Korean Job Discussion Forums

[KatanaSlash87]

A recruiter that I've been talking with told me that upon arrival in South Korea, ESL teachers have to submit to a drug test. Is this true? Do you have to take it right away, or within a few days, and where do you go to do this?

Also, is this drug test a Korean policy or is it a policy of the schools, or immigration, or what? Just seems a little weird to me.

[bassexpander]

Yes. And it's horrible.

Now they have resorted to giving this to every English teacher, so the boss can easily run a test whenever he/she chooses:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Piercing_catheter.jpg

[KatanaSlash87]

What kind of test is it? Urine analysis?

[eIn07912]

man, i just find it hilarious someone worrying about a drug test has a typical middle school name like "katanaslash87".... is that ur WoW name too? haha was "awesome dragon lord 420" already taken?

j/k... yes they do test. piss test. not for pot though. unless u give them even the slightest reason to. then u best bet they will. plus the media is always looking for some evil foreigner to make an example out of, so dont give them a reason. if ur too busy blazin fat blunts or token bowls with ur buddies to get urself clean for a month or two before u come here, then just forget it. make our lives easier by not having another idiot stoner north american give koreans more reason to be suspicious of us all.

[KatanaSlash87]

Wow, thanks. I couldn't think of a name to use on this forum so I just chose something random because I really, really don't care what my name on a forum is. What's more "middle school", me, or you who actually cares and has to ridicule people just like in middle school.

No one makes fun of your name being from an anime so what's the point in doing it to me? Really, who cares? Is that what you teachers in Korea do? Make fun of people for petty things? Sounds pretty mature.

Lastly, you don't even know me. You know absolutely nothing about me. I'm not some typical North American stoner coming to Korea and I definitely wouldn't be dealing with illicit substances in a foreign country, so shove your assumptions in a sack. I asked a simple question and would appreciate a simple answer. I just wanted information about the where, why and when about the drug test in Korea. Most of those questions still have been answered yet.

And why would they give you a drug test and not test for weed? That makes no sense.

[Triban]

[Forward Observer]

One guy that tested positive was taken down to the police station and tortured for three days with an electric cattle prod until he confessed to his crimes of purchasing from an Iranian. Then he spent three months in a 4x10 cell with a bunch of other foreigners until his court date. He was eventually deported.

[KatanaSlash87]

Cool.

I truly thought joining this forum would be helpful. I guess I was wrong. Thanks a lot guys. You're about as helpful as the eight year old kids you teach.

Hahaha katanaslash87! That's soooooo funny because his screen name isn't nearly as mature as mine! Instead of being helpful to him, I'm going to ridicule him and pretend I know who he is and why he's asking this question!

And no. I don't play wow or any other online rpgs and I chose this name because I was scanning my room looking for something to name my sn after and I saw a picture I have of an ukiyo painting with a samurai holding a sword. How middle school.

Plus this has been a terrible day for me, and I come onto a site that's supposed to be fellow ESL teachers helping each other out, and I get this.

Congratulations for somehow making my day even more annoying.

[Forward Observer]

Well whatever you do, don't smoke a bong hit to feel better. Getting high is only a temporary solution.

[KatanaSlash87]

...

Instead of making jokes why don't you provide me with information?

Also, I don't believe your story. Sources? What drug did he test positive for? Why would they torture him? What was the drug test for?

You can't just be vague as hell and expect someone to believe your story.

[Gaber]

They can't test for LSD or LSA. Do a lot of acid before getting on the plane, it's impossible to find here.

[Carla]

[eIn07912]

dude, people r giving u a hard time cause this is like the 12th post on drug tests. 4 of which have been started in the last week. we get tired of telling the same stuff to different people. so if u cant learn to use the search function, then u should get teased a little.

and yes, this is generally what we do here. at times we help each other. but most of the time its to talk smack and write nonsense. its a form of release. when uve been here years on end, u'll understand more.

so no. they dont test for pot. does it make sense? no. but im sure its because some gov't suit said "hey, if we test for pot, we're not going to get any young white guys to come over. and thats our bread a butter here. we'll be stuck with those dark skinned indians and filipinos... but we need to test for something so it looks like we're doing our jobs"

but often contracts say u must be available for a drug test at any time as requested by the employer. were u to refuse to test, it voids ur contract and visa and u have to leave or find new employment. which u wont because all these hogwon cats and school principals talk to each other and u'll be put on that Black List in seconds flat. and that thing is real. ive seen it.

so whats the answer? dont come over with dope in ur system and dont worry about it. u can make the invasion of privacy argument at home, but not here. its a different world all together. this is a country with a zero tolerance policy on any kind of drug. hell, u have to get regular strength tylenol at the drug store, and even then its up this his discretion to sell it to u or not. so its best just to get clean when ur home. order a few tests and test urself before coming over so u know ur clean.

dont try to game the system. dont try to find ways around it. dont try to find a law to hide behind. dont try to be some anit-drug test revolutionary. and for petes sake, stop making new posts with "drug tests" in the title. a huge number of korean media, school owners, and government officials read this forum. some daily. and try to find any reason necessary to use the information here to benefit themselves or use against foreign teachers. there r people in this country that dont want us here and know that exploiting the wests relaxed approach to stuff like pot is a way get laws made to keep people from coming over. all it takes is to print a screen shot of this general discussion page in the chosun ilbo with a title like "Foreign Teachers Discuss Taking Drugs in Korea" and the sh*t storm will just build on it own from then.

[OnTheOtherSide]

[greasypeanut]

they drug tested me my first week here.

but really. how hard is it to stop smoking for a month....well i guess for some it can be...but really....it isnt.