Job Discussion Forums

[maryfrances]

What can I dod if the language school doesn't pay me?

Is there any recourse? Is there Small Claims Court in this country? Any lawyers?

As many know, the language school withholds a month's pay; pay for October come (is supposed to) at the end of November, plus they do not pay if students don�t show. There is no sick pay, often now health insurance, no paid holidays and a lot of illegal pay under the table. Americans have to spend a fortune in time, effort and money to get a work permit and visa.

So maybe teachers who sign up for abuse get what they deserve. But many of us are serious.

I am desperate now. Please advise.

Thanks.

[spiral78]

Mary Frances, are you worried because you're not going back after Christmas to that school? Does the school know you aren't returning? Because usually the back pay is given at the end of your contract time....

I think you would be able to ask for the back pay early to help fund your holiday trip home. But legally, most contracts are Sept - June - is this true of yours?

Small claims isn't likely to be of any help unless your Czech is very good and you were not technically illegal during any of the time you were employed at this particular school.

[maryfrances]

[spiral78]

so, they've assured you that they will honor your contract, you said....does that mean that they intend to pay your back pay in June, as per normal, or do you mean that they've assurred you they'll give it to you now?

of course, I don't think it's all right, I;m just saying that you may not have legal recourse in this situation.

[maryfrances]

[spiral78]

Mary Frances, check the current Prague Post online (www.praguepost.com) under Schools and Education: School Watch - the truth about budget language schools.

This is a critique of the system by a Czech businessperson.

I'm afraid that what you have encountered is symptomatic of the industry in general, and that change, while needed, is likely to be very slow.
The article in Prague post mentions only briefly the real reason conditions are as they are - it's the very strong supply of newbie teachers in the country.
You mention that you have taught in universities in the past; I don't know what your qualifications are.
But most newbies in the profession do accept the conditions you mention - and, unfortunately, so did you when you signed on with your current school.

I hope you will get your money - as I mentioned, I think you could ask for it to fund your holidays. If the school is not aware that you are leaving for good, this will be a red flag, of course. However, they will hopefully stand by their past assurances anyway. But it is probably better to have it out in the open.

Another thing that you might want to do is to talk to some of the schools in Prague this month regarding possible openings and the conditions for work/contracts there. Maybe you've already done this, but before you return in January it would be certainly useful to know what you are facing working in the city, and whether you will be able to get the kinds of contracts and working conditions you want.

[maryfrances]

Thank you. Everyone should read the article. I will write too. It is critical that this stuff get promulgated.

Teachers who have MAs plus, and TESOL certification and seminars and so on should not be held hostage to rich brats, fooling around in Prague for the cheap beer and pretty girls.

You write very well, and I am grateful for your hard truths in a compassionate tone.

[spiral78]

I don't think the 'wetbacks' you mention get visa assistance or health insurance, and I doubt they have much recourse in small claims courts either. In any case, we're not in California, where, I presume, you would have an established legal right to work and live.

Here is what I would do in your situation. Obviously, you're under no obligation to take my advice, but I'll offer it, for whatever it's worth.

1. I would NOT approach my current employer from a position of outrage at the conditions, assuming that they have not changed from the conditions I accepted in August when I started the job.

2. I WOULD approach my employer from a position of honest professionalism. This means that I would politely explain that I will not be returning to work for them in January. I would say that I wanted them to be aware of this as early as possible so that they would have time to make arrangements to meet their commitments for their students.
I would ask them to please make arrangements to give me my month's back pay, and thank them for working with me.

I've been working and living with Czech people for eight years. Outrage doesn't often work here. Try to be patient, polite, and professional. I understand that the situation stinks, but you did know in August what the deal was. I would really chalk it up to experience and try not to create any bad karma.

And, really, before you return, you should be sure that some school in Prague is going to offer you what you want. Conditions are generally the same at most private language schools.

[spiral78]

Good luck, truly.

[maryfrances]

Thanks. I know you are right. I am trying to do just what you advise. I too worked with Czechs for a couple years before. The Czech are not the problem: theschools are usually owned by Canadians, Brits, even Americans who just join up the Czechs for barely legal stuff.

But I know that TESOL teachers need a Caesar Chavez.

[spiral78]

Again, for what it's worth, my personal approach to the problem is quite low-key. When we are in a country which is not our own, any strong stances we take (particularly as Americans, unfortunately) can easily be misconstrued as imperialistic and arrogant, however well-intentioned we actually are.

I think that people like the Czech woman who wrote the article for the Prague Post have much more credibility here and are far more likely to be able to create change in the current systems than us outsiders are.

When I worked in Holland, I had to take working conditions there as they were (no full time contracts). I accepted that this would be the case when I went there.
When I worked in Luxembourg, I knew that I would have long days to accomodate the schedules of my students.
In my Canadian uni (where I work about half the year these days) I have no chance to qualify for a permanent position, regardless of my solid record, commitment, qualifications, or anything else.

I don't necessarily like any of these conditions, but they are the conditions that exist in those countries and I'm not in a position of power to change them.

I'm afraid that if you want all the benefits you have mentioned, you will likely need to find a country that offers them as a standard. Working to change the system is fine, but this is most effective when you are working from within.

[maryfrances]

Honestly. They are out there. I got a note from my old college for a new department. Inshallah.

Ther may be Justice, Honor and Fairplay aftr all. In any case, we must MUST respect our profession. TESOL teachers are not mostly trust fund kids, fooling around.

[Chris Westergaard]

Dear Mary,


I saw this post as well on expats. Can you tell us exactly what happened, I'd really like to know. If you don't want to talk about the specifics online, can you PM me?


Thanks

[johnchina]

Having read this thread, I would like to know exactly what the problem is before giving specific advice. I used to work in Prague and I took my employer (Czech) to court over unpaid monies. I won. If you need the name of a good lawyer, I'd be happy to let you know the contact details for the one I used. She doesn't speak English, so you'll probably need a Czech friend to help with translation. Her fees come out of whatever you win. It did take a LONG time. Getting the cash was nice, but the principle was more important to me.

[spiral78]

That could be quite useful, but I think the school hadn't so far actually done anything except offer a crap deal which Mary Frances accepted.

Not to minimize the fact that it was a crap deal, but I don't think that there was anything techically illegal about it, unless I didn't understand correctly.

Then, if I understand correctly, she was afraid they wouldn't pay her what they owed her in the case that she is leaving their employment before the end of the agreed-on period. But this obviously had not yet happened, and in fact, they had assured her that they would honor the agreements between them and her....

So, Mary Frances, what's the current situation? Will you be paid?