Job Discussion Forums

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

I can sympathise.

Last month I was looking for work, and everything out there was like this:


PhD in English required from famous American University
Masters in TESOL required
Under 30 years old
Experience required

We offer:

4000 RMB for 30-hr workweek, pay for flight after 1 year, and give you measley little shared accomodation.


I'm exaggerating, of course. But you all get the picture.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the moment, I am earning 100 an hour, with a nice 3 bedroom western-style apartment and flight thrown in.

Mind you, I work 6 days a week, and long hours on weekends so it balances out.

But the only reason I make this is because I have been here 3 years and re-negotiated and proved my value.

Starting all over again would cost me big time.

[jammish]

Agreed with GWOW. I am doing nicely - I save all my 10,000 odd salary each month and live off my outside tutoring (which amounts to about an extra 5000 a month), but then I am working my *beep* off to do that with an hour extra on mondays and fridays and 2-5 sats and suns taken up with extras. And I am quite fortunate to have got this job/live somewhere with lots of reasonably paying tutoring ops on the doorstep (they are all within 10 mins from my house). In Wuhan there were some seriously derisory tutoring offers. Our old headteacher used to get tutoring jobs for the FTs paying 50 RMB per hour!! What a joke!

[velmeran]

Lets see, I graduated last June with a degree in Asian studies and was two classes short of a minor in Computer science. I moved back in with my parents with about $800 to my name after my last paycheck from my job working for the school. I already knew I wouldn't find anything in our city that would need a asian studies degree with out being fluent in one of the languages, and so I looked for other jobs. six months later and the only thing I was able to get was temp jobs doing warehouse work for $9 an hour.

Considering how expensive things are in America I was making peanuts and living off my parents for the most part and I saw plenty of friends ending up in the same situation. None of my friends in college have steady jobs right now and are all working temp assignments, some getting much better pay then others, but still nothing you could make a career of since in 3 months its back to waiting in line. Pretty much the economy is in the trash for new college grads unless you are a cop, teacher, or nurse/doctor. Even if your a teacher, your still looking at crap pay for quite a few years, which is why they are allowed to differ their college loans for so long.

So I realized I was getting the raw deal and I wanted to travel anyway, now I just had alot more motivation. I applyed to JET, didn't get in for what ever reason and my next option was pretty much China or Korea, I studied some Chinese in college and figured it was a better bet then a place I really only knew through a few classes and text books. Contacted my Chinese teacher who had a friend who ran college here in Nanjing, and 4 months later here I am.

You talk about how there are people working for 4000 RMB like its peanuts, and it might be if you try to live a western life. But I would rather make 4000RMB here, then the $1000 I was making a month in America. The job is better, the people are friendlier, and its exciting. No I don't expect to be here longer then my two year commitment, I hope to get back and get a Masters or PH.D in Asian studies and then make real money working for a western company.

You should realize though, there are alot of crap jobs out there in the western world, and lots of unemployeed college grads. I would rather work here in a Chinese college as a teacher and make respectable pay in the area, then continue working warehouse or customer service jobs in America for little above minimum wage and still be living with my parents.

[Anda]

Hello Snitten I see you say I make nonsensical comparisons between part time work here and part time work in Australia when Australia is one of the leading countries in the world these days for part time work.

Now lets take the mining town work in Australia. My last job in a mining town was just prior to starting into this English teaching game. It was at the Granites Gold Mine in the Northern Territory. Four weeks on straight at ten hours a day then a week off in Alice Springs to have a spend up. Now I do sixteen hours a week with three months holiday a year.

The service industry is booming is it. Well 9 months ago in Sydney the restaurant industry wasn't. Why, because wages are too high and profits are too low. Oh, and I've worked as a cook and a chef plenty of times.

"Are you assuming (hoping) that Armagedon will solve your problems?"

I expect depression everywhere soon and I rather try to dig in here if I can. I expect that I'll have to work or starve here or back home as I expect that the handouts will stop back home.

Have you read the last post by Velmeran it's honest and that is the same back in Australia also. Now if young people can't get decent jobs how hard do you think it is for old BEEPS. Sure plenty of BEEP work but why would anyone want that when they have the degrees to teach English here.

[smitten13]

[william wallace]

There are places in Canada booming as much or more than China.Fellow Canucks, you know where and what I'm talking about- Alberta, is one of those places....$15-25 an hour. And if you've been fortunate enough to bypass uni and picked up a trade in mining...moma mia!

[james s]

...

[Teatime of Soul]

Anda:

[Rooster]

"Keep your secrets to protect your country. ....."

A country of laborers.

Happy Labor Day!!

[william wallace]

Wel my cousin is a labourer(carpenter, not exactly a labourer)and he lives in a huge house in Ajax,goes golfing every weekend, 2-4 times a year flies down to Atlanta or Carolina ...or wherever the nice courses are, has taken 2 cruises this year, his 16 and 17 year old kids want for nothing(they have 4 computer, 4 TV's in the house).I studied for 9 years, and he studied carpentry for 2-3 years...Not too shabby, I'd say, but he complains of bills...Yeah, they live large.

[chufeng]

I've been looking for a new university position in Beijing, and I'm appalled at the salaries. Last year, I accepted a fairly low salary at a university in a smaller city in Zhejiang, because I liked the teaching conditions and wanted to live in a smaller place. I've had a great experience here, but I need to move to Beijing because my SO will be studying there. So I've been shocked at the offers I've been getting....

My current position:
14-16 hours per week
4,000 RMB/month X 10 months
10,000 RMB airfare
Free (nice) 2 BR apartment with all utilities paid
TOTAL: 50,000 RMB + excellent free housing

The Beijing offers I've been getting:
14 hours per week
4,000 RMB/month X 10 months
No airfare
Free (crappy, no full kitchen) 1 BR apartment; I pay utilities
OR 1,500 RMB/month housing allowance (insufficient but better than the provided housing)
TOTAL: 55,000 RMB + I pay all housing & utilities

Obviously, I'm going to come out way behind on this move, especially since the cost of living in Beijing is MUCH higher than where I'm living now. I actually think I'm just barely going to be able to cover my expenses on their offered salary and benefits, since housing will eat up the vast majority of my income.

Is anyone else willing to share the specifics (hours, salary, airfare, housing, etc.) of Beijing offers they have received or current/recent jobs they have held in Beijing? I'm trying to decide if I should try to negotiate with these unis, or if it is just futile.

By the way, these are all top-tier universities in Beijing.

[william wallace]

The general sweeping atmosphere in China right now is that everyone is beating down it's door to get in on the China craze- Got your Chinese character tattoo yet ? As long as the herds of young'ns are coming into BJ to study that standard'r Mandarin'r they'll continue to lower it.Right now salaries are back to where they were in 96-97, when the vibe was China was just starting to open up so...Woe is poor developing China. So back then the population you taught didn't have cars, used "BP's"(beepers) and the rare Richy Rich had a mobile-Now, nothing like that, and all the old dodgy low rises having given way to the marvel of mountains of steel and glass.

I'm outta here, for the past 3 years I've felt the fool,but a fool no more! I'm planning on coming back for the next Olympics...I think it'll be in 2100.
I thought many a times of posting my impressions after all these years,but the posting would last 5-10 minutes before it's deleted and Myself banned, so I'll wait a bit after I leave China.
I've had more pride in a job pumping gas!

[Bake_Me_A_Cake]

God speed and good luck with pumping that gas; I'm sure you'll fit right in. What will you do in the slack time, flip burgers?

[Paul Barufaldi]

Some of those students in Wudaokou will work as cheap as 60/hr. Don't ask them to manage the classroom though. (Then again, I sometimes why I even bother to with certain clases) I'm fed up with being contacted with joke job offers, recruiters turning a deaf ear to my minimum requirements and their frenzied attempts to harangue me into accepting. For an oversaturated market, there sure is still a lot of desperation on part of employers. Won't even give out my phone # anymore.

[william wallace]

Dear Baked Cake,
Eight of your 13 postings have been flaming /insulting.If you are so inclined to get banned, you should be a tad more forceful-Good luck with that.
P.S. Nothing wrong with flipping burgers,buddy.