Korean Job Discussion Forums

[stevieg4ever]

This is what article 13.5 of the SMOE contract states:

"If the aggregate period of extending the term of Employment persuant to Atricle 10 is more than one (1) calendar year, Employer shall pay Employee one month salary as a severance pay".

Apart from not really understanding what this says and means, more than one year?? WTF???

Can anyone clarify or shed some light on this please? The Korean says at least one year (이상) but I wanted to see what others have to say nonetheless.

[lifeinkorea]

Sounds like they only want to pay 2 years worth of severance. So, if you were to work into your 3rd year, they don't want to pay you more. They would rather get another teacher I guess. That's how I am reading the following part: "extending the term .... more than one (1) calendar year"

The following part makes it sound like they only want to pay 1 years worth of severance even if it goes past a year: "Employer shall pay Employee one month salary as a severance pay"

If I were right with the first part, it would make more sense to say 2 months salary. However, only paying for one year doesn't seem right or fair. I can understand how they would want to put a limit though after 2 years.

[OculisOrbis]

The wording of the contract violates korean law so it is void. Contract clauses can provide more benefits than the law, but are not valid as soon as they provide less than the legal minimum.

Read other threads on Dave's about severance for more details, but the basics of the law are:

To be eligible for a severance payment, you must work for one full one year.

If a severance payment is made, the one year clock resets to zero and you must complete another full year to be eligible for a another payment.

If you work one full year and the payment is not made, then every day of work after the first year is pro-rated, in addition to the one year payment.

Severance is calculated using the average daily wage that includes overtime and other payments. The daily average is calculated from your last three months of work (with a few exceptions).

The relevant law is the Retirement Benefit Security Act. Here: http://www.moleg.go.kr/english/korLawEng;jsessionid=CDvIM8JMgXVFLqtREt1Mzsar1KUmhekhXgkCjVK7pUzvLaWrr4gHbs73LUXC6Oat?pstSeq=47471&pageIndex=69

[Chalmers]

so if you work for smoe for two years...you get 2 months severance when you leave or just one?

[b-class rambler]

This has come up on here before. The wording of the English translation is clumsy but the Korean - the part that's legally binding - is clear and doesn't violate Korean law at all.

Basically, it's completely as it should be. If you renew for another year, you get an extra month's severance at the end. If you renew three times, you'll get 3 months extra severance when you leave (obviously in addition to the month's worth for your first year).

I've known about a dozen people who've worked for SMOE for 3 years and or more and then moved on elsewhere and not a single one of them has reported any problems getting the correct amount of severance when they eventually left.

SMOE does have a policy of paying severance when you finally leave after however many years, not after each individual year. But, for most people, that's an advantage as you get more money as a result.

[lifeinkorea]

[b-class rambler]

[quote="lifeinkorea"]

[lifeinkorea]

[quote="b-class rambler"]

[kraggy]

I started in April. I signed a contract up to next Feb 29th.

i.e 10 months.

I had to sign a waiver that stated that I understood that I wouldn't get severance unless I signed another contract for 6 months.

So, to get my severance, I will have to have worked 16 months.

Now, will I get 1 years severance pay or 1.3 years severance?

[OculisOrbis]

If they payout the severance after 12 months, you get 1 year's worth, nothing else at the end of the 16th month..

If they hold the payout until the end of 16th month, you are supposed get approx. 1.3 years worth of severance.

[b-class rambler]