Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Faunaki]

Hi,

I'm pregnant and have just started a new contract as of March with SMOE. I've a couple of questions:

1. My school knows I'm pregnant and has asked for a substitute but SMOE has said there are none. Is this normal procedure or is it possible to get one?

2. The SMOE contract states that employees will received mat pay for 2 months. Is the mat pay the normal salary an employee gets or is it a set sum?

3. The contract also states that employees will get 3 months leave but actually it's not enough as I plan to stop work at 34 weeks and begin again after baby is three months. Basically I need four months off. Has anyone been able to use all of their vacation days plus three months together?

4. Would it be possible to just take one semester off, get a substitute or new teacher for the school and then return to SMOE but go to a different school? The only problem being that renewal, etc. happens in the fall semester for March beginners.

Thanks for any help.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

There are no substitute foreign teachers and three months is what a Korean gets off. When is your due date? If it's during or just before summer, it may be possible to work something out for your school for an extra month.

Sorry but you picked a country that doesn't have great maternity benefits.

[Faunaki]

My due date is Sept. 02. I'm hoping my school will let me take August off as vacation and then Sept, Oct, Nov as three months mat leave.

I feel a bit bad for my school and wish that I could take 6 months off so that they could find a new teacher and then I could come back to a different school. Our school is really small and all the teachers have full loads so my leaving without a sub is gonna put a lot of pressure on all of them.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

That might just work. During summer you could perhaps arrange just to come in and put in a bit of 'face time' here and there, and then start your mat. leave the first day of school (likley around 17-21 August).

Of course, it will all depend on whether your school likes you or not.

[prairieboy]

Under Korean labor law you are entitled to a minimum of 3 months maternity leave. 2 months of which is at full pay from your employer and the third month is half pay with the other half picked up by the government.

I don't know how that would work for a foreign English teacher but under the law your only entitled to 3 months.

[Faunaki]

[OculisOrbis]

Korean labor law supersedes any contract or edict from your employer.

[Mr. Pink]

I think my co-worker got screwed big time if Korean labour law states the employer must pay for maternity leave. She took 3 months off and got paid NOTHING for those months. This was about 7 years ago.

Also my wife didn't get paid for maternity leave either. They kind of forced her to quit, which was pretty shitty.

Good luck OP, don't let them screw you over!!!

[Faunaki]

Bump