher with a basic TEFL certificate and a university degree. I have been teaching Business English in Brazil for the past seven years. I am returning to the UK this year and would like to know what to expect from the schools in the UK that teach Business English. I am only interested in teaching Business English.

If anyone could help with any of the following questions I would be very grateful.


1 What would I expect to be paid per hour teaching Business English?

2 Would I be likely to be employed permanently to work mornings, afternoons or all week? What is usual?

3 What if there are no students one week or every other week etc. Would I still be paid for these days/ weeks with most schools?

4 If there are training days, would I be expected to be paid for them? Here in Brazil it’s not common.

5 Would I be paid for class preparations time, or would I only be paid for my time in class and be expected to prepare for the class? What is common in the UK? (I’m not complaining or anything, just asking what the norm is there)

6 What about employment law, would the school have to employ me for a certain minimum set of hours, or could they employ me only for the hours I work each week? In fact, what about all the legal factors in relation to all my questions above.


Really, I would like all these questions answered, and any more info on employment for English Language Teachers in the UK. I have been here in Brazil for seven years and worked for quite a few schools and myself.

The schools here vary very much. My problem now is that I don’t know how to prepare myself for this kind of work in the UK. How would I know if I am being employed legally, or if my new employer is taking advantage of me regarding working hours etc.

I have tried everywhere to find answers to the questions above, but am unable. Can anyone help please?

Many thanks


G Wolf
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Blueali13



Joined: 26 Apr 2004
Posts: 20
Location: Somewhere wet and cold...

PostPosted: Sat May 01, 2004 5:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

GaryWolf

I did a quick search on 'tinternet and found these sites which might help

http://www.eflteachingjobs.com/
http://www.tefl-teaching-vacancies.co.uk/
http://www.teaching-jobs-uk.com/

Not sure if they are what you're looking for but have a go you never know there might be someone out there with just the right info at the right time. Smile
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Sat May 01, 2004 5:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks Blue. I'll give the sites a try and post any good info I get back here.
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Afra



Joined: 02 Feb 2003
Posts: 389

PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2004 2:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't think there are many business English jobs around. I taught general English in an HE/FE college on the south coast. The contract was termly but if the students faded away, so did my job. I was paid contact time only. I wasn't paid for any preparation, meeting or PD time or holidays. I taught 10 - 12 and 1 - 3 and evenings if I could organise enough students to make a class. There was scope for me to increase my hours over several campuses but that involved a lot of travelling so it wasn't very productive. Most people got work through contacts, the jobs were never advertised.
My advice would be to avoid the UK as EFL is looked on as a second income - but I may be jaundiced!
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Sun May 02, 2004 3:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Afra

Thanks for your reply. It was really helpful.

G Wolf
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SueH



Joined: 01 Feb 2003
Posts: 1022
Location: Northern Italy

PostPosted: Mon May 03, 2004 8:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gary,

I'd have to largely agree with Afra. I currently teach at 3 HE/FE colleges on the South coast and am paid (with an allowance for holiday pay/prep etc.) at just over GBP 20 per contact hour. I'm currently going for a full time or 80% job at one of the colleges. It was apparently advertised in the Times Ed but most colleges tend to advertise in the local press because they aren't offering long term contracts which would make it viable for someone to move for.

The work in FE colleges is general EFL or ESOL although nursing English courses seem to be a growing trend, and specific business teaching is more usually the remit of the private colleges. Hourly pay is likely to be lower and hours less reliable. At least with the FE college if the students don't turn up I still get paid, as happened to me earlier this year.

Most teachers with established posts tend to be pretty experienced, the large majority with time served abroad and often with full teaching qualifications. The advantages of teaching at colleges is that they will pay for further training and most also allow you a leisure course free as well.
I've just done my RYA Day Skipper theory qualification courtesy of one college. Next September I'm thinking I ought to try Spanish to add to my decent Italian and adequate French as well as upgrading my teacher quals.

Hope this helps a bit.
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Tue May 04, 2004 2:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sue

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, I'm not a qualified teacher. Therefore, I can't go for a job in HE or other. But good luck on your job interview for the fulltime job.

Thanks
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SueH



Joined: 01 Feb 2003
Posts: 1022
Location: Northern Italy

PostPosted: Tue May 04, 2004 6:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gary,

Slight misunderstanding there - you _can_ go for a job in FE but there is competition from more qualified staff. Also the government wants to increase qualifications so you would probably have to commit to increasing your formal qualifications, initially via C&Gs in a 2 stage exam and then a cert ed. This can be done P/T and the colleges normally pay tuition as I noted before.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343

PostPosted: Wed May 05, 2004 10:48 am    Post subject: ukofgbandni Reply with quote

Twice in my career (if that is the word for it) I went back to the UKofGB&NI, thinking I could slot back into teaching there.

It was not pleasant. I did not get full-time work in teaching and after a steep learning curve decided that I had to choose whether I wanted to teach in a series of temporary and part-time jobs, or take a non-teaching job at low wages.

In the end - both times - I decided that working outside the UK was the only way. And so I am reaching the twilight of my years as a permanent exile.

Now I am 57 and it is too late to even think about returning to the UK to teach. To live - well even if I win the lottery I think I will give "Perfidious Albion" a miss. Leave it to the football players, pop singers, corrupt politicians and other celebrities. When I see Britain now I cannot help but think that the Britain of my Youth was a better place. The Past is another country.

Maybe this is just a rewrite of the "Fox and the Grapes" by Aesop !


Last edited by scot47 on Fri May 07, 2004 9:45 am; edited 1 time in total
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2004 7:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sue

Once again, thanks for your input. I didn’t know I could go for work in FE. You seem to be pretty clued up on things in the UK. I heard recently that they are going to clamp down on private English schools that are not recognised or they will need to be registered in the future. Do you know anything about this Sue?
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2004 7:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Scot

Sorry to hear about your dislike of the UK. Hope things workout for you in the Middl East.
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Benjamin Semwayo



Joined: 05 May 2004
Posts: 2
Location: ***************************

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2004 8:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My name is Ben and this is my first time to post a contribution in this forum. I am a graduate supply teacher from Zimbabwe. I agree with the observations made by Scott47. Like him I have found job hunting in this country both frustrating and unpleasant. I have been a supply teacher for two years now and although I have sought a permanent position both through agencies and applying to schools directly, I have not been successful. The problem with supply work is that it is not consistent. Sometimes you get work and sometimes you don't. I hope my contribution
sheds some light on employment for teachers in the UK.
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2004 1:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Benjamin

Thanks for your input. Are you still in the UK? Hope you find some permanent work soon.

Good luck

G Wolf
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GaryWolf



Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2004 1:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Benjamin

I have another question for you. You said that you work for other schools temporarily. Is it legal for the school to employ you temporarily? I heard that employment rules in the UK have changed a lot since I was there.

Don’t they have to employ you permanently, or give you regular work. What happens if you are working for a school, and one week there are no students for you to teach. Does that mean that you don’t get paid for that week? If this is so, surely that isn’t legal.


Please let me know about these things if you can Benjamin.

Good luck

G Wolf
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SueH



Joined: 01 Feb 2003
Posts: 1022
Location: Northern Italy

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2004 3:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gary,

Benjamin may post further, but I think you may find that if he is a supply teacher he is probably fully qualified and working in the state sector as cover.

It's not a question of not being employed because there are no students that week; rather a matter of being called in to cover absent teachers or on a temporary basis. Supply teachers tend to sign up to agencies who help get you work but obviously take a cut (but mainly from the school I think?).

Private language schools are another matter entirely, and work there probably would be based on how many students there are. That's not to say people don't get full time contract but, to use an electricity generation analogy, those are meeting the guaranteed base load. Many more teachers out there are used to mop up the peak demand. All depends what you can get, but in terms of competition there are an awful lot of excellent English speakers around here!
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