Job Discussion Forums

MESL · Joined: 23 Aug 2003 Posts: 291

Oh, and Japan, severe age discrimination. In Korea, age and accent discrimination. In China, neither. Although I'm seeing more ads that specify under 50 or under 55.

DosEquisX · Joined: 09 Dec 2010 Posts: 361

I just think the market is showing our true value as teachers in general. If the overall quality and credentials of people willing to teach in China were higher, we'd demand more money and salaries would likely go up. Unfortunately, many unis are happy with a warm, white body regardless of experience. Of course, they then turn around and have the nerve to complain about the poor teachers they get.

China wants to have their cake and eat it too. You get what you pay for. I wish the laborers were informed enough to tell these unis to shove their offers up their asses.

MisterButtkins · Joined: 03 Oct 2009 Posts: 1221

I don't think 90% of Chinese view foreigners as people who couldn't get a job back home. Maybe 50%. In my experience it's only the most ignorant people who say that. A lot of Chinese people are, for lack of a better term, haters.

The Edge · Joined: 04 Sep 2010 Posts: 455 Location: China

Some interesting posts on this thread.
One though seems to be missing...

Most of the low wages and working conditions are accepted, for god knows what reason, by FOTB's.

Yeah, things are certainly different here now but taking advantage of the naive is as old as the hills anywhere in the world and if some muppet wants to accept some laughable offer from an unscroupulous employer then more fool them.

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

DosEquisX · Joined: 09 Dec 2010 Posts: 361

MisterButtkins · Joined: 03 Oct 2009 Posts: 1221

I think some FOTB people don't know any better, but many do. If someone is only planning to stay in China for one year, then IMO it makes sense for them to take a job that is easy and has lots of vacation time. The difference between 5k and 10k is only about 780$. Does a young person really need to work 40 hours a week, spoiling their ability to tour and enjoy China (ie, the only reason they took the job), just so they have a few thousand USD extra in their bank account at the end of the year? I don't think so.

Also, some people take uni jobs and supplement with tutoring.

Now, I have worked with a two different people who were certified teachers in the US at Chinese unis. I don't know why they took the job, but they constantly complained about the salary and then left after the first semester. Both of them. Good riddance - if they had spent more than 2 hours researching they would know a qualified teacher can do better than a 5k/month university job.

scholar · Joined: 18 May 2012 Posts: 159

Lobster · Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 3:58 pm Post subject:

Neither gas station attendants nor automotive engineers are mechanics. The under and over qualified will be unhappy and taken advantage of, either in their minds or in reality.

RED

Mr. English · Joined: 25 Nov 2009 Posts: 298 Location: Nakuru, Kenya

I private tutor in Guangzhou. I live in a relatively expensive part of town and pay my monthly rent in 20 hours of work. I get all the respect I could ask for and then some. I easily save money. I worked in other parts of China in 2007-8; can't say I've noticed any significant difference in advertised salaries since then. It does seem like there are more foreigners around, but I think the market for English teachers has grown too; certainly there is good demand for private tutors in the major cities though the market can be slow to break into. Although I don't do anything but my private tutoring, I do keep an eye on the job market here and I see many many jobs advertised all the time. Expanding on what MESL said above, China is a great place if you have to deal with visas yourself; the corruption level is such that it is no problem being self-employed on an F visa and they are easily gotten. I have seen nor heard nothing about the recent "crackdown" here in Guangzhou; people are getting visas as usual. I agree with MisterButtkins: Chinese do not view foreigners as people who can't get work back home, though I disagree with him about Chinese being "haters". The culture here in Guangzhou is incredibly rude, try crossing a street when you have a green walk signal, but they are rude to everyone, not just foreigners, and especially to their own who are perceived as being lower on the economic ladder. I notice that I receive far more respect than most Chinese receive.

isitts · Joined: 04 Jun 2010 Posts: 193 Location: Korea

isitts · Joined: 04 Jun 2010 Posts: 193 Location: Korea

Brian Hugh · Joined: 07 Jan 2012 Posts: 140 Location: China

Nothing stays the same everything is moving. However one thing that is for sure is that doors are closing for rick immigrants and students to Canada and other countries. Just like the busses people are trying to jam their way in Chinese style.
You can see the rush going on now to get the money out. You also see an avalanche of foreigners who are supposedly in the ESL business here in China. Many don't know it but their silent partners probably will scam them.
Well my father used to tell me about the depression. He said the rich felt it the most but the poor were used to it. I think the same now. I need so little to be happy. Just the company of my Chinese kids and wife. I hope we can get together this summer.
Hell I'm here for the show. I saw much in Hong Kong recently but can't report on it here. China's problem won't come from the poor but the middle class kids who see the problems. Just like the students in Quebec . "Anti Capatilista" Movements are morphing and changing names so it will be impossible to stop.

fat_chris · Joined: 10 Sep 2003 Posts: 3198 Location: Beijing

I haven't been convinced that TEFL in China today is a very bad idea.