Job Discussion Forums

[clark.w.griswald]

I have been in contact with the CLA and this is the information that I received.

The teacher blacklist is indeed back in effect, but is much stronger than before. Once a teacher has been blacklisted the blacklisting is indefinite and the teacher will not be allowed to teach in Taiwan again. Previously blacklisting was only for a two year period. The blacklisting applies to the issuance of work permits for teachers, and doesn't prevent teachers from coming back to travel or study.

The CLA will notify teachers that they have been blacklisted as per the contact information that they have for the teacher. If you have moved house or overseas then of course you will not receive this notification.

For a teacher to be blacklisted all he or she needs to do is fail to show up for three days in a row without giving notice to the school, at which time they will be considered a run-away. A mark will be placed against his or her name and no further work permits will be issued to that teacher. Any future applications will be returned with notification given to the new employer about the blacklisting.

In the opinion of the CLA, teachers can break their employment contracts with one months notice, but any penalty provisions in the contract agreed to between the parties may be enforceable. If you break your contract without notice for any reason then you may be blacklisted, and the CLA seems to have very little sympathy for teachers who leave their employers without notice. There may be disadvantages to letting your employer know that you will leave them, but the consequences of not doing so may have further and much more severe repercussions.

Teachers who have been blacklisted can appeal to the CLA and a decision will be made within 30 days. It doesn't appear that the CLA will place much weight on complaints unless these can be documented which seems to reinforce the advice that you should keep everything in writing. To successfully appeal the blacklisting, a teacher would need to be able to prove that he or she didn't run away but instead gave notice. The general notice period in Taiwan is one month, but a shorter period may be considered in some circumstances.

If you can prove that the employer blacklisted you maliciously and without reason then the CLA affirms that action will be taken against the employer. Exactly what action would be taken is unclear, but the lady I spoke to seemed quite adament about this, and stressed both the seriousness of being blacklisted as well as blacklisting.

Important Points

1. Keep any and all documentation that your employer gives you.
2. Write any notifications that you give your employer down and keep a copy. Email can be a good way to prove dates and times.
3. Do not leave your employer without giving written notice of your intention to do so. This applies equally to employers with which you have a good relationship with as it does to those you don't get on well with.
4. Contact the CLA if you have been blacklisted for advice.

Finally, if you want to check if you have been blacklisted then this is possible by contacting the CLA or by visiting this site. I assume that the CLA will only have information on individuals who have been blacklisted since 2004 so if your enquiry goes back prior to this I am unsure as to whether or not the CLA could help you. You will need to reveal a certain amount of personal information in order for this check to be conducted.

[Ki]

Wow. Maybe it would be better for teachers to work illegally under the guise of a student visa after all. Or just resort to working illegally if things do go wrong.

[TaoyuanSteve]

[Ilanian]

Just musing about the reasons behind it, I would guess it has something to do with the fact that since the new changes, schools are powerless to stop teachers from changing schools on a whim. This puts considerable power back in the hands of the school. They don't seem to be able to do anything equally, the scales are always tipped in favor of either the teachers or the schools.

[TaoyuanSteve]

Insightful post. Never looked at it from that angle before. I agree that may be part of the reason behind the change. But, in reality, I don't know many who've taken advantage of the rules allowing them to leave jobs on a whim. Forums have been silent on this as well. I think, for most, we just work our contracts through to completion and move on if we choose. It's too bad some of the powers that be would view a teacher being able to change a job/work sponsor as too much freedom. God forbid we should be able to live like free people. I find the new policy to be dracconian. What's worse, it was implimented without consultation with the people it affects or even notice that such changes were in the works. While I agree with the notion that those who run ought to be penalized in some way for their irresponsible behaviour, I think a policy like this is an extreme response and one that will get abused.

[clark.w.griswald]

Personally, I am not reading too much into the fact that blacklists have returned. While it does have possible implications for some, provided that you do the right thing by schools and keep your documentation in order (including copies of any correspondence with or from schools), you shouldn't expect to have any problems.

I do accept the concerns raised in the above posts, but am reassured by the comments made during my contact with the CLA. They seem pretty on the ball with regards to the blacklisting system, and seem equally concerned about malicious blacklisting as we all are. I guess that time will tell as it plays out.

[puiwaihin]

The people most likely to be affected will likely be the trusting type of person who comes in and doesn't read these forums and then goes to work without getting everything in writing, gives oral notice, and then gets shafted and doesn't have any way to prove their point.

I think there needs to be due process where employers must show a teacher has left without giving notice before blacklisting happens.

[TaoyuanSteve]

[clark.w.griswald]

[clark.w.griswald]

[Ki]

So make sure that everything is in writing then? My school is reluctant to sign anything. So for me to prove any correspondence is next to impossible. I wasn't even allowed to keep a copy of my contract.

The problem with blacklists is that you are assumed guilty before proven innocent. There isn't any hearing where the CLA acts as a mediator to decide who is at fault. The same is true with employer blacklists over the internet.

I still don't blame teachers for doing a runner. Only now I would suggest that they think a little longer about whether they ever want to teach (legally) in Taiwan again. That is one bridge I'm not eager to burn just yet.

I still think that employers should use more positive reinforcement to get teachers to stay. It would be good if employers and employees could sit down and discuss the situation if the employee had to leave for any reason. But negative measures, like losing $30,000 pay, deter teachers from doing this. I guess the blacklist will help teachers to decide either to pay the price (one way or another) or to hope for the best and talk to the boss.

[clark.w.griswald]

[Ki]

I know, I know. Stop looking for Utopia.

I don't seem to get any of the benefits that you state. Maybe that is just my own unfortunate circumstances.

Pay rates (at my school at least) have been in decline for the last couple of years. Bonuses and benefits have also been in steady decline to the point where there aren't any left. All that I get are late fines and penalties.

I would even agree with Aristotle's claim that (in the last year or so at least) that English teacher salaries in Taiwan have been declining.

Well I do have pretty good conditions though. It is a relaxing environment and for the most part my weekends are free. (Except for those UNPAID events that happen sporadically).

But I did want to propose an idea for schools to adopt to make employers AND employees happy. But no system is perfect so there are bound to be a few flaws in mine. Let's say for now that we will keep the penalty system. So how about this? Make it clear to teachers that if they find another suitable teacher then the penalty will be waived. Also, if there must be a penalty clause then have this matched by a similar, or better, bonus.

Already I can see big gaping holes opening up in these two suggestions. I know that the circular logic of management at my school will dismiss any positiveness sugested. Hey, I don't even have my own contract. Maybe I'm just thinking too much.

[clark.w.griswald]

[Ki]

I work at a large school which is one of a small chain. In the last two years my school has paid $3000 less per month salary. I work in a kindy in Taipei so whilest my pay per working hour is quite low my pay per teaching hour really isn't that bad at all. Two years ago my school gave us twenty days paid holiday/sick days. Now we just get the three days public holidays paid. The rest fall on weekends. I also have to work a few days unpaid on weekends. Not sure how many. So in dollar figures I end up with about $100,000 less per year. Or about $8,000 less each month. No bonuses. No deposits. And the hours have been static.

I understand about the bonuses thing. It does lead you into a false sense of earnings. I guess if, for example, a $30,000 bonus was spread into my salary over 12 months and there was a $30,000 penalty clause then I wouldn't mind too much.

I don't know about the financial situation of my school. Only that it is an expensive school.

I have seen some really dodgy clauses in some contracts so while I'm not 100% happy with mine it is suitable to my needs. If I take a day off my school works out my salary depending on the number of work days in the month (between 20 and 23). Some schools automatically work it out from the number of actual days in the month (30ish). So if you take one week off, instead of getting paid about 75% of your monthly salary you will only get about 50%. After seeing this clause I made damn sure that my school didn't have it.