Job Discussion Forums

[only1life]

Strong (or should I say “Limp”) International College is a private concern, funded by a Chinese pharmaceutical firm making Chinese Viagra… hence the name Strong. The parent company should stick to what it’s good at because education is an area in which it has nothing to offer. Any serious teacher should never consider employment at Strong. They are lazy, incompetent, devious and dishonest.

The attractive point was the salary and location. Working in Hangzhou at 18,000RMB/month was quite attractive. However, this is the only thing going for the job. The college is located in a recently developed part of Hangzhou and there really isn’t that much going on over there. This is only a minor inconvenience. Getting decent food is a problem. The cafeteria food can only be described as swill and the food in the market nearby, which I dubbed, “The Sewer”, is not much better.

Let me get to the heart of the real problems with Strong. They said they wanted to create a “first class” TESOL course, so they recruited properly qualified/experienced TESOL trainers… hence the higher salaries. There were two TESOL trainers. For the 1st TESOL course we had 2 students, for the 2nd, 1 student and for the 3rd, 1 student. In addition we did PD workshops for local middle school teachers. The whole time we were told a bunch of BS about the trainee teachers’ “needs and wants”, none of which squared with reality. That’s because the people who roped these teachers in for their week-long PD sessions didn’t know what they were doing and hadn’t done even a basic needs analysis. We just went along with all this crap and none of it phased us like the more serious matters I will describe next.

They asked us to come to China on tourist visas (at our expense) and to fly to China on return tickets (at our expense). Then in the contract we were to later fly to Hong Kong (at our expense) to have our work visas processed (at our expense). To do this we needed a health check (at our expense). Once in Hong Kong we were to be given 1 night in HK (at our expense) and to fly straight back to Hangzhou. Of all these expenses we were to pay upfront, we had to eat the costs of the tourist visa and the health check. The return air tickets to China would be reimbursed at the end of the first year and the flight and 1 night in Hong Kong would be reimbursed in the salary of the following month. However, as it turned out my colleague who went to HK didn’t get all his expenses reimbursed and he was forced to stay more than 1 night in HK. All this was relatively mild compared to what you will read next.

Shortly after I arrived I was told a new visa law had been introduced. That law now requires work visa applicants within China to return to their home country (at the teacher’s expense). This was a force majeure for the contract, which stated HK but I still didn’t kick up a fuss. I’m quite sure Strong already knew this change was on the horizon but even if they didn’t, Strong should apply for the proper visas BEFORE the recruit arrives in China. They don’t do this because they want to put the burdens and expenses onto YOU the teacher. This is where their laziness, incompetence, deviousness and dishonesty begins.

I had to get an extension to my tourist visa. My passport languished in the Huangsha Rd police office for 2 weeks. By this time I was sick of the whole farce that was building up at the college. The college kept insisting that I get a police check from Australia and have the health check done BEFORE going to Australia. I pointed out that these would be things the Chinese consulate in Australia would require NOT the bureau here in China. I asked for clarification on this but they kept fudging the story about. Moreover, the college was telling me my tourist extension would expire on the 12th and I would need to return to Australia by that date. The 12th is 3 days BEFORE payday on the 15th! I decided there were too many red flags, so I went to the police office to ask about my passport. They asked for the yellow receipt, which the police never gave me. The college's Director of Foreign Affairs, who by chance happened to be at the police office at the same time, had a sudden anxiety attack when the police officer spoke to me in good English. He rushed to call the college to get the officer to talk with the college office. I had to walk away WITHOUT my passport. I went back a few days later and was told that the yellow receipt for my passport had been given to someone at the college! I objected. The police officer (a woman) said I couldn’t get my passport and if I have a problem with the college I should come together with them to the police office so they can arbitrate! I was livid! The Australian Embassy response was utterly, utterly useless. Don’t expect them to do anything for you unless it becomes a media circus event… but I digress. The ONLY information I got from the police was that my visa extension was valid until the 17th NOT the 12th as claimed by the school. They wanted to play me every which way financially so that I would be so out of pocket I would have no choice but to stay.

THAT folks is Strong International College. It is fit only for unqualified itinerants and exactly the group Strong should stick with. They should stop pretending they could run a “first class” TESOL course. If Strong stuck to offering grungy work for people who don’t mind running the gauntlet and copping some abuse along the way then there wouldn’t be a problem.

Finally the aforementioned Director of Foreign Affairs has the character of a strip club tout. We wondered why a guy like that is in his position but over time it became more apparent. His character is perfectly at home screwing people around personally, professionally and financially. It is where his mind is set and a sleazy approach is certainly not beyond him. I can only assume that suits the purposes of Strong’s senior management. After I exploded at him and the school administration, calling them out for their incompetence and deception, he stood in denial (naturally). The lie about the visa dates, using us to risk all our money… was all met with, “No, no, no, no, no… you misunderstand.” He gave us virtually no guidance on transportation, shopping or restaurants. He was constantly claiming to be “busy”. The only advice we got from him was where to buy a chicken sandwich on Friday night. Not speaking any Chinese, it was quite difficult for us to navigate the transport system, find decent restaurants, places to shop, etc… I even found an English-speaking clinic myself. The college did virtually nothing to help us settle.

I told the college waiting for my salary was pointless and I would leave the college and China post haste. I took the yellow receipt for my passport from them, got my passport back and got out of China as soon as I could. The strip club tout/Director assured me any outstanding salary would be paid. They owed me at least 6,000RMB even if they extracted maximum penalties. But that money was NEVER deposited into my bank account. They failed to pay me on the first payday, too and I had to point out the salary hadn’t been paid. Strong has employed people who have no due diligence. They are generally immature and are simply grateful to be collecting a paycheck. The same old story… only in this case it can have very negative consequences. Do not believe or accept any enticements they may make in the future. The character of Strong ranges from rotten to weird with little to no redeeming qualities. Even the section with other foreign teachers (known as IFU… I’ll leave you to image what that acronym stands for) threw out some very strange signals.

I feel sorry for the decent folk there who sit and continue to languish at Strong. But we make our bed… we lie in it. In summary if you are a nut case, lazy, don’t mind sleaze, enjoy self abuse, are unmoved by dirty money games, are desperate and willing to call into any port in storm... then maybe you won’t mind rolling the dice. If you are not of this ilk then you will find Strong a difficult place to stay. Different strokes for different folks. However, to professional teachers not wanting to self-flagellate in a dump like Strong, take my advice and give this place a wide berth.

[johntpartee]

[roadwalker]

Two or three things-

What's PD (professional development?)

Thanks for pointing out a bad work situation with specific reasons, such as the 'come over on a tourist visa' ploy which has been a bad idea for teachers now for at least several years, not just very recently.

Finally, though it must be difficult to hold back, it's better to stick to the offending facts regarding company/school behaviour and avoid the personal animosity. When I read what a cretin so and so is, my first thought is: 'is this just a story of a teacher who can't get along with colleagues/bosses?' You've highlighted actual bad behaviour but it gets lost a little, in my opinion. Sorry you had a bad experience but thanks for naming and shaming. Good luck in the future.

[sui jin]

"Strong should apply for the proper visas BEFORE the recruit arrives in China. They don’t do this because they want to put the burdens and expenses onto YOU the teacher. This is where their laziness, incompetence, deviousness and dishonesty begins. "

I sympathize with your bad experience. Dealing with incompetence, lying and cheating is devastating .

But you should have exercised much more caution (about the visa) and your expectations about China were unrealistic :
I have never seen or encountered 'professional' TESOL training here. Maybe it exists, but frankly most EFL provision in the private sector is the business of extracting money from gullible /rich parents, or gullible/rich companies. The whole industry seems to be the very definition of 'unprofessional' (maybe someone will correct my impression).
Why would a pharmaceutical company have the necessary experience and professional staff to set up such an operation? Obviously the 18K salary is a huge draw, but really ?
Finally , Hangzhou, even in its farthest suburbs, is a developed city , so by chinese standards , the 'swill' in the canteen, and the 'sewer-like' market are probably standard- to -good for here.
It's just something you have to get used to .

[kungfuman]

[vikeologist]

In many places around the world, it's ok, even normal, to come on a tourist visa, and in China there are lots of rules that get bent.

However, it is rarely, if ever, a good idea to come to China on a tourist visa if you plan to work.

Misunderstandings about returning to your home country and criminal checks are, to be honest, understandable. If you check the relevant threads, you can see that there's still a lot of questions and confusion. O