Korean Job Discussion Forums

[steveaziz]

Please if you consider teaching at the Kang's language school in Siheung city I advise you not to. The boss is very unreliable, unorganized and frequently lies. Pay is never paid on time or in full and there is always some excuse. You will Not live near your school despite what he tells you. instead you will live in a hole about 1 hour away in a place called OIDO. Oido is not adequate for anyone. The boss will frequently get very angry and yell to his wife and other teachers in front of students and anyone who happens to be there. One night we went out to a bar after work and I was talking to an english speaker to my left. I guess my boss felt neglected or embarrassed that he could not speaker english as well and in response Yelled at me saying he was very angry and yelling in korean to the other man. everyone was shocked. Aside from his bad temper. His organizational skills are seriously in need of a change. your text book will change twice a month. what you are required to do will change so much that you will forget why your even there/ to teach english. and instead you may end up mopping the floor or toilets. (no janitorial service here everyone does their part) Also your location is very far from anything. unless you like looking at farmers fields and old drunk men all day this is not the place for you. I could go on and on but i think it may become redundant. message me with any specific questions

[laogaiguk]

[nomad-ish]

so steve, was this the job you were trying to recruit for just recently?

[ED209]

[steveaziz]

Ha no. That was for my korean friend who worked at my school but was lucky enough to escape. Her school was looking. and yes since i was "on loan' while the school got a new teacher i was able to return to Kangs in Jungnang gu. which i reallyl ike and is a great school. It just goes to show how the people are what make the school not the name. sorry about the bad typing. another problem with my school is there is no heat nor has there been all winter. typing with cold fingers is not the easiest thing to do also im rushed.

[Ruraljuror]

Haha yeah the school just didn't seem right to me. Anyway, I wasn't asking for me, but for someone else who is 100% Noob so I'm doing most of the legwork. He ended up passing, which was my recommendation.

The number one reason I told him to pass you didn't even mention: 55 minute classes! Yikes! Nothing like taking a job where you know right off the bat you are doing 25% more work than other jobs for the same pay.

[garykasparov]

[steveaziz]

Working Hours

( 1 ) What were your working hours? 3-9

( 2 ) When did you prepare for classes? arrive 2:30 (prep)

( 3 ) How long did you prepare for classes? 30 minutes at the school

( 4 ) How long were your breaks?
one 30 minute at 6:00 (schedule changes so often though it will probably for any new teachers also)

( 5 ) Did your employer allow you to use breaks freely?
ONE BREAK 6:00 to 6:30 nothing more or less

( 6 ) How many classes do you teach a week?
everyday 9 classes so 45 a week

( 7 ) How much time did you spend teaching per class?
7 are 30 minutes 2 are 1 hour

( 8 ) Did working hours change during the summer and winter vacation periods? No, must work christmas eve, boxing day. new years eve. ect.

( 9 ) If yes to ( 8 ), what are the said working hours during vacation periods? SAME

Job Duties

( 1 ) What job duties did you perform, excluding minor ones, that are not clearly defined in your contract? (correcting student journals, grading quizzes, report cards, written evaluations, telephone English, correcting essays, janitorial work)

Pretty easy actually Teach from the text book. I spent a lot of time babysitting the kids because they are all out of control. in fact i would say 15 of 30 minutes. I tried various techniques all with no luck for longer than 2 days

Wages & Overtime Wages

( 1 ) Did your employer always pay overtime wages? No never. Many teachers have quit for this reason

( 2 ) Did your employer pay your wages in cash or deposit your wages into your Korean bank account? Bank account

Pay receipts

( 1 ) Did your employer provide teachers a pay receipt that clearly stated the date of pay, pay period dates, overtime wages earned, monthly salary including deductions from their monthly salary for ( 1 ) pension ( 2 ) income tax and ( 3 ) health insurance?

No pay stub. Only once because i asked for one. and the reason why i was under paid it showed is because i had to personally pay for the bed and couch for my appartment. heath care yes pension was not paid into even though he said it was

Health Insurance

( 1 ) Did your employer provided you with a health insurance card?
No

( 2 ) Did your employer pay contributions for both parties to the National Health Insurance Corporation?
dont nkow. not on my invisible pay stub
Pension

( 1 ) Did your employer pay into the Korean Pension Plan?
again dont know

Income Taxes

( 1 ) Did your employer deduct the correct amount for income taxes from your monthly salary? No tax deduction

( 2 ) Did your employer pay deductions from your monthly salary for income taxes to the district tax office concerned? Pay was what he said. no deductions

Severance Pay

( 1 ) Did your employer always pay teachers their severance as stated in their contracts? I couldnt tell you, Im working on that with him for me right now

Living Conditions

( 1 ) Was your apartment clean upon arrival?
My apartment was a shit hole an hour away

( 2 ) Were you provided with all the furnishings as stated in your contract?
No pots pans, bed, couch , desk, chair, silverwear plates, cups.
( 3 ) Were the furnishings/appliances in working order when you moved into your apartment? Yes what was there is ok

( 4 ) Were the bills in your name or your employer's name?
Yes
( 5 ) If the bills were in your employers name, did your employer deduct the correct amount from your monthly salary for utilities? Yes

( 6 ) Did your employer respect your right to privacy?
Yes

Paid Annual Leave

( 1 ) When and how do you use your paid annual leave?
No leave. I worked here for only 6 months as a favor. but as far as i understand vacation is non existent for the korean teachers and unless you get it specified

Dismissal

( 1 ) Did your employer have a reputation of firing teachers for the sole purpose of not paying them last month�s wages, airfare and severance pay?
no, however i am the first and only foreign teacher. the school opened nov 2007
Financial

( 1 ) Was the school in financial trouble?
no
Discipline Methods

( 1 ) Was your employer abusive towards the students or teachers?
not thst i know of. but he often yells
Paid Sick Leave

( 1 ) Did you use a day of paid sick leave?
one day, and it was this month so i cant tell if i will be paid but im sure i will
( 2 ) If so, how did your employer react?
he was concerned for my health
( 3 ) If teachers used a day of paid sick leave, did your employer require them to work another day to make up for the hours missed?
no
Students/Teachers

( 1 ) How many students attend the school?
about 50 english students
( 2 ) How many teachers, foreign and Korean, work at the school?
there is one foreign teacher as of now. tomorrow there will be zero. one korean english teacher. and about 9 other teachers. math grammar, chinese.

Please email me if you have any more questions and if you talk to my boss dont mention my name please as we still have a distant working relationship even after I'm gone. thank you.

[Ilsanman]

Well it seemks he's not 100% douchebag, but enough violations there that I would never work for him.

But you know, I wouldn't want to work in that area, or even within 5 clicks of there. That area of southern Shiheung sucks ass. It's like a sleazy beach community without the beach.

[steveaziz]

yeah he wasn't a horrible person, i mean good enough outside of work. that doesnt change the fact that he has no clue how to run a school and is just kinda fly by the seat of his pants kinda guy.