Job Discussion Forums

[Wide eyed wanderer]

Hello,

I just wanted to get some opinions of other people who have worked in Poland. I have a job offer in the quaint village of Lebork, Poland, just off the coast. It is very far north and 6 hours away from Warsaw and even further from Krakow. I would like to travel, but I can do that at the end of my contract.

The couple running the private language school seem very nice and genuine.
They expect me to work about 22 teaching hours a week and about 40 hours including marking and lesson planning.

The part that bothers me is that they want me to live on the first floor of the their house and share a kitchen with them. I would have a separate bedroom and bathroom with a separate entrance though. I would definitely have to take a huge leap of faith on the part of the couple. However living with the owners of the academy seems too close for comfort.

They are offering to pay 1000PLN a month. They will pay for my health insurance, which they claim is 500PLN and my apartment is payed for including utilities (another 500PLN) and the Polish tax (120 PLN). I was reading some of the forums about pay and it seems that 2100-2500 PLN is the typical pay in Poland, does that include the teacher's health insurance and apartment being paid for?

The cost of living in Lebork is really low, but I would still like to save a little money so I can travel at the end of my contract.

Any suggestions of comments are welcome

[TwinCentre]

I really don't like the sound of that! 1000pln anywhere in Poland is getting close to minimum wage. And, having to share a kitchen with your boss(es)?

I shudder at the thought, and the novelty of living in such a small town will wear off after a month, trust me, and you could well slowly start to lose your mind.....I would.


I advise you to think again about this job...

[maniak]

What if something goes wrong, or you want to quit? Or bringing a girl over? Thats just f'ing scary having your bosses so close to you.

How will you be working, will you have a contract and what kind, umowa o pracy, dzielo, zlecenie? Is 500zl for private health insurance? Or public?
1000zl is below minimum wage, even for a village where believe it or not some things are MORE expensive than in cities. You will not have any money for traveling. You wont have even enough money to spend a week on beach in July.

[spiral78]

Sounds very dodgy. The thing is that if someone is trying to run a school on such a thin, short shoestring....will you be able to count on them to even pay you the peanuts they've promised? I'd be very afraid of things not going well in terms of clients, and the 'school' not being able to afford your pay.
There is also a danger that if the school loses a client for ANY reason, you will be blamed (and therefore not paid).

I'd recommend going somewhere big enough to actually support a legit school, with proper offices and accomodations. Otherwise, you're at the mercy of the local village market and there may just not be enough business there to support a teacher.

[scottie1113]

That's a terrible offer. I pay 160zl a month for insurance at a private clinic-Swiss Med-through Alliance. My school pays half, so I'm only out 80zl a month for that.

Utilities don't cost anywhere near 500zl a month. My gas bill is about 26zl a month, and electricity is usually around 100zl. Even adding internet to that I pay less than 200zl a month.

Taxes. Are they paying out of your gross wages? You'd better hope so. Even then, they're more than 120zl a month. I haven't looked at my pay records, but I think the standard rate is 19%.

Run from this offer as quickly as you can.

[Wide eyed wanderer]

Thanks everyone! I suppose I was getting desperate. I am not having much luck finding a job in Eastern Europe. Even with almost two years of experience. I have applied practically everywhere. Suppose I am just going to have to bite the bullet and spend $2000 on a proper TESOL certificate.

Thanks again!

[wojbrian]

If you want to teach in Europe proper certs are good to have.

[Master Shake]

You'll find many more jobs if you go and apply in person.

My advice: Come over here to Poland, visit your preferred cities handing out CV's and setting up interviews. If you still don't find something decent, sign up for a CELTA course - this course is probably cheaper over here than where you live.

[Jack Walker]

Those school owners sound like typical Polish skinflints trying to make a zloty anywhere and everywhere they can.In this case,it'd be at your expense.

It's a good thing you decided to move on......,the "quaint" villages in Poland are nice for a weekend jaunt,but not places where you'd like to live full time.

You'd go mad soon enough.

[wojbrian]

I took celta at IH Wroclaw. When I took it 2 years ago it was about the least expensive place.

I think you can look up on the main celta page and see what people charge.


http://www.cambridgeesol.org/index.php

[scot47]

Lauenburg - Lebork in Polish - was a German town until it was ethnically cleansed in the postwar period. How do you feel about living in a place that was stolen from its inhabitants within living memory ?

[volgaman]

1000 zeds a month is criminal.

I earned 3000 zl a month in 1998 for an entry level position.

Steer clear & distribute your CV far and wide. Quaint villages are for buraks.

[Blasphemer]

1000zl / month? That's nonsense...

As per the ethnic cleansing issue... one could REALLY debate few issues, but I don't think this forum is the right place for that. I recommend at the very least reading Norman Davies' "Europe - A History" before making such statements.

[Janek]

xxx

[scot47]

Janek
Neo-nazis also believe that the Sun rises in the East and sets in the West. Does that mean Antifascists have to take the position that it rises in the West ?

The expulsion of the German population from Pomerania, Silesia and Prussia was evil and inflicted unnecessary sufferings on innocent people.