Job Discussion Forums

[chon nom]

Thinking about going to work for these guys, but I ran into at least one negative comment. Anybody know anything about these guys?

[ChairmanMeow]

Did you ever end up working there? No one seems to have posted a comment about them,

[The Ever-changing Cleric]

[living&learning]

They were raided about a year ago. Two foreigners got deported. Good enough news?

[thefuzz]

Had to dig this one up, but due to the recent news about Kai En in Shanghai as well as Linguaphone a while back, a "heads-up" is needed for anyone thinking of joining METEN in Shenzhen.

Just finished up a short tour at this company in Shenzhen (did a bit of part-time work) and from talking with teachers/staff I came away fearing for the future of this place, especially the Nanshan branch. It was recently remodeled into a sort of Starbucks (coffee shop downstairs and English school upstairs) and the costs associated with the remodeling plus the closure of their Luohu branch (also in Shenzhen) does not spell "safe" when it comes to employment at METEN. I heard from a Chinese staff member (who is a bit further up the food chain) that the school is not getting enough students signing up because current students have such a low opinion of the place that they advise their friends against paying tuition fees at METEN...they tell their friends to go to Wall Street instead (which METEN, for some reason, tried very hard to emulate).

Besides lurking money troubles (the FTs don't get paid on time, excuses are given that the banks didn't transfer money or some other bulls**t) the whole administration is a sideshow...no one really knows how to run an English school, but they pretend they do. Some of the full-time FTs are also not getting their work visas processed as the company does not have good relationships in Shenzhen (or perhaps legitimate licenses to get such visas...who knows). So all the visas are processed in Chongqing and sent back to Shenzhen (but this is illegal...in China you can only work in the city where your work permit and visa were processed). As for teachers who work on tourist visas and are charged tax (there are a few of them in METEN Shenzhen)...a long term FT said that the money they skim off the top for "tax" is cash that will be given if the place ever gets raided by the cops again...as a payoff...which it did a few months back.

So, yeah, think hard about working there...I stopped...way too much bulls**t for me. Now I hear they are losing more full time teachers and hiring non-native speakers to fill the gaps...