Job Discussion Forums

[yamahuh]

At the beginning of next month I'm supposed to get 50% of my plane fare reimbursed to me as part of my agreement with my employer. She has already hinted that she would like to postpone this payment (for reasons known only to herself) and I have told her that postponement is not an option and is unacceptable. The remainder of the fare is supposed to be reimbursed at the end of my contract.
Here is my dilemma:
I have already booked a ticket to return home during the school holidays. I get a 20 day working day paid vacation. On my return to China (at the end of August) I will have one more month to work to fulfill the terms of my contract, but I don't want to buy another ticket, come all the way back here and work for a month just to get stiffed on the remainder of my plane fare PLUS what it costs me to return.
The school I work for is quite poorly managed and I am seriously wondering if there will even BE work for me when / if I return. If I know in advance that there won't be at least I won't have to cough up the cost of returning to fulfill my contractual obligations.
Just so as you know all the details, my pay for August plus the remainder of my plane fare, plus my pay for September and my travel bonus add up to 25,000 RMB so we're not talking peanuts here.

Advice, as always, gladly accepted.

[yamahuh]

Wow, thanks for the input.
Much appreciated.
I guess I should have asked "Which Visa do I need?", "What's a good salary for China?" or "How do I break my contract?" if I'd wanted to get any input.

[mlomker]

It doesn't seem reasonable to look for consensus regarding an ethical question. How are we supposed to weigh the relative importance of the money versus your integrity?

If I were you I wouldn't leave the country if I only had a month left on my contract, but that's a decision that you already made. My take on that is that you've already made your choice and you want someone to back you up.

[yamahuh]

Then I'm afraid your take is incorrect.
If I'd made up my mind I wouldn't waste my time by posting. Nor am I looking for consensus. The topic of my post is 'What's my best option?", so I'm looking for some opinions, nothing more.
I figure that somebody out there may have experienced a similar situation, if so what did they do? If nobody has experienced something similar what do they think they would do?
I have an ailing father who I want to see for his birthday in August and the only time I can take vacation is in August during the school shutdown. It's not possible for me to go at any other time. My return flight is already booked for the end of July so in one instance you are correct; I have made my mind up to go home at that time.
The problem arises with my return.
If I don't return to finish my contract then I am obviously not going to be paid any unpaid wages or reimbursements.
If I do return I'm concerned that she may just 'plead poverty' and refuse to pay me the remainder of the flight and/or any other outstanding wages.
Also, if I return it will cost me another ticket to get back to China so if she 'stiffs' me I'm really out of pocket.
Everything I've read says that in this kind of situation where the employer refuses to honour the contract, the employee generally just 'sucks it up' because they can't afford the time or expense of pursuing legal options.
There are a multitude of ways that this could play out, I'm sure there are some I haven't even considered. I've always found this board to be a wealth of information and insight and I'm just looking for some opinions, that's all.

Thanks.

[Roger]

You reply to a mystifying question in this forum: you get clobbered!
You reply to the same mystifying question in a DIFFERENT way - and you get clobbered too!
You keep your trap shut, write nothing and read - and you get clobbered again!

[Sinobear]

Do you have or can you have another position lined up upon your return? Do you really want to return to China just for one month or are you looking to come back for the long run?
More importantly, what will your wife be doing during this time?

Sometimes it's better to ask yourself the tough questions while staring at yourself in the mirror (so you can see if you're lying to yourself). That little voice that answers usually gives you the best advice. My little voice is telling me to go out and drink zombies - and darn it, I'm going to listen to it!


Cheers!

[kev7161]

If I was in a questionable situation when it comes to getting money due me AFTER I worked for that money and IF I was actually leaving the school to go home (where I wouldn't be as trapped), I probably wouldn't return - - contract or no. If I was in the midst of a contract and I was kind of "stuck" here, then I may just ride it out and hope for the best (while scanning want ads for other positions). That's what I would do.

[yamahuh]

Roger - your reply mystified me.

Sinobear - well, hey there old pal. Long time no hear, I was starting to think you'd fallen off the edge of the planet. Are you holed up in Guangzhou now or what?
To answer your questions,
Do you have or can you have another position lined up upon your return?
I don't yet but I will try to arrange one to start upon completion of my current contract.

Do you really want to return to China just for one month or are you looking to come back for the long run?
I'd like to come back for another term of 6 months to a year.

More importantly, what will your wife be doing during this time?
We're in this pickle together, she'll be going back to Canada at the same time as me.

That little voice that answers usually gives you the best advice.
I dunno about that...my little voice has been giving me some seriously questionable advice since I arrived in China, luckily I've been mostly ignoring it!

kev7161: Yeah we've been riding this one out for a while and it improves and deteriorates about as often as the sun rises and sets.
Long story, trust me
I think lining something else up for the end of my current contract is definitely a good option. How likely do you think it would be for a new employer to pre-pay a flight back to China for us in August with the stipulation that we can't start until October?

Thanks folks.

[mlomker]

[yamahuh]

[Keath]

Lessee.. They dont want to honor their part of the agreement, but you should? Hold them hostage and threaten not to teach until at least half is paid.. If they cannot accept your terms.. Vanish.. No tolerance for contract breaches..