Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rhian]

Where shall I begin?

I am due to finish my year's contract in three weeks. The q of severance has come up.

My boss is acting shocked that I am expecting severance.

He has produced a contract which says I will not be recieving severance.

This is not the contract I signed and sent to the recruiter. The boss says that the recruiter changed it and showed us both different versions. My boss denies ever having seen my contract (despite the fact that I made him sign it when I got here and have produced it several times since).

Conveniently for all but me, the recruiter says he only has the contract my boss is going by. This contract, it now appears, is the one my boss sent to immigration- complete with my forged signature, which he maintains was a necessary act in order that he could get my visa.

M & M at the recruiters now say that my boss had told them he would not be paying severance, but instead upping my salary of 1.9 p/m to 2 mill, thereby inc the severance in the wage. This is,of course, not what they said in the numerous emails they sent me (which i have saved, thankfully), or in my contract.

WTF?

This is all very stoopid and annoying and yes, I have been naiive, but still, can anyone offer any pearls of wisdom on this?!

[davyteacher]

Go to the labor office ASAP and just discuss it out with them. Good idea in keeping your emails, show them those.

[peppermint]

Talk to the people at EFL LAW- ( see the banner ^) and then get on the phone with the labor board. You're in the right with this, but it might take some time to sort out.

Good Luck!

[mindmetoo]

I assumed the 1 month bonus was a legal mandate for all hagwon contract foreign teachers.

[turtlepi1]

I would tell the boss it is unfortunate that the recruiter screwed you both.
Tell the boss you are going to speak with the labour board and try to figure it out. Make it sound like you feel bad that the recruiter screwed you both and that you are angry with the recruiter not the boss.

I bet the boss offers to pay it to you...why? Because he is trying to screw you and won't want the labour board involved.

In the off chance it really is the recruiter...(not likely unless it is a new hogwan...owners know it is the law they pay severance.)...you don't blow out the owner over something that isn't his fault.

[prairieboy]

I like turtlepi1's way of dealing with this situation. It gives your boss a chance to do the right thing and the obligated thing.

As Grotto points out, he has to pay severance anyway. You have your signed contract, right? So, start preparing for a worst case scenario now in case the director doesn't pay up. Write down everything that has happened regarding this situation starting with the first contract you received and signed. Put everything in chronological order. This will help when you go before the labour board and it will be a form of evidence if you should have to take this matter to small claims court.

Be truthful and don't embelish the story.

The main piece of evidence you'll have is the contract you signed. If your signature was signed/forged on a contract that was presented to Immigration then there is the possibility of bringing this charge against your employer or the recruiter should the need arise.

Agreeing to a contract does not imply you have agreed to letting another person apply your signature to a document with the same contents let alone different contents. Especially in light of the fact that you received a contract for your signature, as you stated, and returned it to the recruiter.

Cheers and good luck.

[davyteacher]

Also, forgot to mention, also leave a message with the Ministry of Education because they can have a word as well. Don`t know the website but they`ve influenced a situation I had.

[Real Reality]

You may find your Employer does not pay you your monthly salary or final severance pay.
First select the Labor Office that is responsible for your area of employment. You attend at the Labor Office. Take with you all documents relevant to the problem - contract/passport/citizen's card/past payment sheets/bank book with pay in details of wages. Indeed go with a Korean translator. You inform the Labor Officer of the problem. They will ask you to complete the form. (It must be completed in Korean)
The Labor Officer will then investigate the matter.
EFL LAW
http://www.efl-law.com/faqans_lab-off.html

hellofaniceguy wrote,
"I feel bad. Tried to cover all bases and still get shafted."
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=29774

Foreigners Experience Difficulties in Living in Korea
An official in the International Cooperation Division of Seoul City admitted, "The same complaints regarding visas, transportation, education, and environment are raised every year without being solved, due to the lack of cooperation from government agencies involved and their passive attitudes."
by Jae-Dong Yu and Soo-Jung Shin
http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2004070522448

[rhian]

Sorry if that was unclear. The original job offer from the recruiter was for 2 mill a month, with an additional 2 mill on completion of the contract.

This is down in my contract and I have the emails, too.

There is also a tax issue. My director has not been taking tax, claiming that he has been paying it with the intention of deducting it from my severance pay.

It just gets worse!

Also, as I commenced work on Dec 15th 2003, and will be finishing Dec 10th 2004 (before my plane ticket expires), can they get sticky as to number of days worked being maybe one or two off?

So, the general opinion is that it's my director who's at fault? I wish I knew.

Best hold off til payday (tue) and then bring up the labor board etc.

Thanks for all the info, I do feel more confident now that this can be resolved.

[chronicpride]

Rhian,

The reality of it all, is that there is no one in your camp. The school has engaged in forgery and tax avoidance. The recruiter made a deal with the school, without your knowledge.

You have to go to the labor board, and bring a Korean friend, if possible, for clear translation of facts. Bring all of your emails with school and recruiter, and your signed contract.

If the situation is clearly explained to the labor board, they will be firmly in your camp. Don't worry about the illegal visa/jail story that another poster mentioned. That scenario occurs in extreme cases involving flagrant violation by the foreigner. Not in scenarios, like this, where the sponsor is in violation. In addition to bringing a friend to Labor board, bring efl-law into your camp. Email him about this in detail. He often goes out of his way for these types of situations.

Do NOT wait until your last payday to see if it all comes out rosy, as then you will have visa complications. Ie., you will have to get the dispute resolved out of the country, or you'll have to come back and sit on a tourist visa and sit it out.

As I mentioned, there is no one in your camp, at present, that is looking after you, and therefore, no reason to expect any positive outcome.

I'd let your recruiter and school hang out to dry, for assuming that you are a naive push-over. Get in touch with EFL-Law asap, as in this weekend, and also bring a Korean friend, who speaks english well, into your camp.

And remember, you have nothing to worry about, as you have done nothing wrong. But if you sit on your hands and do not get some representation, it could get murky.

[rhian]

Thanks for that, I'll get on to it asap.

[davyteacher]

Rhian,

I`ve been through all of this (if you read my post on the efl-law forum, my story with the evil director, quite a long one qctually). The director refused to pay me for a month`s work and when I went to the Labour Office she just hung up on them when they contacted her, they are the middle men, believe me I`ve been there (I had my Korean wife as translator). My wife wrote to the government via the government website, they contacted the Ministry of Education and they visited the director.

She was more scared of them because it took a month with the Labour Office and she didn`t care what they thought because they arranged meetings with her in which she didn`t turn up and tried to contact her in which she hung up the phone. After everything was sorted I got a letter from the Ministry of Education with a copy of her bank account showing that she paid me (proof) and was I satisfied with the outcome ( all in Korean but my wife read it). It was MORE than the Labour Office did because they suggested to go to the Small Claims court when she refused to meet them and they said their hands were tied and were helpless in this situation.

NOW, my director contacted us asking why we went to the Ministry of Education (or Government) and she was more peeved off with that than us going to the Labour Office (she must know the ins and out of the Labour Office and wasn`t scared) and didn`t expect the ministry or government.

I`m not a lawyer or an expert at this so I don`t want anyone coming on whining and saying he`s wrong bla bla but I have had experience in it and hoping to give some advice. Anyway, if you choose to do it you need to go to www.president.go.kr and ask a Korean to fill it out (it has an English section, but in this it doesn`t have any contact information). Scroll down the page and on the bottom right it has a picture of a pencil (obviously to write something) and click on that, if you can read Korean it says : Internet Shin Moon Go (then follow the procedures, all in Korean but get your friend to do it):.

If you don`t have anyone to translate your story into Korean, send it to me via email in Word and I can translate it and send it. Now, I`ve had a good response from them, so I`m hoping they do the same with yours, but I cannot promise. Anyhow, I know how you feel and good luck with it.

[schwa]

Am I the only one concerned about Grotto's mental health? You could use some help, man. Seriously.

[chronicpride]

Rhian,

If you are still reading this, please refrain from digesting the above pissing match and applying it into your situation. You came here looking for practical, straightforward advice and the above argument is a splinter of an ongoing grudge match that doesn't apply to you and your situation, from a direct advice perspective. Please heed the more applicable advice given earlier from myself, Peppermint, Turtlepi, and Prairieboy, as I feel it is more useful to navigate your urgent situation with.

PS. Gord and Grotto, the lengths that you guys are going to thump your chests and assert your male pride, is potentially confusing and complicating, to tangible advice-seeking OPs, therefore, you are at risk of making a situation worse. And don't assume that every member is actively interested in watching you guys slug it out in every job advice thread.

Please get over yourselves asap and act responsible on the advice threads. Have it out in PM or Off-Topic or Current Events, where it doesn't matter who is reading it. Here, murky or confusing advice could negatively affect an advice-seeker's job and life.

PPS. The OP is a 'she', not a 'he', not like you care, at this point.

[schwa]

For the record I'm not a big Gord fan (though he keeps his cool in an argument) nor am I against homophilia per se. The entertainment value is quite grand though on a slow sunday afternoon, keep at it guys! *Hiss, scratch, yank*