Job Discussion Forums

[HGLTsuperstar]

OK so have emailed teachers at uni in question, seen photos and appreciate it is 1hr from Guangzhou in the middle on nowhere but it all seems pretty positive. Have looked over the contract and made my own notes, but am printing the original here for some comments to take to the negotiations, which are apparantly "non-negotiable" but got to try. Also any comments about Guangzhou and the surroundings, think learning Mandarin (which school provide free of charge) will benefit me later but not in this Cantonese area!
Anyway please help, I do know China but obviously this is a big step and am naturally apprehensive.
Cheers guys!
EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT


hereafter called The College and________________________ (hereafter called The Instructor) agree to the terms and conditions stipulated in this Employment Contract by affixing their signatures and the seal of The College to this document.


CONTRACT TERMS

The Employment Contract covers the period from _________________, 2006 to _________________, 2007 and is understood to be the period during which The Instructor will carry out the Job described herein and adhere to the conditions included in this contract.


JOB DESCRIPTION

The Instructor will:

1． Conduct English or other classes for students, adults or Chinese teachers 20 classroom teaching periods each week plus one 90-minute English Corner or other English language learning activities per week. �Each period� is understood as 45 minutes.
2． Advise students on extracurricular activities using English as the medium of communication as directed.

WORKING CONDITIONS

1. The Instructor will have statutory holidays as specified by the Chinese government. In addition, The Instructor will get a Christmas holiday starting December 23, 2006 and ending on January 1, 2007. The Instructor will also have a Spring Break as scheduled by The College.

2. The Instructor�s total salary (after tax of _____________ RM paid by our college) will be 6500RMB per month. The actual money you get monthly is composed of the basic salary of 5500RMB plus an allowance of 1,000 RMB (defined in paragraph 3 below).

3. The 1,000RMB allowance includes 500RMB allowance for food and 500RMB allowance for electricity, gas, water, and personal phone usage. Each month�s allowance will be paid on the last day of each of the months as governed by this contract. The allowance will be paid to the Instructor for the whole period of employment.

4. The Instructor may convert a portion of his/her salary to a foreign currency, subject to government regulations, after making suitable arrangements through a banking institution. The Foreign Affairs Office of The College will help The Instructor to make these arrangements.

5. The Instructor is responsible for all bills, or, when housing is shared, for an equal share of the bills for electricity, gas, water and personal phone usage. If an arrangement can be made, those bills may be deducted directly from The Instructor�s monthly pay.

6. Salary will be paid to The Instructor for the whole period of employment. Each month�s basic salary will also be paid on the last working banking day of each of the months governed by this contract.

7. The College will provide The Instructor with furnished housing with the necessary amenities and equipment including TV, refrigerator, washing machine, air conditioner, gas stove with a tank, telephone, LAN connection, etc. free of charge from the time he/she arrives at the college.

8. In most cases private accommodation will be provided. However, if more than one instructor shares a living unit, the bill for electricity, gas, water and phone will be shared equally between the instructors using the unit.

9. The College will provide scheduled group Chinese language lessons for the benefit of the Instructor.

10. The College will provide two free trips within Guangdong province for the first year foreign teachers. The Returning-teachers can choose to join the trip or get reimbursed 1,000 RMB traveling allowance each semester instead.

11. The College will provide 8200RMB for airfare reimbursement for the whole contract period. The Instructor will get the first half of the airfare at the end of the first semester and the other half at the end of the second semester.

12. The College will arrange and pay for all work related visas and documents including a multiple entry visa for the length of the contract.

LEAVE

1．A total of 3 days of leave(including sick leaves) will be allowed during the period covered by this contract without deduction of pay. The Instructors, in their second or subsequent contract, will receive 5 days. However, first-year instructors and returning instructors who do not use any sick leave will receive a bonus of 600 RMB and 1000 RMB respectively.
2. Any leaves must be in written form (get it from FAO).
3. The leave duration of 1�3 days must be approved by the director of the corresponding teaching Program A or B in EEC (or Director of Foreign Language Department), and get the approval from Director of FAO; more than 3 days to 7 days must be approved by the Assistant President who is in charge of FAO; more than 7 days, get the approval from school president; more than 2 weeks get the approval from the Board of Directors, for instance, if you need more than 7 days of leave, you will need approval from all four departments.
4. Any leave of absence can only be granted for urgent personal reasons. The Instructor is expected to obtain consent two days in advance of the leave and, if possible, to find a substitute for his/her classes. In other cases The Instructor must provide evidence proving that the absence is caused by an emergency.
5. Any sick leave must be authorized by a doctor�s certificate, submitted to the Program Office.
6. Excessive approved leave will result in pay deduction of the total pay according to the daily pay (total pay�22 work days). (Accumulated four periods equals 1 day).
7. Any unapproved leave will result in the penalty of RMB 500 Yuan per day (or accumulated four teaching periods). Repeated unapproved absences of two days (or 8 teaching hours during the period covered by this contract) are sufficient reason for dismissal of The Instructor.
8. Only the Program Director can arrange for substitute teachers. The instructors cannot arrange for their own substitute, otherwise it will be regarded as an unapproved absence from class and will incur penalties as per Paragraph 7 above.
9. When returning from the approved leave, the Instructor must report to the teaching office and FAO to verify the completion of the leave, failing to report will incur penalties as per Paragraph 7 above.


SPECIAL CONDITIONS

1． Working part time without approval from The College is regarded as violating this contract and may result in the dismissal of The Instructor.

2． The College will not be responsible for any claims resulting from traffic accidents, disease or natural calamities.

3. All supplied household items and appliances in the living units are the property of the College, as are all the teaching materials (books, tapes, tape or CD players, etc.) supplied to The Instructor. Every teacher must sign a check-in list upon moving into his/her housing unit; a checkout will be made before they get the last full month�s salary at the end of the contract. All listed items must be returned to The College at the end of the contract or upon request. The Instructor must pay the College if any of these items are damaged or lost.

4. The Instructor must observe the regulations of the Chinese Government and The College. The Instructor also:
A) Will not carry out any religious propaganda or religious activities with the students or Chinese people.
B) Must abide by the laws of China concerning residence, work, wages, benefits and travel of foreigners when entering, staying, leaving and passing through the territory of China.
C) Behave in a respectable manner both in and out of the classroom and not engage in any activities that might damage the reputation of The College
D) Be well prepared for and attend all classes and activities assigned by The College.
E) Start classes on time and teach for the full prescribed time period
F) Follow the approved curriculum
G) Dress appropriately � Instructor�s clothing should be clean, unwrinkled, in good repair and modest. Halter-tops, spaghetti straps, short shorts, immodest skirts and dresses, �muscle shirts�, tank tops, frayed shorts and hats are inappropriate. Swimwear worn at the pool must be modest; no bikinis, no street clothes will be worn in the pool.
H) Restrict excessive and disturbing noise or activity in your classroom or living quarters during class times and between the hours of 10:00pm and 8:00am
I) Not allow students to ever be unattended in his/her living quarters
J) Not �date� Peizheng students, either on or off campus
K) Refrain from inappropriate or dirty language with students, colleagues, staff and neighbors
L) Will participate in faculty/staff events, unless they are designated as �optional�
M) Is forbidden to keep pets on the campus.
N) Observations arranged by the college and teaching departments are mandatory.

5. The Instructor should carry his/her own health and other insurance as he/she deems necessary. However The College has a clinic on the campus and can supply limited health services to The Instructor free of charge. The college will also provide Chinese emergency insurance for the instructors, following the terms of Chinese Insurance Law.

6. The present contract is written in English.

7. Failure to abide by the terms of the contract may result in any of the following:
A) a letter of reprimand
B) deductions to pay
C) suspension without pay
D) termination for cause
E) a breach penalty of USD $500-800(or the equivalent in RMB)

CANCELLATION OF CONTRACT

1．The college may cancel the contract with 30 days written notice for failure to teach adequately, incapacitating health conditions, failure to abide by the regulations ( all the items stated in the above paragraph�Special Conditions�).
2．In the event of Cancellation of Contract voluntarily by The Instructor, the Instructor will get 80% of the prorated (by month) airfare reimbursement. By contrast, in the event of Cancellation for Contract voluntarily by the college, the instructor will get 100% prorated (by month) airfare reimbursement. Moreover, in the event of Cancellation of Contract voluntarily by The Instructor or the college, The Instructor will reimburse The College for 50% of his/her work related visa and document fees (not to exceed RMB600).

GENERAL CONDITIONS

Both Parties agree:

1. To fulfill the terms and conditions of the contract. Any changes included in this contract must be by mutual consent, in writing and signed by both parties. Any changes or agreements made to this contract without the knowledge and written consent of both parties, whether verbal or otherwise, are to be considered invalid, and as such are not part of this contract.
2. That every term in the contract will be strictly observed by both parties. Any disputes arising from the contract shall be settled by mutual consultation by the parties.
3. This contract binds and benefits both parties.
4. The present contract shall become effective on the date that it has been signed by both The College and The Instructor and sealed by The College and not later than 7 days after it has been received by The College. However, the salary and on-the-job duties of The Instructor shall begin on the date specified under Contract Terms in this Employment Contract.
5. Failure to have the contract signed by both parties and certified with The College seal shall void and invalidate all its terms and conditions.
6. This contract is signed in triplicate, two copies to be kept by The College and one copy by The Instructor.

[HGLTsuperstar]

Woops, realised this should be in the job-discussion, so am reposting there, sorry!

[Mydnight]

I find several problems, well not neccessarily problems if you are willing to deal with their bull-hockey, in the contract that I'd bring up if I were you. Just because you are a FT, doesn't mean you have to be a slave to their system. You have rights.

The school is in Zengcheng, right? The city is the pits, btw. There is absolutely nothing nearby that's worth working there for that amount of money, first of all. As for the rest:

1. A 90 minute English corner = 2 class periods? I'd axe this if I were you. Or, ask them to plan the English corners for you. They are asking you to work 2 periods for free.

2. Be careful about "advise students on...". I'd make sure that that is IN THE CLASSROOM. You should not have to hold any office hours working 22 hours, and that's a fact.

3. Make sure the holidays are paid. If not, they are cheating you. Guangdong people aren't the most honest folks around.

4. I'd ask for 6500 to be the basic salary; nothing in China is non-negotiable.

5. I'm not sure the exact amount of foreign currency you can convert to, but there are limits. Do a search here to find out; we've covered that topic many times.

6. Housing is shared? You plan on having roommates?

7. Make sure the stuff that is provided is in good working order when you arrive to the college. They will provide you with stuff, but it may not all be good stuff.

8. Your Chinese language instructor will probably suck if they are from the South of China. Insist on someone from at least Shanghai or further North than that. It DOES make a difference.

9. 1000 travel fee within Guangdong province will only probably pay for one night or two in a hotel in most given cities. The stuff here is a bit expensive.

10. Airfare looks good...just make sure you keep a reciept of how much you spent on airfare. Sometimes ticket prices are higher than others and you can refute their offer if you had to pay more.

11. You should ask them to add a few days to the sick leave if you can. What if you get a real serious sickness or some stomach trouble...likely to happen to first-timers. Be careful about how they deduct you for leave; many a school leaves this as grounds to cheat a teacher if something serious happens to them.

12. You need to kill the "working part-time clause" if you want to actually make money when teaching in China. Working in one place is not good enough...if you are here for "experience" you picked the wrong place to get that. Guangdong is hardly a sight-seeing sorta province.

13. THE COLLEGE SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR SERIOUS AILS.

14. Make sure your stuff is working when you move in....in perfect working order. They will try to stiff you on that last months salary if they can.

15. They should arrange for some kind of local health insurance.

16. The breach penalty should be changed to 500-800 RMB...not USD. That is rubbish.

Be advised about signing contracts in China. You generally aren't bound to anything specifically with the school; I mean, you could pick up and leave anytime you want. Just be careful about the fine points, they will try to get you on anything that they possibly can if you do something wrong. Guangdong people are obsessed and overly concerned with one thing: MONEY.

Anyway, maybe I'm too strict. Anybody else want to take a crack?

[tofuman]

I agree that the "English corner plus other English learning activities" opens a door for you exploitation. What might the other activities be and how often?

Internet connection through the LAN is almost certainly worthless. A decent connection might cost you 65 RMb monthly or more.

Sick leave authorization by a doctor is unrealistic. If you really get sick, say, from food poisoning, you will hardly have the strength to turn over in bed, much less make it to a doctor.

Not being able to work outside without permission is fairly standard, but permission is rarely granted.

Being forbidden to talk or propagate religion could be problematic. Since you will be expected to discuss Western culture, that can not be done effectively without discussng the influence of Christianity in the West.

I would check out the roommate possibilities as well. Make sure you have a private accomodation that will remain private.

Sounds to me like this school has had some bad experiences with FTs in the past. I would pass on this opportunity mainly because of the religion clause. If you are a typical atheist, libertine, agnostic, scoffer, or even a "martial artist" that may not matter. But western culture can not be properly taught or discussed without reference to Christianity, in spite of what your employers might think.

[saint57]

Something tells me that Tofuman does more than make reference to Christianity in his lessons. My brief skimming of the contract tells me that it is for a position as an English teacher.

[Super Mario]

Food and utilities are usually added on benefits. Here you seem to be paying them. I wouldn't work for 5.5, but each to his own.

[Shan-Shan]

I could see the explicit reference to refraining from "religion-speak" as being potentially well justified. Where I was last year, every other foreign teacher (five of them) were very serious about their Lord. One even managed to convert a student, brining her into the fold through the following sneaky way -- getting her hooked while experiencing a mild emotional crisis:

"She called me up in the middle of the night to say that she had just broken up with her boyfriend again. The poor thing was crying into the phone, muddling up her English pronunciation. But through it all, I heard a need for Jesus. I told her to read [Corinthians, part ....?]. The next day, after class, she walked up to the podium, and thanked me for helping her find Jesus. I thought to myself "YES!!!!!!"

(relayed to myself and others by the successful 55 year old English teacher *beep* missionary at the mill. However, whether or not the young girl in question is still sipping the sweet cola taste of christianity in china is information that I am not privy to)


I'm not sure about other institutes, but a lot of Jesus promoters are around here cloaked in the ABC haze of Mr./Ms. English. Mr. Mao, along with the holy trinity of S.H.E. are in for some stiff competition.

[tofuman]

I was simply pointing out that a school that is paranoid about missionaries may have had some disagreeable experiences in the past; however, regardless of the ethics of contemporary proselytization, foreign teachers are often called upon to explain Western culture. Any FT who has read any history should know that virtually all English speaking Western countries have been heavily influenced by Christianity.

When someone asks me to explain the differences between China and America, I can truthfully say ."The influence of Christianity. It's the reason I expect people here to lie and people in America to tell the truth."

Although this response, when understood by Zhongguoren, is often met with hostility, after the initial denial, some will admit that most Chinese people often lie. Not so in America. Perhaps I am naive, but I still believe that most Americans are more or less honest, usually more.

[no_exit]

I've never once had a problem talking about religion in an unbiased way. There is a clear difference between proselytizing (which is illegal in China!) and talking about culture, and your school will realize that. They will probably even expect you to explain holidays like Christmas and Easter, but without trying to convert your students. I'd be suspicious of the motives of anyone who finds the religion clause problematic ...

[tofuman]

"I'd be suspicious of the motives of anyone who finds the religion cause problematic."

And what do you "suspect" that person's motives might be?

[no_exit]

[quote=tofuman]Being forbidden to talk or propagate religion could be problematic.[/quote]

If you weren't intending to propogate your religion, then what would be problematic about that clause? Planning on using those Bible stories to boost their reading comprehension? The clause doesn't say "talk about religion," by the way, it says:

[HGLTsuperstar]

Please can we avoid a Christianity debate (each to his own) and get back to my original posting please, all comments appreciated but dont want to start religious civil ear on this forum; got enough of that in the UK at the moment!

[Henry_Cowell]

[tofuman]

HGL, There are some windows in your contract through which bees may enter and sting you. Most of us have been stung at one time or another. Just be sure you have enough cash to be able to leave when you feel like it.

No-Exit, The contract which I signed said that the "FT will not engage in religious activities inconsistent with that of a foreign expert."

It seems that more and more the Chinese are intruding themselves into the psyche of FTs. If the Chinese want to understand America, George Bush, the Middle East conflict, Islam, and a host of other contemporary issues that are pervasive in the West, the simplest way to truly understand those issues is through familiarity with the JudaeoChristian Scripture.

Perhaps China hopes to avail itself of the prosperity of the West without understanding what brought America to its present circumstances.

Because the term convert has a negative connotation in certain circumstances, I prefer the term empower. I do want to empower the Chinese.

Among China's major problems is its educational system. Many of the schools of Western nations were influenced by the educational philosophy of Phillip Melanchthon, Martin Luther's close associate and the author of the Augsburg Confession. Melanchthon's philosophy was that of a true humanist who believed that man is best empowered, educated, and ennobled through an understanding of the Christian gospel.

One of the few Chinese Nobel prize winners was Daniel Tsui, who after escaping to HK, was empowered by a Lutheran pastor to attend a Christian college in Illinois, USA and eventually win a Nobel prize.

So when I hear the word "suspicious" in the context of Chinese people and Christianity, it saddens me. If China wants to "catch up" with the West, Jesus would be the best thing for them. And that type of thinking is not at all inconsistent with being a "foreign expert."

[no_exit]

I'll respect the OPs desire not to turn his thread into a religious debate. However, despite whether or not you think Jesus is the best thing for the Chinese, the contract is asking you not to break Chinese laws by trying to convert your students. If the OP wants to discuss religion in class (no idea if this is even a problem for the OP or not), then he'll have to do it without propogating HIS religion.

Here are my suggestions on the contract anyhow:

1. See if you can get the English corner requirement knocked out. 20 periods a week is already plenty.

2. Like others said "advise students ..." is really vague. Get clarification on that one.

3. The allowance and salary combined are pretty decent. You most likely won't spend 500 a month on bills, by the way. Even if you're at home a lot, you can expect maybe 200 a month tops on gas, electricity, and water. Phone bills can pile up easily. I wouldn't even get a land line, buy a cell phone, it is usually cheaper. I don't know why they broke it down like that really though -- I've never had a "food allowance." It seems like a fancy way of saying you're getting 6000RMB a month and your bills will be covered ... ? If you've got teaching experience you might be able to push this one a bit higher, I think Guangdong pays more on average than other places.

4. Try your best to get a private apartment. You don't want to get stuck sharing with some nutcase. Roomates here are just as much a mixed bag as they were in college, and if you end up with someone you don't like, your life could really suck, especially considering you're going to be in a fairly out of the way town in Guangdong with most likely little in way of a social life outside of other FTs.

5. Note that the travel allowance specifies that only returning teachers can get the money instead. Honestly, this wouldn't be an issue with me because most schools will do these kinds of trips for the teachers, and very few will offer monetary compensation for teachers who don't go on the trips.

6. The sick leave bonus is nice. I do think, like Mydnight said, they should arrange for some kind of insurance. Having them pay for all serious ails is debatable. If you're jaywalking and get hit by a bus, they're not going to want to pay for that. If you're eating at the school cafeteria and get food poisoning, they should cough up. Getting some kind of insurance should solve these problems. Keep in mind that most likely the most that will happen is you'll have a cold or the runs for a few days, and the school clinic will cover that, but ask them what you're supposed to do if you fall seriously ill.

7. I think the regulations for teachers are all fair. No dating students, no spreading Jesus.

8. The breach penalty is pretty standard. I had a 500USD breach penalty in my first contract. Keep in mind that they don't really have any way to make you pay this money -- if you do decide to pull a runner you'll be long gone anyhow. I think most contracts have something like this, usually in USD and not RMB.

9. Prorated airfare reimbursement is GOOD! Very few schools offer this.

10. No part time work is also standard. I think that HAS to be in the contract, because once you are legally on one school's visa, you're not allowed to work for other schools. This doesn't mean you can't moonlight, it just means don't get caught. You can do private lessons for extra cash with very little risk.

Anyhow, I actually think the contract looks pretty good. They throw you a lot of bones there that other schools don't. Maybe they try to make the contract enticing because the location is really a dump. I've never been there, but in general, I find Guangdong unpleasant. It is fairly wealthy province though, and salaries tend to be higher than in other parts of the country. Do your research, as for the contact info of other teachers who have worked there. I don't find any glaring huge problems with the contract, and I've certainly seen worse.