Job Discussion Forums

[racetrack]

I signed a full time contract with a large language school 7 months ago.

I was told when arriving to Vietnam of what documents were necessary and I brought them. I notarized all of them, and performed the medical and criminal background check.

For months, I was told that my work permit would be completed "in a month."

7 months in, I don't have it, and it's obvious the school isn't going to do the necessary work to get a WP.

This is an issue for me because a WP is valid for 3 years, there are visa problems now, and I want to work at a new place when my contract is finished.

What can I do?

[Buffalo Boy]

Work permits are not transferable. Even if that school got you a work permit you would still have to hand it back and reapply when you changed jobs. Same goes for residence cards.

I don't know that there's anything you can do apart from move to a different school that will get you a work permit.

What school is this? Name them and shame them.

[racetrack]

[Buffalo Boy]

If you need to reapply it gets easier the second time around, especially if you are in the same province.

[surreycouple]

you only get a 3yr WP if thats how long your contract is and it gets cancelled when you leave same goes for TRC...

http://www.business.gov.vn/licensedetail.aspx?id=1440&LangType=1033

[spycatcher reincarnated]

My understanding of these issues is as follows:

Work permit:

This belongs to the employer and needs to be returned to the issuing agency after the employee leaves.

Once an employer has received permission for an employee to work for them (work permit) then it is usually quite easy for a new employer to receive permission for the same employee to work for them(work permit), as long as the employement is in the same field of work. The reason it is easy is because the issuing agency already has nearly all the paperwork.

If one thinks they are going to be leaving their present employer in a few months time and moving on to a new employer and one already has all the paperwork and the correct notorizations I would probably still encourage my present employer to get me a work permit. One has to remember that a number of the documents required for the work permit have 6 month expiry dates on them and if you don't use them within 6 months then when you do finally apply for a work permit with your new employer you may well have to get new documents as your current documents may be out of date.

Temporary Residence card:

I believe this belongs to the individual and not the employer. Think it does have something on the back that says if any of your conditions change then you should hand this card back in to the issuing authority, but this is usually impracticable. Ie this is your visa. Whilst employed you need this to travel around the country (assuming your visa has expired). You are holding this when you leave your employer and I don't see any reason that you should return this to them.

You could have actually got the TRC or the PRC by yourself and not through your employer so I can't see any reason to give it up. There is no reason you should forfeit your right to be in the country just becasue you are temporarily out of employment.

[Andy123]

This is incorrect.

The work permit belongs to the worker and not the school or employer. Fact! The Dept of Labor gives you the original and two copies with original stamps. One of those copies goes to the school for posting for public view.

The residence card is also yours.

Most schools revert to their old behavior and lie, cheap and control. You are not Vietnamese, you don't understand.

I do understand and have read the Labor Law multiple times with its recent changes. Hell I have found several labor lawyers don't understand. Very scary when it is your money and time.

The work permit and resident card belong to the worker. The employer and not the employee are responsible for the cost of the work permit up to (not sure of the exact amount) $700.

The employer pays the expenses of the collecting and processing the WP! This is the law.

When most schools have no idea how to apply for a WP how can you expect them to understand the labor law?

I have spoke to several HR people from the larger schools and they all say that there is a decrease in student enrollment and too many teachers.

If you were a school and you know there is a surplus of teachers would you apply for a WP? Would you try to get everything you could out of the teachers? Teachers are a dime a dozen and a few lies will pacify them and if they get uppity just simply replaced them or cut their hours.

It is just too easy for the schools not to take advantage of the situation.

[Boxcar Johnny]

Spycatcher Reincarnated and Andy123,

Thank you for the information about this.

But I am completely confused.

At work, in restaurants, and on every forum, nobody....nobody....agrees if the work permit is held by the school or the teacher.

This is why I am not continuing with my wp paperwork.

[Buffalo Boy]

This thread just goes to show how much confusion there is on this issue. I only know that I got my work permit and residence card from a reputable school and I had to give them back when I left. The school did everything they could to help me, they even got me a one year visa before they handed in the work permit. I really believe that if they could have let me keep them they would have, but they were following the letter of the law as they understood it.

This is the only country I have worked in where getting a work permit/visa is not a given.

[Andy123]

If you leave that school the WP must be returned to the Dept of Labor and a new one is issued when employed at the new school (this is what I read). However, a person I know who has had several work permits told me that there is a way to transfer the WP. But I don't know for sure.

This is the same as Korea or at least the way it was.

I have had schools in the past tell me they will hold the WP. My attitude was I don't give a sh#@. It doesn't matter really. Just a control issue. They seem to think they issue them. This goes with the attitude that you should be grateful that we are employing you. I have been told this by several schools. Funny thing is they believe it. It is a privilege working here you know.

Years ago I worked for a large school and it was being "pressured" on the WP issue. The senior school admin went all out as to inform us how to go about the WP process. They went as far as to not pay their teachers who submitted no paperwork after the fact They had no idea what they were doing and nobody could tell them they didn't know what they were doing. The teachers ended up spending a lot of time and money and only a handful of permits were ever issued.

Still feel loved?

[spycatcher reincarnated]

Andy - looks like we are going to disagree on who the wp "belongs" to.

Looks like we agree that it is the employer's responsibility to:

get the work permit
pay for the work permit- never seen this 700 usd thing and can't figure out how that would possibly work or what it could possibly mean?
return the work permit

[Andy123]

At the end of the day who cares who physically holds the WP? I hold mine but does it matter as long as I have a copy?

The cost of accumulateing all the paperwork is or can be expensive. The problem is that many schools are now passing the cost off to the teachers when they are required by law (for what it is worth) to pay.

Come July will visas really be denied without a WP? Who knows for sure. If it is true than we will see many people leave. I know it is selfish but if visas are denied without a WP it will greatly benefit teachers who are still here.

I hear several schools recently are being "inspected" for WPs but not sure if it is really true.

At the end of the day the teacher loses. Less money and more stress.

[racetrack]

[Oh My God]

racetrack wrote:

[TimkinMS]