Korean Job Discussion Forums

[normalcyispasse]

So my school, in all its cr4ptastic glory, keeps jerking me around. A bit of background: I work for a private elementary school in Jeollanamdo.

The administration says that the Ministry of Education requires that extracurricular English classes (which are, of course, my purview) be taught 32 times per regular semester (i.e. 32 discrete lessons).

My school keeps using this figure -- which is NOT mentioned in my contract -- to do goofy ****. Basically, they've broken their end of the contract a few times by requiring me to work on Saturdays (the contract stipulates a working week of ONLY Monday-Friday, period), work unpaid overtime, teach two lessons per week plus Surprise! Happy Fun Duties such as MC'ing festivals, recording hours' worth of spoken tests, etc.

I should mention, of course, that this is totally their fault: I've not taken any extra time off to short me on the lessons, but rather this is *entirely* due to their piss-poor planning and event scheduling. If I were single I would have left this school at the six-month mark (as one of the other teachers did, due to the same poor treatment) but I have my wife to think about so walking out isn't an option.

In any case, is there really a Ministry of Education mandate of 32 lessons per semester or is the school just yanking my chain?

As if this all weren't bad enough, part of the contract does stipulate that we teach something like a week or two in February. This wouldn't be so bad -- I did, after all, agree to this part of the contract when I signed -- but I just found out that this time does not count towards the magical 32 lessons per semester. WTF?

[Bibbitybop]

Wow, I don't know why you agreed to give in to that previous crap. You came in on Saturdays? Why not hold up the contract and point to the Monday-Friday?

You worked overtime with no pay? Why? Did they not pay you afterwards? That'd be a call to the labor board if I were you.

In your contract, you should have a set amount of hours. That's what you are held to. There's no Ministry of Justice BS. Point to the contract. Stand your ground. Live strong.

[normalcyispasse]

[Dome Vans]

^

Agree with this. What a shit school. Tell them to get bent with the over time.

They're obviously trying to run extra classes that either they're not getting funding for from the Office of Education or the students are paying and you're not seeing any of it, which means that somebody else is.

1. You're being walked all over.
2. A contract is a contract. If it doesn't say saturdays then you don't do it. They're using the Office of Education line because they probably know you won't go to them to check. Call their bluff.
3. As prev post, check with labour board, sure they'll have something to say.
4. Unpaid overtime!!! This has gone on long enough, should have been sorted out after the first non-payment.

But circumstance makes it diffilcult, there are plenty of other jobs out there, this is not deserving of the time.

[Bibbitybop]

OP, I've never dealt with a number of "lessons," which sounds like it is different than teaching "one hour" or "one class." Whatever a "lesson" is, whether it's 8 different classes or teaching hours, I'd follow that.

If you contract stipulates 3 lessons (say, 24 classes or 24 teaching hours a week), stick to it. If they want you to teach more, tell them you will require overtime pay or you won't do it, whatever suits your needs.

[normalcyispasse]

My contract does stipulate 16 morning classes each week, to be divided into two lessons (2 x 8 classes; I teach 6th grade only). (I also have to teach 8 afterschool classes, but those are separate from the argument.)

The contract also states that a work week is M-F. It goes on to say that:

"Even if the employee doesn't complete weekly hours 16classes, due to school's events or schedule, the employee will be paid in full for 16classes. -Overtime will be given only when the employee exceeds 8 after school classes a week."

I didn't think that clause would be that hard to interpret, but it's proven sticky.

Basically, when the school can't or won't schedule me for 16 classes due to events or field trips or testing, I'm not liable for those hours. At the end of the last semester they told me that I had to work extra time (an extra 4 classes each week) to meet the "32 minimum classes per semester." Since I wasn't exceeding 8 after school classes, they weren't going to pay me overtime even though working those hours was technically in violation of my contract. I had my letter of resignation ready then, but my wife encouraged me to find another solution. We managed to work it out, but I did end up working some unpaid OT.

That was the first I heard of the 32 classes thing. My wife told me that last year the other foreign teachers had problems with this too, and that the school had said that it was from MoE then, too.

This semester the school's already shot themselves in the foot. Because of testing/field trips, I was apparently not going to meet my 32-hour requirement. They told me I could either come in on a Saturday to teach for 4 hours, or I could spread that out across 1 afternoon class each Friday for 4 weeks (over 16 hours a week, yes; paid, of course not). Since the latter would totally f*ck up my lesson plans I chose the Saturday under duress.

I wrote to the MoE but I don't know if I'll get a response.

[normalcyispasse]

*minor update*

I just called the MoE and spoke to a couple (very nice) folks there. They're aware of my situation now and, along with the official request for information I made on the MoE website, should be able to get back to me with directives and guidelines within the week.

I am going to have SO MUCH fun if this magic 32 number turns out to NOT be a MoE directive; if that's the case, the administrators here have been blatantly lying to both my wife and me and I will have an excellent case to take to labor.

[Jizzo T. Clown]

This thread should be required reading for anyone who's considering crapping where they eat / eating from their own garden / dipping their pen in company ink / f*cking someone they work with.

[yingwenlaoshi]

Wtf is 32 classes per semester?

You gotta tell 'em. That's all there is to it. Fk the MOE. "I teach this many hours per week between this hour and this hour, Mon to Fri. Anything exeeding said hours or outside my schedule is OT." Any objections or MOE this, MOE that, 32 classes this, 32 classes that are irrelevant.

[Bibbitybop]

[nobbyken]

32 lessons is the number of teachers classes that are supposed to be done at our school, before the end of the semester.

They just passed this down a few eeks ago, so we are now going to try and do 4 hours(2 x 2) a week of teachers class. It is not voluntary for them, as it was previously when only 2 continued to show up.

Don't think it will happen, but going to give it a go anyway.

[normalcyispasse]

I called and wrote to the Korean Ministry of Education on Wednesday. Their reply: There are no set numbers such as the school has avered. The 32-hours thing is entirely bull****. There are, after all, no national guidelines that regulate the number of hours that my position must fill.

F*ckers!

I called the school on their bull today. The head teacher was honestly surprised that the principal has been lying his arse off.

I just wish I'd called them on their cr#p earlier in the game.

[Bibbitybop]

[Dome Vans]

[normalcyispasse]