Job Discussion Forums

[whitethunder10]

Hello all,

Well it seems the mouse has invaded the ESL house.

The offer seemed great - The airfare paid, the pay was good, the housing allowance fair. I was ready to go.

But as one starts to dig deeper, one realizes not all is fair in the land of fantasia. Namely management.

This is a critical look at Disney English.

Firstly, the extreme type A personality who was my contact was really hard to listen to. She was trained like a a corporate guinea pig. The speech was fast, the need for self importance, great. It was hard to sit through these phone interviews.

So even the first step was hard. I largely ignored it but it was the first key that Disney English was NOT going to work out for me.

The next step was the hiring manager in Shanghai.

Yes we can all expect games with big corporations and this was the game I was going to test:

I asked a certain hiring manager about if they pay for a Z-visa. It was a fairly easy question to answer. She answered the question (NO) but then just before it she wrote "according to the Q&A". I could tell this woman was already pulling the corporate "refer to FAQ (frequently asked questions) sheets instead of wasting my time" mumbo jumbo.

So in my next email I told her that I felt uncomfortable about her referring me to FAQ's and would prefer that she answer my questions. I explained in two paragraphs about why it is important for me to get answers from a person instead of being referred to Q&A preprinted sheets Afterall I am only flying half way around the world to basically donate my time and energy. I explained this reluctance.

And here comes her response - "Oh am i sorry, did I say refer to the Q&A? I meant refer to the the FAQ" and then she attached a email that was private between the original contact and I. Apparently the original contact person already answer my question. So I had forgotten.

So what if I forgot? Why are you referring me to all types of FAQs and old emails? Is this a pissing contest? This is exactly what it was - a pissing contest. She didn't like that I told her I would prefer to have real emails for a person and not be "expected" even before I am hired, to have to go look at the company FAQ's.

So I emailed their team of 4 and told them i have to decline this offer.

Disney English? Nope. It is just a big corporation, aka - the sad joke that all ESL teachers are trying to escape.

If you are really desperate, maybe the work life will be better than this experience with management. But I think the hiring management is very telling of what it is like to actually work for the company. If they treat people like this who aren't even employees yet can you imagine how they treat employees? I bet it is a nightmare.

One thing I noticed is that there was no information in the contract about airfare payback if you quit. So you could use them for a free ticket to China. Fly Disney Air.

PS- they will not include any of the benefits in the contract. They just refer you to the FAQs as if they have some sort of legal meaning behind them. Actually, I don't think that the contract means anything as you aren't even an contractor. I think the contract is just a intellectual rights protection for them.

later Disney and FAQ

[daCabbie]

If it seems to good to be true. Than it is.

Welcome to China!

[The Edge]

Is, "Do I have to wear black ears?" listed in the FAQs?

[LanGuTou]

[Trifaro]

I wonder if Disney is really behind this school or are they just borrowing the name?

[whitethunder10]

They are really behind it. It is obvious when you talk to their recruiters.

I go teach ESL in another country because it is easier to escape the work dysfunction of your own country.

I guess there is no escaping it now.

Sheesh.

When we are old the world is going to be screwed, unless the hipsters start some sort of flower power 70's movement.

[YAMARI]

Different companies suit different characters. If you take the cast of that 70's show. Eric, Jackie, Fezz( if he didnt have an accent) Kelso could all work at Disney English. Eric would go along but hate it some days. Hyde and that red haired gf of Erics would totally hate it.

I myself give rude answers if in an interview somebody talks to me like they are a corporate machine and I could never work for a smiley, passive aggresive, false positive company.

That said I know some people who like the job here in Shanghai at Disney. I guess your personality would be suited to some place not so corporate and fake.

I only worked for places where I can make my own lesson plans and steer clear around canned places.

[whitethunder10]

Some people like S&M too.

[DixieCat]

It's SM

and even Pluto finely said, I aint gonna work on Disney's farm no more.

[roadwalker]

I have no desire to work for a large corporate training school. Nevertheless, I think the headline was misleading. It appears OP had a clash of personalities with arguably non-responsive hiring staff at Disney. That doesn't rate a WARNING! in my book. I was expecting to read about a teacher who signed with Disney and then went through a nightmare working for them. OP doesn't win my sympathy by suggesting fellow teachers could possibly scam Disney out of airfare, either.

[johntpartee]

I was wondering the same thing, I thought I had missed something. This was more or less a misunderstanding; the person at Disney merely told the OP that his question had already been answered by another staffer. Slightly rude, perhaps, but.......

[mozzar]

I'd echo that sentiment. I can't see that the recruiter did anything truly wrong. A bit rude but by no means a warning not to work for them.

[nickpellatt]

And so would I.

I havent looked at Disney English, but I have looked at some of the other big corporate players, they all direct you to FAQs and similar prior to the actual employment application. Common sense dictates you read these things before applying....thats why they are there after all.

Perhaps it was rude to re-direct someone back to them during an actual conversation, but Im not sure that was the case here, I wasnt sure if it was just email contact. Then it turns out the query has already been asked and answered in writing!

Sounds like a lucky escape for Disney rather than vice-versa. Disney English may be terrible, but this thread doesnt really tell anyone that, and so sould be disregarded by anyone interested in Disney IMO.

[whitethunder10]

I'm going to go ahead and agree with the original poster. Because that is me



When I posted this i was referring to my bad experience. I wrote exactly what happened. Take it or leave it. If it sounds bad to you don't work for them.

I think a lot of young people and inexperienced people should actually try working for big corporations. If you get it over with when you are younger you won't be stuck doing it when you are older

Based on my experience, I am truely happy that I didn't choose to go over and work for them.

I think a lot of ESL teachers are looking for a release from being treated like a sub-human workhorse. When you are an intuitive individual with a little experience behind you, you soon realize the phrase "it is sounds to good to be true it probably is" is dead on.

PS- the main person who was the most trouble was one of the main managers who is actually in China. So it is possible that the recruiter is polite here and then you get over there and the trouble begins.

I'm not bitter, so give it a try if you think it will be different. But my personal advice - the guy who actually had the experience - is try somewhere else.

[whitethunder10]

Disney is doing this big expansion right now. trying to open schools all over China. I wouldn't be surprised to see more complaints coming in in the future.

I think Korea still the best option, if you work for the public schools or very reputable Hogwan.