Korean Job Discussion Forums

[lolacatessan]

Hello!
We're planning on returning to Korea after a bad first experience. It was so bad, in fact, that we split without notice, before our contract or visa had expired. Though we hated the job, we loved the country, so we're wanting to come back. We're in the talking-to-recruiter phase right now, and the last recruiter had some alarming news:
(According to this recruiter) There's a permanent, official, nationwide blacklist. An angry employer can put you on this PERMANENTLY and bar you from EVER getting an E-2 visa and EVER working in Korea again.

Has anyone heard of this? We asked around before we left Korea, and it was never mentioned. None of the other recruiters have mentioned it. Is there any truth to this, or - have we cause to be suspicious?

Thanks.

[Cerebroden]

let me guess, your new recruiter can still get you a job even though your on the list, it'll just be working split shifts and at 2.0 million a month?

[leebumlik69]

[lolacatessan]

Heh. No, they haven't said anything like that. They actually suggested we call the consulate here in Texas and check with them, which gives the whole thing a disturbing air of truth. I rather hope it's not so...
Thanks, though!

[lolacatessan]

[Milwaukiedave]

There was a blacklist that was started not too long ago, I remember seeing a post on here about it. I just can't find it right now. If my memory serves me right at that time there were only about 10 people on the list.

Edit:It looks like there is 60 names on it now.

[Milwaukiedave]

Here is the article from The Korean Times 8/26/06:

English Teachers� Blacklist Revealed

By Park Chung-a Staff Reporter

While the demand for native English teachers in South Korea is on the upswing, a blacklist of native English teachers has appeared on the Internet Web site of a recruiting agency that introduces native English teachers to private English institutes.

On the Internet website of Korea Foreign Teacher Recruiting Association (www.kftra.co.kr), which started in February, appears a blacklist of 19 native English teachers who are accused of unacceptable teaching manners as well as crimes. The list was put up by owners and managers of English institutes and schools who suffered due to the blacklisted teachers. The list includes names, passport numbers and birth dates.

Most of them are charged with leaving for their home countries without notice, hence breaking their contracts. Other accusations include forging university degrees, stealing personal computers and sexual harassment.

Choi Hyuk, the founder of the recruiting agency said that the list is aimed at minimizing damage to South Korean English institutes due to irresponsible or illegal actions by native English teachers.

However, the list does not always include the contact information of the person who reported the problem teachers.

Choi said he had to reveal the private information of the teachers, as it was the last means to punish them.

``After doing bad things, they just left. And there are no legal means to punish them. So we decided to list their names so that they can never come back to Korea and work as English teachers, '' said Choi. ``In order to enhance credibility of the list, we will delete those without a source or contact information of the person who reported the teacher. We have asked the Immigration Bureau to limit employment opportunities for problematic native English teachers but to no avail. The government should revise laws about employing native English teachers, including strengthening the screening process for issuing E2 Visas which are being unscrupulously issued to unqualified English teachers for English education purposes.''

However, experts warned that revealing private information could cause legal problems.

``Regardless of their faults, the listed teachers are entitled to sue those who revealed their private information for libel,'' said Kim Young-hong, an expert in human rights on information.

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200608/kt2006081617531711990.htm

Here's one of the black list by the KFTRA:

http://www.kftra.co.kr/

[Saxiif]

Well when was your original contract going to expire? If its already expired I wouldn't expect you to run into any problems. In many cases when people pull runner/get fired/quit the boss doesn't even bother to get their visa cancelled or report it in any way to the government.

What I would recommend doing is:

1. Wait until your original contract would've expired, otherwise your chances of running into legal headaches increases exponentially.
2. Don't tell ANYONE about being in Korea previously and don't tell anyone you were connected to previously that you're returning. The chances of anyone actually giving a shit about your previous visa status is very low.
3. Get a new job and ask for them to give you a blue paper so you can get a new visa at the local consulate.
4. If the consulate gives you a visa you're golden. If the consulate doesn't give you a visa, oh well, you didn't loose anything.
5. Once you're working in Korea on a legal visa nobody will bother you.

My hagwon has a lot of summer classes and has hired dozens of people to work just for the summer on tourist visas for years and years and nothing has ever happened to any of them. Immigration is really too lazy to give anyone much trouble and hagwon owners are usually too lazy to deal with the government. People worry about immigration issues far more than is warranted.

[butlerian]

[Saxiif]

[Young FRANKenstein]

[esetters21]

[lolacatessan]

Well... credible or not, we're on that list! Heh. If you feed what they say through an online translator, it comes out quite hilarious - including "our school was the sugar!"
Anyway, I guess I'll call the consulate this afternoon to see what they have to say regarding an official list. We're still getting job offers (albeit not very good ones), so ... whatever.

[wylies99]

[Snowmeow]