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laura1d
Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 108
Location: Spain
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 Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2005 3:30 pm Post subject: Hey |
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Hi,
I don't understand a lot of the posts here - maybe I am reading them incorrectly.
Workplaces in Thailand will not (generally) ask to keep anything - work permit or passport. They will, of course forfeit a hundred trees photocopying everything a thousand times! But you will keep the origianls.
If you are legal ie have a work permit then you will have two outgoings to consider - tax and social insurance. To make sure you are registered by your employer, demand to get the cards. You will be issued with a 'card' for both of these and you should be given them by your boss.
As for dating. I don't know about Bangkok but out in the provinces - no problem. Obviously you can't date a student but as long as it is adult to adult with no professional relationship (meaning adult student to teacher) there is no problem. Of course, being Thailand you will get some shit! The Thai that I know loves to take the piss!!!
Anyhow,
Don't worry and don't take the previous comments too much to heart - I am not sure where they are living for that kind of feedback. As I say, Bkk might be different to my experience.
Cheers![/code] |
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kcat
Joined: 23 Feb 2005
Posts: 35
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| Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2005 3:42 pm Post subject: Re: Hey |
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| laura1d wrote: |
Hi,
I don't understand a lot of the posts here - maybe I am reading them incorrectly.
Workplaces in Thailand will not (generally) ask to keep anything - work permit or passport. They will, of course forfeit a hundred trees photocopying everything a thousand times! But you will keep the origianls.
If you are legal ie have a work permit then you will have two outgoings to consider - tax and social insurance. To make sure you are registered by your employer, demand to get the cards. You will be issued with a 'card' for both of these and you should be given them by your boss.
As for dating. I don't know about Bangkok but out in the provinces - no problem. Obviously you can't date a student but as long as it is adult to adult with no professional relationship (meaning adult student to teacher) there is no problem. Of course, being Thailand you will get some *beep*! The Thai that I know loves to take the piss!!!
Anyhow,
Don't worry and don't take the previous comments too much to heart - I am not sure where they are living for that kind of feedback. As I say, Bkk might be different to my experience.
Cheers![/code] |
Thank you very much for that, I appreciated it:) I assume you are in Thailand? How do you like it? |
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Placebo
Joined: 19 Nov 2004
Posts: 80
Location: Bangkok
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| Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2005 10:57 pm Post subject: |
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Kcat, I didn't mean to offend you but you seem to take it personally...
Come on, lighten up a little... Teaching English does not belong to the riskiest jobs in the world.
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| I have been detained for trying to leave a country I will not name that is not well governed and I left because laws were being broken and my boss had enough status to feel he owned me. |
I don't know what country you are referring to but you will certainly not experience that in Thailand or any other country where your government is diplomatically represented in form of an embassy unless you've committed a serious crime.
I assume you've never been to Thailand before. My advice is to do some traveling in the country to experience the culture before signing any contract. Come here first and then decide whether it's for you or not... |
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kcat
Joined: 23 Feb 2005
Posts: 35
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| Posted: Fri Mar 04, 2005 11:54 pm Post subject: |
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| Placebo wrote: |
Kcat, I didn't mean to offend you but you seem to take it personally...
Come on, lighten up a little... Teaching English does not belong to the riskiest jobs in the world.
| Quote: |
| I have been detained for trying to leave a country I will not name that is not well governed and I left because laws were being broken and my boss had enough status to feel he owned me. |
I don't know what country you are referring to but you will certainly not experience that in Thailand or any other country where your government is diplomatically represented in form of an embassy unless you've committed a serious crime.
I assume you've never been to Thailand before. My advice is to do some traveling in the country to experience the culture before signing any contract. Come here first and then decide whether it's for you or not... |
Thank you for taking the time to post this, I appreciate it, it's just that what may sound very obviously sarcastic to you is a reality in some places (or was at one time) and you sent me into a bit of a panic because of past experience. I do appreciate your advice, my experience in Thailand is limited but I have visited the country. My ordeal was years ago and in a very rural, under-developed place that ran on status and had an extreme lack of both law definition and organization. In short, I was being mistreated terribly but regardless of how I tried to improve it, the fact that I was literally the first caucasian my boss/co-workers had ever seen (combined with bad political timing) made it easy for a rich man with high status to stop me at the airport as he insisted I owed him money and he flew into a rage. People listened to him. It was a nightmare, it doesnt happen often (or so I assume now) but it can happen and I know so little about Thai law that Ive learned to err on the side of caution... to the point that I will believe anything is possible now. This was not a place commonly visited by foreigners. The man I spoke of is now in jail for an unrelated offence. He DID lock my plane ticket in his office and being very young and naive at the time, I did NOT know all of my options. I didnt do my homework and I was at the mercy of an alcoholic with no respect for women or contracts and he valued me exclusively for my white skin and didn't care that I spent a winter with no heat or hot water. He seldom paid me on time, this was accepted by everyone in the place as normal and I believed them (local staff-I was his first foreigner) and I felt too intimidated and culture shocked to deal with it maturely. That was a long time ago and a lot has changed but I still find panic bells ring at the very thought of it. It happened at a time when I was naive enough to think that the rights I have in the West followed me around the gobe. In the end, of course I was able to leave, but not until I'd had the shit scared out of me. I do truly appreciate your advice. Thank you. |
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GreenDestiny
Joined: 27 Nov 2004
Posts: 88
Location: International
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| Posted: Sat Mar 05, 2005 12:25 am Post subject: Re: Hey |
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| laura1d wrote: |
Hi,
Workplaces in Thailand will not (generally) ask to keep anything - work permit or passport. They will, of course forfeit a hundred trees photocopying everything a thousand times! But you will keep the origianls.
If you are legal ie have a work permit then you will have two outgoings to consider - tax and social insurance. To make sure you are registered by your employer, demand to get the cards. You will be issued with a 'card' for both of these and you should be given them by your boss.
As for dating. I don't know about Bangkok but out in the provinces - no problem. Obviously you can't date a student but as long as it is adult to adult with no professional relationship (meaning adult student to teacher) there is no problem. Of course, being Thailand you will get some *beep*! The Thai that I know loves to take the piss!!!
Cheers![/code] |
Thanks Laura1d! The questions re work permit are from Kcat, although the info helps me as well.
On Work Permits: Original Diploma(s) or copies once I'm in Thailand? Since I'll need to see the Thai consulate in my country to obtain the I-B Visa, should I also take my diploma(s) to them to validate -- travelling with originals seems risky.
Dating: Thanks again. Being a newbie, I've researched several Asian countries...a bit difficult to remember particulars re cultural norms of each country. Since I'd teach Grades 1-6, the question is targeted @ what one can do outside of school without the rumour mill (e.g., he's dating a woman in our town) causing me workplace stress or my job.
All the best,
GreenDestiny |
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Kent F. Kruhoeffer
Joined: 22 Jan 2003
Posts: 2129
Location: 中国
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| Posted: Sat Mar 05, 2005 4:42 am Post subject: mai pen rai |
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Dear GreenDestiny:
Definitely bring all your original degrees & certificates with you. You will need them here in Thailand for the WP. Even a notarized copy will not do the trick. My friend from Texas learned the hard way; had to have his original university degree removed from a picture frame in the living room of his house (back in Texas) and sent here Fed-Ex.
As for dating: (imho) Thais are among the most laid back people on the planet when it comes to dating & romance ... as long as you keep your private life private, and remain professional on the job. The appearance of proper conduct is much more important to Thais than proper conduct itself.
i.e., If a bar-girl wearing skin tight pants shows up at the school you're working for and says, "Where's my hot daddy?"
... you could have some serious problems. 
Otherwise, it's "mai pen rai" - in Thai ไม่เป็นไร - which means basically, "don't worry, be happy!".
In its literal form, "mai pen rai" translates into "It's nothing" and is the Thai way of saying "You're welcome!"
Informally, it is often used as follows:
It's no big deal.
Never mind.
It's cool.
Take it easy.
No worries.
"mai pen rai" is ultimately the Thai philosophy of life, sort of like:
"Bend with the wind like a bamboo tree, or
"Go with the flow, and come hell or high water, keep smiling!"  |
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kenkannif
Joined: 07 Apr 2004
Posts: 550
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| Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 8:35 am Post subject: Re: Hey |
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| laura1d wrote: |
| If you are legal ie have a work permit then you will have two outgoings to consider - tax and social insurance. To make sure you are registered by your employer, demand to get the cards. You will be issued with a 'card' for both of these and you should be given them by your boss. |
Not all teachers (in fact I'd say the majority don't) pay social insurance, I think it depends on the type of school you work for? |
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kenkannif
Joined: 07 Apr 2004
Posts: 550
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| Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 8:37 am Post subject: |
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| Same as Kent says......bring your originals! Some schools can get away with copies, some (a lot) can't! |
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laura1d
Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 108
Location: Spain
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| Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 8:40 am Post subject: Social Insurance |
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Hi,
The fact thtat not everyone pays social insurance doesn't really surprise me. I have to though. I work at a government high school so maybe that is why.
If what Ken says is true then maybe you should only insist on the tax stuff being sorted and then find out about social insurance later.
Good luck!
Laura |
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GreenDestiny
Joined: 27 Nov 2004
Posts: 88
Location: International
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| Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2005 9:38 am Post subject: |
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Thanks everyone. Chohk dee na!
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