Korean Job Discussion Forums

[etude]

[I apologize in advance for the long post - those who can bear with me and read through everything & offer me some help, I will be very grateful.]

So here�s my situation:

I am a �Kyopo� (Korean American) and was a part of the administration at the hagwon I was teaching at on a F-4 visa. Because I was fluent in both Korean and English and graduated from a �name brand� university, the admin was happy to have me on their team. Thing is, the admin also treated me differently because although I was American born & raised, they expected me to abide by the stringent rules of Korean upbringing � which includes submissiveness to �elders & authority�.

A lot of things were thrown at me and I made a lot of mistakes. I know that a lot of what I�m going to complain about was really my fault � I should�ve been more assertive and proactive, but being a female woman in a male-dominant Korean society made that very difficult at times.

First things first, I never signed a contract. Verbally, the terms of my contract were discussed, but I never physically signed anything (I know, the warning signs were there from the beginning�). If we�re going along the terms of this �imaginary contract�, the hagwon broke many of their promises throughout my 14-month term. I can probably list 100+ complaints, but here are just the major ones:

1. I was an administrator just to be a cover model. Bluntly put, I looked good on paper. I had the educational background that Korean moms drooled over and I was able to speak both Korean and English fluently. I would be the one speaking with parents, batting my eyelashes and telling them that we had the best English program and that if they brought poor little Jun Ho to our hagwon, he would be reading Hemingway by the fifth grade. As a result, when things got thrown back to my face, I had to alleviate Mrs. Kim and pray to God that she wouldn�t quit. Otherwise Mr. Hagwon President would give you a three-hour lecture on selling our product (I mean, our program) to parents.

2. I had to lie to parents. This is something that doesn�t necessarily go against my contract, but it was basically a part of what came with my job. I didn�t believe in our program. I didn�t believe in the BS that I had to tell parents. But when Mr. Hagwon President is leering over your shoulder, and shouting at you following every phone call, you start feeling bullied and helpless.

3. Speaking of Mr. Hagwon President � he was (and still is) and absolute @$$. He is the most belittling, condescending man I have ever met. He screams and threatens (really, he does) at all his staff, and uses this macho-man attitude to control everyone. I guess it works because everyone listens to him. Those who can�t handle it, quit.

4. I wasn�t supposed to be working Saturdays. If I had a class, I would only have to come in and teach (then I could leave) but they had promised �to try their best not to schedule classes on Saturday�. That never happened. In fact, I worked every damn Saturday I was there (See #5)

5. I never got vacation days. Often, we had to even work on national holidays (during our intensive seasonal sessions), but I didn�t even get my basic five vacation days. Referring back to number 4, the ONLY time I got a Saturday off was because I had to get SURGERY; I was back at work on Monday.

6. They made me do a lot of b*tchwork. By this, I mean things that were never mentioned in my job description. I know this is something that probably a lot of people end up having to do, but without going into specific details, I was basically DOING kids� homework and WRITING their college application essays. That goes against my morals and is simply not cool.

7. On the lines of b*tchwork, this also included my difficult position as the liaison between the admin and staff. Explain to me why the admin should not have to speak English. From simple, arbitrary minor announcements to fabulous �Hey, guess what? You have to come in on that holiday!� notices � I had to be the bearer of (usually bad) news. It wasn�t that bad in the beginning, but our admin (the top ppl at that) started getting really disorganized and for a moment it really seemed like the hagwon was falling apart. The teachers began to have major complaints, and they would come to me. I would relay those messages to the top admin, who in turn would basically look at me and say, �What do you want us to do about it?� And selfishly, since I knew that if these teachers quit, I would have to take over their classes, I would beg them to stay. And of course, they were miserable. That was basically when I had enough and told them that I was going to quit at the end of the month.

8. My housing was provided, but it was a damn hole in the wall and it was COMPLETELY unfurnished. I had to buy all my furniture on my own, and because the place was such a piece of crap, I had to repaint and re-floor it myself.

Which brings me to my big issue.

I was told that I would have to pay for gas and electricity myself (is that normal?) But the landlord of my building doesn�t have people pay their gas & electricity until the end of their contract (beats me why he does this). He pays for it first, then when you return your key, you pay your gas & elect. But by the time it came for me to move out, I was furious with the hagwon and was contriving plans to ruin them.

But, in reality, I�m not that bold of a person so I chose an immature way to get my revenge: I didn�t pay. I packed all my bags, left the key in the doorway, and came to America.

It�s been about a month since then, and NOW they have just contacted me about it. I�m guessing that they hadn�t told the landlord when I was leaving and so by chance they had to contact each other about something and that�s when they realized that the gas & electricity hadn�t been paid. The admins e-mailed me about it, saying I had to pay around 950,000KRW for the entire year.

In my spite, I responded to them with something along the lines of: Hey guys, I never had a contract with you. Guess you gotta deal with it on your own. Tough luck.

What I want to know is: is there any LEGAL trouble that I can get into if I don�t pay? Meaning, what�s the worst that can happen if I decide not to pay?

I can go on about all the little things that this hagwon did to make my life miserable, but I�ll stop here. I apologize if a lot of this sounds like I�m blabbering, but more than anything, I�m really frustrated and want to finally get my way � even if it means like this. Thanks a lot to anyone who can offer me some help.

[ttompatz]

What I want to know is: is there any LEGAL trouble that I can get into if I don�t pay? Meaning, what�s the worst that can happen if I decide not to pay?

As long as you are out of the country there is NOTHING they can do to you other than send whiny e=mails full of idol threats.

If you return to Korea they could threaten to sue you BUT
a) how will they know you are back (they weren't your sponsor so there is no visa issue).
b) they will be hard pressed to prove any liability.

Tell them to pee up a rope and then get on with your life.

.

[TheChickenLover]

In Korea, a VERBAL contract is not legal, only a signed one. However a signed contract is just a 'general understanding' so it won't help you much either.

IF you had the apartment registered in YOUR name as well as the utilities, then you should pay them as long as the super provides copies of the bills that have been notarized and apostilled. You will then take 3 weeks to consider their validity before replying to him whether you will pay or not.

IF NOT, then the person who is LEGALLY on the hook is the landlord. You have nothing to fear and let them threaten all they want. Just point to the name which isn't yours and you are very right to say you are not liable for those expenses (which they can write off some taxes with, which is why he keeps them all in his name).

Welcome to Korea! You got sparkled F-4 style and now they want more cash. Tell them to *beep* off and enjoy your next adventure here.

Chicken

[jadarite]

First thing, stop communicating with them. I know the vindictive side of you wants to see a reaction and turn the tables around. However, there is no mountaintop high enough to see the evil ones suffering.

So, move on.

If they could have collected on the money without contacting you, they would have.

I didn't read your whole diatribe, but they should have gotten a security deposit and used it. Shame on them.

[jdog2050]

actually, the whole "...so you've just quit and we're nailing you with a giant gas bill" is a fairly common "shitty-hagwon" tactic.

If you were on an E2 visa they'd have used that to bully a new teacher. However, since you were on an F4, *and* you're already out of the country, boo-hoo for them.