Job Discussion Forums

Brian Caulfield · Joined: 14 Sep 2004 Posts: 1247 Location: China

Ok lets talk basics . What is a ride in a taxi in Beijing 10 rmb to sit down . The drop in cities like Nanyang where I live is 5rmb same in other cities like Taiyuan where I lived last year . I bought a large watermellon yesterday for 2 rmb the same in Beijing would cost me 20 rmb . You are an expert on Beijing , but do you know anything about the rest of China? I just rode my bike from Hangzhou to Nanyang . I went through five provinces and I can tell you there is a world of diference from one city to another in the cost of living .
Last year a recruiter who arranged a dud job for me in Taiyuan tried to get me to work at Beijing University of Technology and they offered 6,000 and when I went directly to the school the salary was 8,000. This is what is happening . You won't answer my question about the quality schools that work with Angelina's then tell me what their commssion is for finding a teacher ?
I have been teaching in Asia for twelve years in Taiwan and South Korea . Since recruiters have been involved the salaries of teachers in these countries has come down . People I worked for in the past have told me they prefer the person who works part time to the teacher who is on contract . Recruiters have not made the quality of teachers better . They have just made it easier to hire and fire teachers . When things don't work out what does Angelina do to improve the situation ?
And what has a person's race got to do with their ability to teach or the qualifications they have for teaching ? We have an African teacher here at my school and I am replacing one who returned to South Africa . Quality schools don't worry about this . They are concerned with the persons credentials .
What kind of hours does your black friend do and how many schools does he work in?
You want to know my salary but I want to know what are the conditions of the job?Angelina arranged for me to make 4,000 last year teaching at a university where I taught 18 hours and had over 1,000 students (Qingdao University of Science and Technology). I had subjects like European Culture (350 students ) writing 100 students , English culture (400students ) I was replacing a teacher who bolted . My FAQ at the job offered no support what so ever. I contacted the teacher that bolted by chance through one of his students and he told me that was the reason he left . He got no support . We were supposed to make videos for the classes . The FAQ called me 6 times for meetings and when I went to them she was not there . When I contacted Angelina's I was told , " This is a first time for us dealing with QUST."
I now make 4,500 for teaching 16 hours and my classes are all under 18 students . I only teach conversation and the school is devoted to having the students learn English . The teachers here at Nanyang Teacher's College have been here for two terms and the head teacher has been here 5 years .
China has traditionally been a place for new teachers to get a beginning and then they go to South Korea , Japan and Taiwan to make a good salary . The problem is that in these other countries ,recruiters have become involved and the salaries are deminishing there as well.
Sorry the more people involved in a persons employment means less money for the person who is doing the job . Pimping is what it should be called not recruiting .
Getting a good job requires going to interviews and talking about employment conditions . It requires the previous teacher to pass the tourch and tell you how they felt about the job . It takes time and recruiters are eliminating this for everyone .

cj750 · Joined: 27 Apr 2004 Posts: 3081 Location: Beijing

I have ridden all over china and have lived in 4 areas of the country..and I am telling you that cost for many things are the same in Beijing..as I admitted rent and of course as you have put out..taxis are also higher...Beijing taxis are now equipped with mics should there be a robbery or assault, then the mic comes into play...they do cost more..but food items ..if buying on the Chinese side of commerce are around the same...and the availability of goods are greater...just an example in Changchun I bought coffee for around 35RMB for a standard bag..where as in Beijing I can get good coffee from Hanan very inexpensively...for around 12RMB for the same amount.

adamsmith · Joined: 27 Jan 2006 Posts: 259 Location: wuhan

I sometimes think that these recruiters should be more like agents. An agent who works for the teacher - just like a sports agent, talent agent, etc... They are paid a percentage of the teachers salary, therefore; it is in their best interests to obtain the best deal possible for their client. Right now the recruiters role is to work for the school so their interests also lie there.
There is a big difference between a recruiter and an agent, but their purpose is the same - to get you, the teacher, a job. The difference is who they are responsible to.

cj750 · Joined: 27 Apr 2004 Posts: 3081 Location: Beijing

The way I understand it..the recruiter wrongs one of two ways..a % of the teachers first year's salary or a flat fee...that may be the reason they will work hard for a client that can bring in a job for 10000 to 30000 per month while just rolling on jobs that produce an employment salary of 4000 per month. As in most industries ..the more the job pays the more likely a recruiter will be used...

andyOhio · Joined: 20 Nov 2005 Posts: 16 Location: Dayton, Ohio

cj750 · Joined: 27 Apr 2004 Posts: 3081 Location: Beijing

recruiters I know work on a per cent of a years salary... but have little to do with the hiring process other than introducing the applicant. When I cam to Beijing, one of my first jobs was introduced by a recruiter and paid 15000 USD per year..now this was a kind of International School with ties to English based educational facilities. She took a % of my yearly wage...

This years employment didn't call for a recruiter and I did better, but that is after "hunting" in the job market and using examples of the last few years to show the promise of performance for the next calender school year.

Look ..I am not on a soap box to promote any "middle men"..just to tell you it is a fact of the working world and you should never exclude any source of employment or go on anyone's word on these boards..use the information as a guideline and consider all options...