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Listerine
Joined: 15 Jun 2014
Posts: 340
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 Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 2:00 am Post subject: |
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| Lack wrote: |
| So that would be about 37.5 hours a week at most |
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| 4.1 Basic Monthly Salary will be paid according to the following scale: Probation Period (as set forth in Clause 1.2), Monthly Salary: RMB 6500 yuan; After Probation Period, Monthly Salary: RMB 7000 yuan. |
What am I missing? For those hours the pay should be double what they're "offering" Keep looking. |
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D-M
Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 114
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| Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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| As above really ... for me, the working hours and travel mentioned should equal a much larger salary. I guess it depends on location to some degree too? I am happy to accept a salary even lower than the one on offer in that contract ... but for a job with peachy working hours and terms. That contract would appear to be the worst of both worlds ... unless its in a peachy location with peachy teaching scenarios like I previously mentioned. |
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Lack
Joined: 10 Aug 2011
Posts: 252
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| Posted: Wed Dec 24, 2014 3:38 am Post subject: |
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| D-M wrote: |
| As above really ... for me, the working hours and travel mentioned should equal a much larger salary. I guess it depends on location to some degree too? I am happy to accept a salary even lower than the one on offer in that contract ... but for a job with peachy working hours and terms. That contract would appear to be the worst of both worlds ... unless its in a peachy location with peachy teaching scenarios like I previously mentioned. |
Yes, you're right. It's all about the location for me. Having been in a moderately crappy job before in China (language center of course), I'm not worried as much about the salary as I am about the location and quality/enjoyability of the job.
This contract is hardly ideal, but if the school would change just a few things, it would make it worth it (to me.) I'm not willing to be moved around to different campuses or cities. I'm looking to stay put in a familiar classroom/campus every day. Even if it paid 12,000 a month or more, I wouldn't be willing to be moved around all the time.
I know it seems apparent to many here, especially the more seasoned ones, that this kind of contract is completely irredeemable. What I posted it for was to get perspective. I have some experience with these things, but not a lot. And I'm not looking to repeat frustrations of the past. Before posting it here, I hadn't even considered the part of the contract about the school being allowed to use my likeness for promotional purposes to be a negative at all. But thanks to a couple of posters, I see how I might want to negotiate such a thing to suit me more. That's the kind of perspective I'm looking for primarily. The obvious things are easy to spot. Schools try to nickel-and-dime and otherwise take advantage of foreigners with their contracts, and they are experienced in doing it in little ways that are not always apparent. And that's exactly why I posted it here: to get perspective on that. And hopefully it will help other posters as well. |
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plumpy nut
Joined: 12 Mar 2011
Posts: 1652
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| Posted: Thu Dec 25, 2014 9:11 am Post subject: |
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| Pay is one step higher than what you would get in Bangkok, unless you're one of the lucky few to make more. Sounds like a crap job where the employer views you as a native English speaking Bangladeshi. The pay, the teaching hours, and the split shift scenario all the way from 8 am to 9 pm are crap. Avoid, Avoid. |
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Lack
Joined: 10 Aug 2011
Posts: 252
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| Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 3:34 am Post subject: |
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| plumpy nut wrote: |
| Pay is one step higher than what you would get in Bangkok, unless you're one of the lucky few to make more. Sounds like a crap job where the employer views you as a native English speaking Bangladeshi. The pay, the teaching hours, and the split shift scenario all the way from 8 am to 9 pm are crap. Avoid, Avoid. |
Funny, because I once considered Bangkok as a place to teach until I realized how low the pay was and visited the city. (Loved the city, just realized it wouldn't be so great to stay a whole year in.)
Well, the school knows I want to discuss a few issues. No one's in a rush. They'll either budge on something or I'll just refuse to take it.
I really do wonder why they would even start with such a terrible offer though. Well, as I've said before: it's the Chinese way. |
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nomad-ish
Joined: 21 Oct 2010
Posts: 153
Location: Moving up the food chain!
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| Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 5:24 am Post subject: Re: Let's play a contract game... |
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| Lack wrote: |
...the game is to spot how much hilariously bad stuff is in this contract and then pick the top 5 things you would negotiate to make the contract [somewhat] better. I just got this contract with a job offer from a school. Don't want to say which one, but I will say the location is a provincial capital somewhere in Zhong Guo. So obviously like this it will not do. It's like someone wrote this to sandbag someone. Anyway, pick the worst parts that you would negotiate to make this contract work for you. I've already got my ideas, just wanted to compare notes. OK, feast your eyes on this one...
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The employer agrees to engage the service of the Employee as a foreign teacher. The two parties, on the basis of mutual understanding and friendly cooperation, agree to sign this appendix apart from signing the Contract stipulated by China’s State Administration of Foreign Expert Affairs, and pledge to fulfill conscientiously all the obligations stipulated in it.
Article 1 – Term
1.1 The term of the contract is 12 months…
1.2 During the term of this contract, the probationary period shall be one month, commencing from date…
1.3 Within the probationary period, if the health condition or the teaching performance of the employee does not meet the requirements of the employer, this contract is terminated.
Article 2 – Content of Work
2.1 The employee shall understand the Regulations for Teachers of the employer and shall accept the employer’s arrangement, supervision and evaluation in regard to his / her work.
2.2 The employee shall serve as a foreign teacher in [SCHOOL], job responsibility involves teach different sizes of classes, give lectures and presentations, host English corner, participate in English salons, attend promotional campaigns and perform other reasonable duties as instructed by the employer.
2.3 The employee shall prepare the lessons and teaching materials according to the employer’s instructions and participate in seminars, meetings, and teacher training sessions under the employer’s request.
2.4 The employee will be required to work with the employer at several campuses located within the city.
2.5 The employee will be required to work sometimes with branch schools in other cities, in which case the agreement of the employee is needed and the employer shall give enough guidance and assistance for the employee to accomplish the assignment. And on
production of legally required receipts, the employer shall bear all authorized expenses incurred by the employee, including, but not limited to, travel and accommodation costs for such off-city teaching programs.
2.6 The employee shall not accept any other part-time work without the permission from the employer, in which case the employer is entitled to deduct part the employee’s salary or terminate this contract.
2.7 The employee permits the employer to use pictures and videos of him/her in newspapers, website articles, posters, flyers and advertisements for the purpose of course promotion. The pictures and videos mentioned above are restricted to those taken during the employee’s work for the employer and private pictures and videos that the employee voluntarily provides.
2.8 The employee should protect the employer’s reputation. If not, the employer will terminate the contract and cancel the travel allowance for the whole contract period and the salary of that month.
Article 3 – Working Days, Hours and Time Tables
3.1 The employee will be required to work 90 hours a month. If the employer requires the employee to work overtime, the employer should pay the employee overtime at the rate of 100 Yuan per working hour.
3.2 The employee will be required to participate in seminars, meetings, and training sessions for up to 20 hours in a month. And the seminars, meetings, training sessions together with the employee’s preparation for classes are not considered as paid working hours.
3.3 If the employee has taken all the assignment given by the employer but the total workload of the month is still less than the required amount in Clause 3.1, the employer shall still pay the full salary of that month to the employee; If the employee does not finish the monthly hours as a result of refusing certain schedules, the monthly pay will be deducted proportionally to the hours.
3.4 The employee’s working hours may be scheduled between 8:00 to 21:10 from Monday to Sunday. The employer shall try the best to space the monthly workload evenly but there should still be busy weeks and easy weeks.Weekends and holidays are not regular off-days, because the employer provides most of training courses on weekends and holidays. The employee shall work on weekends, western holidays and Chinese National holidays, if the employer requires. As the flexibility of the courses and one-on-one classes, the employee may receive an updated schedule with one-day-notice. The employee shall accept and not refuse the tasks without proper reasons. Any impropriate refusal will account as absence of classes with a consequence of fine equals to three times of the pay for the scheduled working Hours.
3.5 The employee shall be on time for classes and shall not be late or leave early.
3.6 In case of cancellation, delay of classes or change of schedule, the employer shall
inform the employee 24 hours before the class is previously scheduled or will account
as absence of classes.
3.7 In case of being unable to teach as schedule because of illnesses, the employee
shall inform the employer 8 hours before the class is previously scheduled, if it
is within 8 hours, it will account as absence of classes. In case of absence/leave
for private affairs, the employee shall raise the request to and get the permission from the employer one week in advance
3.8 In the case of urgent rescheduling, the employee may be required to take assignment
on short notice less than 5 days in advance. The employer shall make efforts to
avoid such urgent rescheduling from happening.
3.9 Monthly workload is calculated by the payment period stated in Clause 4.2.
3.10 The employee will get a fine equal to the pay for the classes which he or she is
late for or dismiss earlier without proper reasons or informing the employer. On
the condition that lateness or early dismissal happens up to three times within the
contract period, the employer will terminate the contract
3.11 If the employee is absent for classes without proper reasons up to three times, this
contract may be terminated.
Article 4 – Remuneration
4.1 Basic Monthly Salary will be paid according to the following scale: Probation Period (as set forth in Clause 1.2), Monthly Salary: RMB 6500 yuan; After Probation Period, Monthly Salary: RMB 7000 yuan.
4.2 Payment is calculated by the natural month, i.e. from the first day till the last day of a natural month.
4.2.1 In case of the starting date or the ending date of the contract falling in the monthly
pay period or the contract commencing on a date other than the first/last of a month,
basic salary, monthly required workload and monthly allowance will be calculated
pro rata.
4.2.2 In case of paid vacation falling in the monthly pay period or the contract commencing
on a date other than the first/last of a month, monthly required workload and overtime
workload will be calculated pro rata.
4.3 The employer shall pay the salary of the month to the employee between the tenth and the fifteenth of the next month.
4.4 The employee shall pay the income tax if the sum of the monthly salary and extra allowances reaches the level stipulated in Chinese laws.
Article 5 – Flights and Travel
5.1 The employer shall provide an air fair allowance to cover the expense of a international air ticket within a quota of RMB 8000 yuan for the employee. If the employee submits air tickets for reimbursement, the total amount of the tickets, within the quota, shall be paid in cash and not taxed. If no tickets are submitted, the employer shall pay RMB 8000 yuan together with the salary of the last month, and the allowance will be taxed together with the salary.
5.2 The employer shall provide a travel allowance of RMB 2000 yuan for the employee for in-land travel, either within the city or between cities. If the employee submits legally valid receipts related to the travel (transportation, entertainment, etc.) for reimbursement, the total amount of the receipts, within the quota, shall be paid in cash and not taxed. If no tickets are submitted, the employer shall pay the travel allowance together with the salary of the last month, and the allowance will be taxed together with the salary.
5.3 If the contract breaks off because of the employee’s breach, the employer has the right to refuse to pay the air fair allowance and travel allowance.
Page 4 of 5
Article 6 – Housing
6.1 During the period of this contract, the employee receives housing support from the employer as follows:
The employee shall find housing and deal with the details of the housing rental contract for himself/herself. The employer shall provide necessary help if requested and provide the employee a monthly accommodation allowance of 1600 RMB . The allowance shall be paid and taxed together with the monthly salary.
6.2 A monthly allowance of RMB 400 Yuan shall be provided to cover everyday apartment consumption (water, electricity and gas) and internet fee. The allowance shall be paid and taxed together with the monthly salary.
Article 7 – Insurance
7.1 The employer shall provide health insurance for the employee, covering the following expenses: 1. Clinic visits/medicare/medication expenses caused by illnesses that necessarily result in hospital stay during the contract period in working location/city.
2. Medicare/medication expenses caused by accidents that happen during the contract period in working location/city.
7.2 When the employee goes to see a doctor, seventy percent of his medical expenses during hospital stay can be reimbursed by employer in accordance with employer’s medical system, except for hospitalization expenses caused by the disease not cured before employee coming to China, expenses incurred in registration, doctors’ home visits, transportation to and from hospital, fitting false teeth, cleaning teeth, undergoing cosmetic surgery, massage, buying spectacles, boarding in hospital and non-medical tonics.
Article 8 – Holidays/Vacation
8.1 As stated in Clause3.5, weekends and holidays are not regular off-days for the employee, because the employer also provides training courses on weekends and holidays. The employee shall work on weekends and Chinese National holidays if the employer requires.
8.2 The employee is entitled to enjoy the following holidays:
Chinese Spring Festival
Christmas Day (Dec 25th)
New Years Day (Jan 1st).
The employer shall not require the employee to work on these holidays.
8.3 The employee shall be entitled to 21 days of paid holiday in the term of this
contract.
The paid vacation can only works when the Employee send the form to FTC office with the signature of the supervisor of his or her teaching department.During the busy seasons, late June to late August and late December to early February, or when the employer is short of stuff, the employer reserves the right to reject the employees application for the paid vacation.
8.4 All the paid vacations shall be taken before the expiration of this contract. Except
for the occasions stipulated in the terms 8.4.1 and 8.4.2, if there are paid vacations
left untaken by the expiration date of this contract, they shall be considered as
given up by the employee. No economic compensation shall be given for the untaken
vacations.
8.4.1 Should a written agreement regarding this paid vacation be reached between the
employer and employee one month prior to the expiration date of this contract, the
paid vacation shall be executed according to the new agreement. No paid vacation
is allowed to take during summer and winter holidays. Paid vacation can only be
divided into maximum 4 sections.
8.5 If the contract breaks off because of the employee’s breach, the paid vacation left
untaken shall be automatically considered as given up by the employee. No economic
compensation shall be given.
8.6 During the term of this contract, if the employee leaves the city for a trip for
personal reasons, the employee shall inform the employer of the travel plan in writing
in advance. If the employee fails to do so, the employer has the right to deduct
part of the employee’s salary or terminate this contract and cancel the employee’s
visa, residence permit and other related credentials at the government offices.
Article 9 – Sick Leave
9.1 During the employment period the employee is entitled to 10 days of sick leave without deduction of the salary on condition that doctor’s testification be presented.
9.2 All the paid sick leaves shall be taken before the expiration of this contract. If there are paid sick leaves left untaken, they are considered given up by the employee. No economic compensation shall be given for the untaken sick leaves. On condition that this contract is renewed and the employment period is extended, the untaken sick leaves shall not be deferred to the next employment period.
Article 10 – Legal Documentations and Procedures
10.1 The employer shall assist the employee in registration at the local police substation.
10.2 The employee shall have a health check at the inspection centre designated by the Inspection and Quarantine Bureau. The employee shall pay for the charges himself/herself. The employer shall provide assistance for the employee to take the health check.
10.3 The employee shall get the work visa. If not,the employer has the right to terminate this contract.
This appendix, both in Chinese and English Languages, is an inseparable part of the contract and has equal effect. This appendix takes effect on the date signed by both parties. |
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ugh. this contract is just gross. do people actually sign something this sh*tty? |
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Lack
Joined: 10 Aug 2011
Posts: 252
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| Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 9:53 am Post subject: |
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| Well, first round of negotiations didn't go well. And I didn't even hit all the points yet. They seem a bit desperate...but then, if you make such a terrible offer you must be desperate for suckers. Funny thing is that it's a huge chain too. |
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roadwalker
Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Posts: 1750
Location: Ch
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| Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 6:38 pm Post subject: |
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| Lack wrote: |
| Well, first round of negotiations didn't go well. And I didn't even hit all the points yet. They seem a bit desperate...but then, if you make such a terrible offer you must be desperate for suckers. Funny thing is that it's a huge chain too. |
Huge chains can sometimes bring stability but sometimes they are the worst offenders, and least likely to budge on contract terms.
I agree that this contract was not worth bothering with, especially the part about multiple locations. If everything is pretty good except for one or two sticking points, then it's certainly worth a try get them to move on those. This one had way too many problems and low pay for the work expected. |
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