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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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 Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 6:05 am Post subject: Hagwon Forcing Teachers to Stay Past Contract |
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First off, apologies if this has been posted before. I assume it has but I searched and couldn't find anything similar.
Anyway, so my hagwon is attempting to make teachers stay past the date their contract is set to expire. Another foreign teacher and I have similar contracts, that end on the same day, however both of us were late getting here due to general visa delays. My school never had us sign a new contract, and when we asked, we were told we just go by when you arrived. This was all just a short time after we arrived and with so much time ahead of us, we didn't think anything of it. Fast forward to three months away from when we are set to leave and when my coworker approached my boss about using vacation days at the end of her contract to make it home for a wedding, she was told that she actually started working July 9th, not June 29th, her first day at the school, claiming that "training" does not count as working. Yet the training is such a joke that it shouldn't even be called training. My coworker is being cool about it, stating the best way to get revenge is to take more of their money, but I am preparing to put my foot down. I've put up with so much at my school and there's no way I'm staying longer than I should. Thoughts?
(Sorry this is so long.) |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 6:43 am Post subject: |
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| The first day of your contract starts either upon arrival to Korea or your first day on the job. It doesn't matter if you came later than the contract says. If you didn't start work until a different day, then that changes the end date of your contract. If it's just a few days, to a week I would think it isn't that much of a big deal. |
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 6:48 am Post subject: |
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| My coworker arrived on the 28th or 29th of June and they are trying to say she has to stay until July 9th. If it's a few days I won't bother but no way am I staying more than a week. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:08 am Post subject: |
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When did you arrive in country? If you arrived on 28 June 2012, then the expiration of the year-long contract is 27 June 2013. You entered the country on an employment visa, with your employer as your sponsor. They know full well what one year means and it's certainly not 370+ days.
Now, if you're working for one of those outfits that has you do unpaid training for a week upon arrival, you're simply screwed because you signed on with a bad outfit. There are probably other "iffy" practices going on.
If the employer does not pay you what's required, you'll have to go to the Labor Board and/or court. Good luck. |
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:14 am Post subject: |
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| CentralCali wrote: |
When did you arrive in country? If you arrived on 28 June 2012, then the expiration of the year-long contract is 27 June 2013. You entered the country on an employment visa, with your employer as your sponsor. They know full well what one year means and it's certainly not 375 days.
Now, if you're working for one of those outfits that has you do unpaid training for a week upon arrival, you're simply screwed because you signed on with a bad outfit. There are probably other "iffy" practices going on.
If the employer does not pay you what's required, you'll have to go to the Labor Board and/or court. Good luck. |
There isn't a word in my contract about training. For some reason my visa states my last date of entry is August 2nd and the visa was issued July 2nd. I arrived on July 12th though, first day of work was July 13th. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:20 am Post subject: |
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It doesn't matter what your first day of actual teaching was. Your first day on contract is the date you entered the country on the E-2 visa. Your year-long stint runs from 12 July 2012 to 11 July 2013. The bit in the contract about "last date of entry" is simply to advise you that your entry (and employment) will begin before that date; if it didn't, then the school presumably would've rescind the employment offer.
Are you aware of the practice of 11th month firings? If you have more than one month left on your contract and the employer doesn't want to pay what's required, they'll just can you before you enter that magic 12th month of employment. Rock the boat before then and you can forget about return airfare to your home country and severance pay. What you can do, on the other hand, is wait until you're well into the 12th month of your contract and then discuss things with your boss. Tell him straight up that he's off his rocker and you're going to every government office concerned if he doesn't pony up what he owes you on the last date of employment: one year after the date you entered the country, not that 12 1/2 month malarkey. If he cans you then, you're golden at the Labor Board. |
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:26 am Post subject: |
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| CentralCali wrote: |
It doesn't matter what your first day of actual teaching was. Your first day on contract is the date you entered the country on the E-2 visa. Your year-long stint runs from 12 July 2012 to 11 July 2013. The bit in the contract about "last date of entry" is simply to advise you that your entry (and employment) will begin before that date; if it didn't, then the school presumably would've rescind the employment offer.
Are you aware of the practice of 11th month firings? If you have more than one month left on your contract and the employer doesn't want to pay what's required, they'll just can you before you enter that magic 12th month of employment. Rock the boat before then and you can forget about return airfare to your home country and severance pay. What you can do, on the other hand, is wait until you're well into the 12th month of your contract and then discuss things with your boss. Tell him straight up that he's off his rocker and you're going to every government office concerned if he doesn't pony up what he owes you on the last date of employment: one year after the date you entered the country, not that 12 1/2 month malarkey. If he cans you then, you're golden at the Labor Board. |
Yeah, I'm aware of 11 month firings. My school is actually pretty good about that; several teachers have left while I have been here and they had no problems. That's sort of what I'm debating right now though. Should I bring it up now and make it known and risk my last three months or wait until the end and take my chances... |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:27 am Post subject: |
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| I'd think bringing it up now would greatly increase your risk of not making it to the 12-month mark. |
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:30 am Post subject: |
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| Yeah...like I said they are good about not pulling that, but it's risky, regardless. I just figured bringing it up now would give them time to realize I'm serious and that they need to have a teacher lined up because I'm not staying past my contract. |
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Weigookin74
Joined: 26 Oct 2009
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 1:32 am Post subject: Re: Hagwon Forcing Teachers to Stay Past Contract |
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| hatfiejl wrote: |
First off, apologies if this has been posted before. I assume it has but I searched and couldn't find anything similar.
Anyway, so my hagwon is attempting to make teachers stay past the date their contract is set to expire. Another foreign teacher and I have similar contracts, that end on the same day, however both of us were late getting here due to general visa delays. My school never had us sign a new contract, and when we asked, we were told we just go by when you arrived. This was all just a short time after we arrived and with so much time ahead of us, we didn't think anything of it. Fast forward to three months away from when we are set to leave and when my coworker approached my boss about using vacation days at the end of her contract to make it home for a wedding, she was told that she actually started working July 9th, not June 29th, her first day at the school, claiming that "training" does not count as working. Yet the training is such a joke that it shouldn't even be called training. My coworker is being cool about it, stating the best way to get revenge is to take more of their money, but I am preparing to put my foot down. I've put up with so much at my school and there's no way I'm staying longer than I should. Thoughts?
(Sorry this is so long.) |
What's the last date on your visa. Don't overstay that date, whatever you do or get an extention. |
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 3:28 am Post subject: Re: Hagwon Forcing Teachers to Stay Past Contract |
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| Weigookin74 wrote: |
| What's the last date on your visa. Don't overstay that date, whatever you do or get an extention. |
For whatever reason, it's August 2nd even though my visa started July 2nd. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 3:55 am Post subject: |
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| hatfiejl wrote: |
| My coworker arrived on the 28th or 29th of June and they are trying to say she has to stay until July 9th. If it's a few days I won't bother but no way am I staying more than a week. |
Just be aware that, under labor law, if you actually work (teach) for less than a FULL CALENDAR YEAR they can legally deny your severance.
Are you prepared to risk your flight home and severance over a couple days of work?
Are you willing to stay for a couple of months (with no job or income) to see it through a labor board tribunal?
| Weigookin74 wrote: |
| What's the last date on your visa. Don't overstay that date, whatever you do or get an extention. |
The visa is not relevant. It is the dates on the ARC that count.
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hatfiejl
Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Location: Ohio
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 5:51 am Post subject: |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
| hatfiejl wrote: |
| My coworker arrived on the 28th or 29th of June and they are trying to say she has to stay until July 9th. If it's a few days I won't bother but no way am I staying more than a week. |
Just be aware that, under labor law, if you actually work (teach) for less than a FULL CALENDAR YEAR they can legally deny your severance.
Are you prepared to risk your flight home and severance over a couple days of work?
Are you willing to stay for a couple of months (with no job or income) to see it through a labor board tribunal? |
I'm not going to risk it over a few days, but they are trying to make us stay 2-3 weeks past when our contract says we are supposed to. The problem is that because we were both late, we were told that we just go based on when we started, yet they never said teaching a class is the only thing that constitutes as working. I was working right away, grading essays and teaching privates, just not full on classes. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 7:18 am Post subject: |
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| Date of entry into the country with them as your sponsors is the beginning date of employment. If the boss doesn't like that, then he needs to take it up with his government. He doesn't need to shaft you. |
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some waygug-in
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sat Mar 30, 2013 8:27 am Post subject: |
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As long as he pays you, what are you worried about?
I don't see what the big deal is. You said your visa expires on Aug 2.
Unless you have some pressing issues back home that you need to leave
earlier, why not just work the extra time? |
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