Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Koreaboundandgagged]

Almost four years ago my family and I came to Korea. In two weeks we're leaving...how time flies! As such, I went to the pension office today to get the ball rolling only to find that my first employer (a now defunct foreign school in Jeonju--the larger, sister school is still open in Gwangju) only has my wife and I documented as working there for 10 months. Therefore, the pension office is only claiming that we're going to receive about 1.5 mil. from our two years there.

I have since contacted my former employer and am awaiting a response as she's in American with her famous-in-Korea American husband...a well-known TV celeb who was originally introduced to us as an "international attorney." Anyway, I've given her all the stats which she cannot deny; however, I'm curious as to whether anyone else has been in this sort of predicament before. If we weren't leaving in 17 days I wouldn't be so motivated to get the ball rolling....but damn!

What should we do if she denies this to us?

I'm quite sure she didn't deduct our 4.5% contribution our first years. Nonetheless, Korean labor law spells it out pretty clearly that the employer must match this amount. If we didn't contribute (which wouldn't have been OUR decision), I feel she must still owe to us the matching 4.5% HAD WE CONTRIBUTED as per Korean labor law. Any thoughts here? Basically, she's trying to screw us out of about 3/4 of our pensions.

Thanks for your help.

[Troglodyte]

I don't really have any advice to offer, but I'm very interested to know how it turns out. Please keep us updated on the situation. I know of several people who didn't get pension here from previous employers. If you are able to force your old employer to back pay it, I'm sure that a lot of people would like to know the details of how that worked.

[Juregen]

Do you have proof of being paid a wage for the entire period you have been there?

That is the only recourse you have to start the paper mill working.

Contact labour board, MoE and show them copies of your payments. ALso do not forget to show the proof to the pension office. Let these governement agencies do their work, but it is going to take time.

Ask MoE if they received an official word from the school that you no longer worked there, if yes, the person is liable for fraud on top of everything else.

But you need proof that you were paid for a longer period than that.
A bankbook with regular payments would do just fine.

[DHC]

If you were paid via your bank account, contact a labor relations attorney such as Jung Bong Soo, 010-2489-2179.

[OculisOrbis]

labor board or other government organizations can't/won't help you retrieve unpaid pension contributions from former employers. it is a pension issue and the only assistance you will get is from the pension office. local pension offices may try to brush you off when you go there to make a claim, but don't accept that - go to a major or the national branch office branch, they are more likely to help you follow through and get your money. you will end up getting your money and your former boss will get fined, but it may take a while. hopefully you'll be in korea long enough to see it through

gather any documents that might help your case - contracts, pay statements, bankbook records, etc. go to a pension office and try to get the process started, ask them if there is anything else you might be able to provide to strengthen your claim.

there is an English pension office number you can call to get more info, i believe it is 1355 and then 7 for English

there is more info on this site (specifically in the FAQ and Q&A):
http://nps.or.kr/jsppage/english/main.jsp

you check contributions that were made and the periods in which they were made and by which employer and the amounts - all of it can be found online, but you need a digital certificate (the same one for internet banking). there is a thread called 'pension refund and checking your balance' stickied in the job discussion board with instructions

[Young FRANKenstein]

[DHC]

If your employer deducted your half of then pension contribution and kept the money that is theft which is actionable in civil court. Proving it may be difficult without monthly pay slips showing the deduction.

[Young FRANKenstein]

[Koreaboundandgagged]

Thanks for all the informativge replies--especially your own experience Frankenstein. One question--it looks as though your uni wasn't deducting your contributions, which is the same case as our former foreign school is trying to pull (check 'em out--they've pulled this on everone it looks. Gwangju Foreign School is the place with the "reputable" famous foreigner Robert Holley at the reigns).

Anyhow, if I contact the head pension office in Jamsil, it sounds as if they'll be able to go to bat for us as well. And it looks as though it doesn't matter if they didn't deduct our contributions at the time? We have definiteve proof of what we were paid and the duration of payment as records from our previous bank. Furthermore, once I prove they misrepresented our income, the tax office is going to go after them as well for, well...tax evasion I reckon.

If we win this I bet a whole swarm of others will follow. Will keep you all updated. Cheers!

[Young FRANKenstein]