Job Discussion Forums

[tarte tatin]

The private university where I work states that although our contract is for 40 hours a week, our teaching hours are 24.

Until recently no one has been asked to work this amount (last year teachers had between 15 and 20 teaching hours). This year native speakers were told that they would be on 24 hours as they are paid more and Turkish teachers would have 19. We were assured we would not be asked to substitute or teach remedials.

4 weeks into the term, a colleague is absent and we have been made to cover. Okay this only brings us up to 25 or 26 hours but we have been told we will not be compensated as substitute teaching is, wait for it, admin! Yes, because an administrator asked us to do it. Seriously you could not make this up. So we are working more than our contract hours and Turkish teachers are all working less than 24 although they are also covering a couple of hours a week.

Is this common in Turkish universities? Our university also does not give us copies of our contract. I have a copy that I took myself when I went to the emniyet but the pay and teaching hours are blank/tippexed out.

[PC Parrot]

Other than for long-term subbing, I've never heard of anyone being paid to sub. It doesn't count as contact hours, and at schools & universities, it's the norm.

If you're paid in $, you'd better hope that the Turkish Lira doesn't lose any more value - or you'll be found a heap of extra duties on top of your 26 contact hours + subbing. It's happened before and I daresay it will happen again.

[lucia79]

Teachers subbed for me and I subbed for others. No one received extra payment. It's just part of the job and something to get use to. Sorry.

Edit: I was referring to the k-12 sector. So, it seems like it's the same at universities.

[lechatnoir]

The private uni that I work for in the Western part of Turkey is the same as yours. We've been contracted for 24 hours but then, add on to that at least 2 meetings and research that we HAVE to complete. This all constitutes way more than 24 hours. Also, even though we may have free hours, those free hours are not counted into the 24 hours. So basically, we're just sitting in our offices and not getting paid for those hours.

Unfortunately, this is the way private Turkish universities seem to be run. Mine is a new one so there's tons of management issues that would make anyone's head spin.

[tarte tatin]

Our contract is for 24 teaching hours plus 16 hours for admin, meetings, training etc. Of course we have other duties in addition to our teaching.

Last year my teaching hours were 20 so if I subbed this still kept me under the 24 maximum.

What I am asking is why am I asked to do more than 24 hours, when Turkish staff who are free to sub are not even doing that?

[spiral78]

Sounds like a question for your employer.....

I'm following the thread with interest, because, though I've never worked in Turkey, the two universities where I have worked have had some different policies regarding subbing. Though we were always paid!!

[_smaug]

=== edit ===

post deleted because it was too snarky; even for me. And I wrote it.

(But I'm still thinking it)

[PC Parrot]

[tarte tatin]

Okay, we are paid more, and I think Turkish teachers should be paid more in line with what native speakers earn and thoroughly sympathise with their feeling of being discriminated against in their own country.

That said, I believe it is the case in most universities, are other universities following a similar policy of loading the natives with all the extra work to keep the Turkish teachers happy? Up until this year ours didn't.

(If anyone thinks I am being petty, I should add that this comes on top of a whole lot of other undesirable changes in our work)

Anyway thanks for the replies, it seems it is fairly normal in Turkish unis to sub uncompensated.

[Otterman Ollie]

I think the issue of higher pay deserves more attention. Just why do employer pay us more us more than our Turkish partners? basically because we are native speakers, who just happen to know alot more about the language tha them, most importantly, we actually use it outside the classroom, even with the kids, the Turks don't. We also have to live over here and we pay a lot more for everything! we deserve all we get and more because we have to put up with all the bs, we know what it is, they think its normal!!!

[tarte tatin]

You make some very fair points Ollie. In addition to teaching, preparing my lessons etc. I often have to proof-read their worksheets/tests etc.

Why would any foreigner put up with the bs in the Turkish workplace for their wages when they could stay home and stack shelves in Tesco for the same money? Also, with the lira so low at the moment, even though my pay sounds high, if I convert it into my home currency it is peanuts. Not important for lifers but for those like myself who are saving up to go home one day, it is.

The Turkish staff resent it because they have to pass more tests and jump through more hoops to get employed and they are often more highly qualified than natives. For example, several have MAs and I don't. I have a lot more experience and I think I am worth every lira but I still understand how they must feel.

[lucia79]

IMO, experience is worth a lot (I'm not saying education isn't, of course it is valuable too). Just because you don't have an MA doesn't mean you are not qualified. Like Otterman Ollie said, native speakers of English speak English outside of the classroom. I'm always amazed at Turks who are teachers/instructors of English, but refuse to speak English. Why then teach it? Why don't they become Turkish teachers? I find more people who don't know English trying to speak it than some Turks who were trained to teach English or studied English.

The Turkish staff shouldn't take out their ressentment on the natives for inequalities in the workplace. The problem lies with management/administration.

[Otterman Ollie]

OOOPPPPSSS, you got me started now! On the subject of MA's etc, this is just a paper chase, the employer tells the gulliable teacher they will get some extra in their monthly paycheck coz they got one. will take decades to claw the money back, but hang on, academics don't think about money coz they don't have bills to pay or don't want a half decent lifestyle. The reality is that the average M.A is a dullard (yes, you're right, I am been very polite here) with very little or no academic curosity about anything outside their chosen field of study. In fact they know nowt about anything, go on try a general knowledge question that the average 14 year old could answer. See told ya, thick as a brick, would they even know who wrote that song?

[PC Parrot]

[PC Parrot]