Job Discussion Forums

[Chris_Crossley]

I'm in no way surprised that "Mr. Pink" went through such an experience regarding his virtual teeth-pulling in trying to (and eventually succeeding in) getting his money from the school.

Nevertheless, I do find it extraordinary that the school in question allegedly dismissed the contract as "invalid" at first before backing down and obliging a somewhat humbled school principal to hand over the money that was rightfully Mr. Pink's in the first place.

Does this mean that there is a trend throughout China of schools actually handing "invalid" contracts to expatriates for them to sign? Let's not forget that both parties - the school and the expatriate - are signatories to any contract, and that therefore both parties are legally bound to carry out all obligations within the terms of the contract.

The fact that the school would say that the contract was "invalid" is simply their way of trying to back out of saying that they had got it totally wrong, especially when confronted with the evidence in black and white. Any and all schools should know their contracts inside out, anyway, and it is therefore bare-faced cheek of anybody representing the school to say that the contract is "invalid". If it were, the expatriate could complain both to the educational bureaux in the district, city and province, be the school in the private or the public sector, and probably to the Public Security Bureau as well because the PSB has to deal with the issue of the green residence permit to expatriates; after all, the book must state the occupation of the expatriate and his/her workplace.

Having said all that, I'm sure that the contract was perfectly valid in the first place, because a contract is a legally binding document. Schools can be made to pay heavily for deliberately falsifying information, yet one nevertheless has to watch out for any clauses designed deliberately to disadvantage the unwary expatriate, especially with regard to reimbursement of the return air fare after a 12-month contract is finished - always a thorny subject, it seems.

I would say that the school was probably hoping that Mr. Pink had either not read through the contract properly - or perhaps had even lost it altogether. After all, if the contract is lost and the school refuses to dig out its own copy, it can therefore say anything it likes. The school was undoubtedly taking a gamble (on Mr. Pink "hopefully" losing the contract), yet it failed miserably. The school principal's attitude said it all when he said, "You're the big winner now."

As in any business, one may have to deal with very unscrupulous people, yet expatriates should ALWAYS read each clause of the contract before signing it and, above all, make sure they can get their hands upon it at any time until the day the contract expires - or even afterwards if need be. If expatriates keep hold of their contracts and know them inside out, then schools would be less keen to try and cheat people out of what is rightfully theirs.

[julian.d]

Firstly, make sure what the wording really means. Is it really open to debate? It seems pretty clear cut that they should reimberse you for a return ticket.
In the end it all depends on how much you believe they should reimberse you and how far you're willing to go. Are you willing to go somewhere else if you have to? Is the school is really willing to let you go if you don't take no for an answer?
They're are absolutely zillions of other schools looking for new teachers this time of year, and it wouldn't hurt to look elsewhere just in case. At least get some job offers and let them know that you're serious about going somehwere if you have to. I think you'll find they won't want to be put in the position of replacing you and will probably play ball if you let them know you want to stay but am willing to leave if you have to. Otherwise just take your medicine and make sure you get it clear in your next contract.

[Chris_Crossley]

Indeed, there are plenty of schools around which are looking for expatriate teachers, especially during the summer months for a September start, and having any job offers, even verbal ones, can give an expatriate a lot of leverage when it comes to having to deal with difficult people in one's current school.

Even so, one should bear in mind what was said in an earlier post, namely that this extraordinarily frustrating situation of having to battle for one's "own" money may arise because it is a not-so-subtle way of saying that the school wants the expatriate to leave because there may either have been some friction between him/her and the school administration, or else the latter may have concluded long ago that he or she is not a person that one would want to work with for yet another year.

It is certainly not the end of the world if an expatriate decides to leave one school at the end of a contract period and go to another, just so long as any contractual obligations are fulfilled completely by both parties, including flight fare reimbursement, if applicable. Equally important is that good old letter of reference/recommendation, which the expat may request for a future employer, which should sound positive and contain no undercurrent of anything negative which could otherwise steer a selection board towards a wrong conclusion about what kind of person he or she is. That is the kind of headache that expats abroad could well do without.

[struelle]

[ilunga]

Contemporary Dog, I'm in a similar position to you.
Whether or not I'm getting a good deal...I'll find out tomorrow.
I came over last August on a one-way flight. I had that money (actually less than what I paid) returned in february. My boss has promised me the other half which I hope to be collecting tomorrow.
I've signed on another year and have no plans on returning to the U.K. this summer. She knows that I'm travelling in China and going to Thailand and seems fine about it.
I don't see any reason why you should have to go back to the U.K. in order to receieve your return air fare. It certainly isn't in my contract.

[kev7161]

I think it's all about documentation. For their bookkeeping records (and probably what they submit to the Chinese government), they need a copy of a flight schedule/ticket/receipt/whatever to be able to pay the full amount. And they can only pay on it once. That is why my school offers "X" amount if I don't have a proof of flight and then a higher amount with my receipts. Also, they generally ask for the original and not a copy so you can't take the same paperwork from school to school and continue to be reimbursed over and over.

That sounds a little muddy, I know, but as dishonest as some schools in China can be, there are certain rules they must follow.