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robbie_davies
Joined: 16 Jun 2013
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 Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 3:26 am Post subject: Re: reference letters |
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| Mr Lee's Monkey wrote: |
| My first year in Korea, 2007, I completed a contract at a hagwon and got a glowing reference letter from the director. On my way out of town, I stopped by the pension office. My wages had been inaccurately reported - 2.4M was reported as 800,000. The deductions had been based on the 2.4M. I returned for a second year and stupidly used the glowing reference. When a prospective employer called the director, he said I was the biggest piece of crap that ever taught for him. Pay your nickel, take your chance. |
Gotta admit though, you were a bit daft using that reference when you dropped that school in the shite. I am not saying you were wrong to do that by the way but you must have known you were taking a risk by using a reference of a school that you flamed. |
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byrddogs
Joined: 19 Jun 2009
Location: Shanghai
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 4:34 am Post subject: |
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| If you want to bounce around from job to job without ever finishing contracts like YTMND (chinatimes) then maybe he can give some insight (doubtful) as he is the master of it. Most people ignore him both on this site and the China version of this site. The funny thing is that he is always giving advice here yet is always asking for advice there. |
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Mr Lee's Monkey
Joined: 24 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:01 am Post subject: robbie-davies |
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I didn't "flame" anyone. I suspect you are not from a country that is eligible for pension benefits, and have never been through the process.
I had only worked for one year in Korea, so it was my only reference. I worked really hard to complete the contract. I would never have tolerated that year had I not been new and green. I couldn't and wouldn't hide the fact that I'd worked the year in Korea when applying to new schools. Back then, I thought it was possible that a prospective employer would question why the director gave me the letter at the end of the contract and then changed his tune. Regardless, I didn't flame anyone or drop anyone anywhere. Thanks for telling me what I must have known. If you put yourself in my situation at the time instead of standing back judging it with your limited frame of reference, what would you have done about a reference for the first year? |
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robbie_davies
Joined: 16 Jun 2013
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:09 am Post subject: Re: robbie-davies |
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| Mr Lee's Monkey wrote: |
| I didn't "flame" anyone. I suspect you are not from a country that is eligible for pension benefits, and have never been through the process. |
We are probably from the same country!  Probably been through the same process.
| Quote: |
| I had only worked for one year in Korea, so it was my only reference. I worked really hard to complete the contract. I would never have tolerated that year had I not been new and green. I couldn't and wouldn't hide the fact that I'd worked the year in Korea when applying to new schools. Back then, I thought it was possible that a prospective employer would question why the director gave me the letter at the end of the contract and then changed his tune. Regardless, I didn't flame anyone or drop anyone anywhere. Thanks for telling me what I must have known. If you put yourself in my situation at the time instead of standing back judging it with your limited frame of reference, what would you have done about a reference for the first year? |
Look man, no-one is saying you shouldn't have reported them and you were right to do it but you have must have known - surely - that if you were going to use that reference thereafter, then they were going to go and call you black?
I am not talking about taking the moral highground - you have it - what I would have done? I would have explained to the interviewer what happened and if they then would have cast you off because of it then it would have been no big loss, any honest interviewer would have understood why you did what you did.
But to use a reference of a school when you reported them (rightly) to the authorities is just bloody silly. What were you expecting? Did you really think you were going to get a glowing reference off them?
And that's not hindsight - just plain commonsense! |
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Mr Lee's Monkey
Joined: 24 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:23 am Post subject: look man |
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I didn't "report" anyone. That and all your bloodies and shites are why I think you don't have a clue.
I went to apply for my pension - the normal process at the time on the way out of the country for a month or more - and the pension officer discovered what the director had done. I had no idea, and even after I left the pension office and flew home, I didn't know the director would be fined. In the meantime, I sent a reference I earned and deserved - the only one I had to account for my time in Korea - to prospective employers.
This isn't about moral high ground. This is about how ridiculous the reference letter circus is. But thanks for some more judgement, oh arbiter of common sense. |
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robbie_davies
Joined: 16 Jun 2013
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:30 am Post subject: Re: look man |
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| Mr Lee's Monkey wrote: |
I didn't "report" anyone. That and all your bloodies and shites are why I think you don't have a clue.
I went to apply for my pension - the normal process at the time on the way out of the country for a month or more - and the pension officer discovered what the director had done. I had no idea, and even after I left the pension office and flew home, I didn't know the director would be fined. In the meantime, I sent a reference I earned and deserved - the only one I had to account for my time in Korea - to prospective employers.
This isn't about moral high ground. This is about how ridiculous the reference letter circus is. But thanks for some more judgement, oh arbiter of common sense. |
Doesn't matter if you actually reported them or you didn't. They got hauled over the coals and you were stupid enough to use their reference for a future job and they got their own back.
Nobody with a bit of commonsense would have used that reference - it is as simple as that. Next - you are going to squawk about life not being 'fair'.
I do have more commonsense that you by the looks of it - I wouldn't have used a reference letter after something like that went down. Just as long as you learned from it, then move on.  |
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Mr Lee's Monkey
Joined: 24 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:32 am Post subject: |
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| The operative word is simple - you got that down, bro. |
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robbie_davies
Joined: 16 Jun 2013
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| Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:38 am Post subject: |
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| Mr Lee's Monkey wrote: |
| The operative word is simple - you got that down, bro. |
Not so simple as to let a former employer of mine put one over me like yours did to you! |
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