Korean Job Discussion Forums

ds_fan · Joined: 07 Apr 2008

The following is a letter I am sending to the head of my kindergarten hagwon franchise, it seems stern in tone, however iv given hints that there is only so far they can push me, however they still dont seem to recognise them. I have taken all info on the school etc out as i dont want to break any rules. I am only threatening to send it if I am made to go to this training day, if they say I must go I will send it.

Too stern? Advice? What would you do?

I was told today that I should attend a seminar in xxxxxxxx on xxxxxxxxxx. It states in my contract that I should atend all staff meetings and workshops outside of working hours. However I find the request of 12 hour sessions in other cities on Saturdays to be unreasonable because of the following.

* 3 days notice was given for this, I do not deem this to be adequate advance notice in light of the fact I have booked accomodation and made plans for spending my Saturday In Seoul.
* The talks are in Korean and mainly consist of explaining how to pronounce letters and read books. Being a native English speaker I do not understand much of them and can find out what is being covered from my co-teachers.
* Other foreign teachers from the xxxxxxxx branch do not have to attend.
* It takes up an entire day on one of my 2 days off, thus adding an additional 12 hours onto my current 44hours a week and is held in a city 2 hours away from me.
* I understand the importance of sticking to a contract, however I find it unusual that it appears acceptable for xxxxxxxxx not to stick to this, and for me to follow unreasonable requests made at the last minute.

* The school have failed to provide a curriculum for many of their modules, and have not provided any resources for most. I have to create an individual lesson plan on paper for every lesson as both myself and other staff do not know what should be taught a week in advance, therefore creating monthly plans is impossible. After having my lesson plans checked I was told that they should be in a neater order along with my resources which I have created for use by future teachers in the school- something which I found somewhat alarming. I spoke with xxxxxxxxxxx about this, who stated that she understood, howver this breach of contract has yet to be resolved.
* My pay has been late and I have never been issued with a receipt outlining pension and income tax.
* During the vaction while I was attending school for preparation, a car was sent by a co teacher to pick me up and bring me to another school to teach for a day. This resulted in an argument, as I refused to break the contract, mainly beacuse it was against E2 Visa laws and could have reulted in trouble with both police and immigration, possibly ending in deportation, therefore derailing my future career aspirations.

Given the short notice I have been issued about this, having plans for my weekend along with the fact that I have behaved in a professional and trustworthy mannor at all times, working my hardest for the best of the school and how calm I have been about previous 'disorganisation' I urge you to reconsider what I believe to be an unreasonable request.

oskinny1 · Joined: 10 Nov 2006 Location: Right behind you!

First off, spell check. Second, get rid of anything negative about you. Lay out the facts and keep it to that. It is too long for anybody to want to read the whole thing.

Talk about the late notice and that you made plans (you do not have to be specific). State how the meetings are in Korean and you do not speak it.

TheChickenLover · Joined: 17 Dec 2007 Location: The Chicken Coop

Your letter sounds as unprofessional as the impression I've received from your writings.

Stick to the facts, leave emotion out of it.

Always be prepared to walk.

This letter sounds more like whining than anything else.

Chicken

DrOctagon · Joined: 11 Jun 2008 Location: Chicago

The school HAS, not have.

Voyeur · Joined: 19 Jun 2003

Do it once and make it clear that you will not do this regularly. If it is in your contract then you have to give a little.

kiknkorea · Joined: 16 May 2008

If it's in your contract you need to do it. You could kindly ask for more than 3 days notice next time. You could try to weasel out of it by explaining your situation since you already made plans in Seoul for the weekend and you would be glad to go on the next training day. Good luck.

Ya-ta Boy · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: Established in 1994

Simplify the vocabulary (deem, module) and the sentence length.

You need an introductory paragraph. As it is now, it sounds like the seminar is the real complaint and the rest of the letter sounds like a laundry list of complaints.

bobranger · Joined: 10 Jun 2008 Location: masan

Wow, you got a three day notice. Not bad for Korea

Voyeur

PRagic · Joined: 24 Feb 2006

Just go this time and suck it up. Remember that employer-employee relationships are not perceived the same here as they are where you are from, so the very fact that you are writing any letter to the boss will be deemed a no-no.

Or you can just do it the Korean way. Say you'll go, then don't. Provide an excuse (I was sick) and don't make a big deal out of it. DO make a big deal about going the NEXT time. You can worry about the next time later. Blow if off enough, and it'll just go away. The trick is to stay non-confrontational and to not challege anyone's authority over you or their 'face'.

ds_fan · Joined: 07 Apr 2008

to chicken lover- you emind me of spliff, a wise ass, i wasn't aware that i had to type everything on this forum in the queens english, and come accross as professional.

Yes there were mistakes, but I wrote it in about 5 minutes late last night and was planning on fixing it up.

To everyone else, granted it was a list of complaints, but that was the idea. I kept ,my cool about things, which is the only way to survive a hagwon. I keep a note of everything so to cover my ass, and when they don't expect it, if they push their luck, hammer them with it all. As you can see they clearly walk over me, and saying no usually does not seem to work. Iv had enough of them breaking the contract and was wanting to point out that their request was unreasonable and i wasnt going to stand for it.

I didn't send it in the end, as they let me off. Cool

PRagic · Joined: 24 Feb 2006

Repeat the Mantra: All Hakwon Jobs Suck

moosehead · Joined: 05 May 2007

something to keep in mind in the future - don't even bother with written communication in a hakwon - if you have a gripe (or more) call for a meeting, bring in a list if you must and refer to it - but let them do the writing

writing things down can come back and bite you - it can also open miscommunication doors you don't even want to deal with

glad things worked out for you this time, tho - hang in there and yes, that mantra is pretty accurate

yingwenlaoshi · Joined: 12 Feb 2007 Location: ... location, location!

I'd tell them to get bent.

blackjack · Joined: 04 Jan 2006 Location: anyang

Are the bosses Korean?

If so don't try to be subtle or any thing like that. Imagine you are writing to a 10 year old. State what your problem is and what you want and cut anything else out. You are writing to some one whose second language is English.

Kimbop · Joined: 31 Mar 2008

Your efforts are futile. Why would the franchise owners care about your cute little letter? Do you actually think you'll get a response? They're going to crumple it up and throw it away.

Be a man and call in sick that day. As for the rest of your problems, get used to them. Welcome to Korea.