Korean Job Discussion Forums

[merkurix]

Has your hagwon boss ever "pimped" you out (or tried to)?

There is a lot of talk lately about the many illegal things that some hagwon owners do (we are not just talking "breaching the contract" illegal; we are talking about "breaching the law" illegal. I also remember reading the honest Korea Times article about how some (perhaps many, but not all) hagwons are actually part of a criminal rackets as there is virutally no oversight by any Korean authority as well as the other KT article thread on "English Teacher" human-trafficking.

It reminded me of a story of a good friend of mine who signed a contract for a hagwon boss (BTW, this was in Ilsan), where before employment, everything seemed okay. The contract was pretty standard, the pay was also pretty standard, but it wasn't long until a bunch of well-dressed but thuggish looking random ajeosshis (in pairs and in groups) started coming over to the hagwon very often to have meetings with the hagwon boss behind closed doors. People there wondered what was going on in there as they would all sit around for a couple of hours in the boss's smoky office, but nobody asked him as nobody felt it was any of their concern.
A short time later, a meeting was held where the boss said that the hagwon was "expanding" its operations. He announced that the teachers would be lent out to other hagwons as well as private one-on-one tutoring gigs in private homes. He also rerouted calls to the teacher's home phones from the office so that they could do "phone-English" sessions. My friend also reported seeing other native speakers come and go into the hagwon for a day or two. We put two and two together and hypothesized that those thuggish looking ajosshis were also hagwon owners who were proabably working out a "I scratch your back, you scratch mine" type of deal with each other's native speakers. Since the E2 visa allows only one workplace, he confronted his boss, and he said that "it is only illegal if I don't allow it. In this case, it is very obvious I am allowing it, isn't it? You are working at 'designated places' "
My friend was sick and tired of having to travel to random hagwons and elementary schools. He was tired of being picked up at the school by random strangers for private tutoring after classes were finished. And he was especially tired of conducting unwarranted phone English sessions at home in his free time. After six months with only a meager increase to his salary for all of these extra services, he submitted his resignation. Let's not even get started on how badly his contract was breached and how late they paid him, etc. etc.
He was evetually able to agree to a settlement and a release letter, if he kept these "activities" quiet. He didn't want to harm anyone, he just wanted to teach and be content. He was able to try a new year at another hagwon before returning to NZ to continue his graduate studies.
If this was me, I would probably feel a bit dirty. Which makes me wonder, how often does this happen? How often do some unscrupulous hagwon bosses "pimp out" their English teachers to other places to make an extra buck for themselves?

[wylies99]

I know a couple of teachers who have fallen for this. They could have gotten in big trouble, if labor came calling.

[merkurix]

[alabamaman]

[ontheway]

Working at other locations is legal if the other location is added to the back of your ARC, which means you have your employer's and Immigration's approval. It can be a good way for the school and the teacher to make some exta cash. As long as both parties agree, it's no problem.

[daz1979]

[Young FRANKenstein]

[butlerian]

Does any of this also apply to public schools? I know many teachers in the countryside are expected to work at many public schools.

[cranura]

I had a job for two years in Jinju where the owner had me teaching at the hagwon, various elementary schools, a "genius" high school, the Electricity Board, teaching teachers in the winter and summer breaks and also occasionally for individual TOEIC students. I wrongly assumed that she knew what she was doing. When I returned to Korea for a new job in 2005, I was called to task because I had listed all of the "pimping" jobs on my resume. I explained the situation and I was told I needed to write a letter of apology and a letter stating that I would never do that again. The hagwon owner got into a lot of trouble with fines, etc. Needless to say, I had to take those various side jobs off of my resume (at least the one I give to Korean job prospects). So, in short, anyone on the E-2 visa must get the additional jobs listed on their ARC. Case in point, I work at a linked high school and middle school (private) in the country on the same school grounds -- both of them are listed on the ARC. Regardless of what your contract may say (e.g., you may be called upon to teach at other venues, etc.), you still must have each job listed separately with permission from the initial contracting school and a separate contract from each additional school.

[just because]

I am pimped out(legally) once a week as well....

I actually enjoy it as it breaks my week up a bit and keeps it fresh..plus my director has been very good to me so i have no problems helping her.

Plus the school i get pimped out to the schedule is very easy and only a 3 hour block so i have no problems wioth it at all...

If it was tougher than my normal schedule I would say no however.....

[The_Conservative]

[Young FRANKenstein]