Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Incognito]

Here is the sample contract my recruiter (Niki from Easy English Consulting a.k.a. eze365) sent me a few weeks ago. The header of the contract reads EPIK. I questioned her about this also and she stated that GEPIK uses the same format as EPIK and that I would get an official GEPIK contract when it is time to sign. Anyway, here is the contract if anyone would like to have a look:
__________________________________________________________

CONTRACT FOR 2005 ENGLISH PROGRAM IN KOREA

The following contract is an Employment Agreement between _______________________,the native teacher and _______________High School

1. Period of Employment
The High School will employ the native teacher for the following dates.
From 1st of March 2005 To 28th of February 2005

2. Schedule
A. Working hours are as follows: 9;00-5;00 pm, Monday to Friday and shall not work on Saturdays, Sundays and any National Holidays of Republic of Korea
B. If needed, the teacher can request to leave the premise of the school during working hours and should consult with a supervisor beforehand.
C. Actual in-class instruction hours are set for 22, 50 min classes per week and any additional classes exceed these number of classes due to supplementary class instruction, the teacher is entitled to get paid Over-Time at a rate of 20,000 Korean Won for each 50 min. class after 22 classes. The teacher has a right to refuse any over-time duty that exceed more than (35) class time.

3. Pay
The teacher will be hired into 3 different bracket following the below category.
�� 1st level English Language Instructor(ELI)
�� 2nd level ELI /
�� 3rd level ELI]

A. The school will pay a monthly salary of _______________ Korean Won to the teacher.
B. 3~6 % tax deduction will be withheld by the Korean Government. Over time rate for each hour will be 20,000won but Employee has the right to refuse overtime.
C. Employer will be paid on the 10th of each month for the duration of the contract
D. On completion of 12 months contract, employee will receive the amount of extra one-month salary as a bonus)

4. Work Place
A. The teacher will work at the school as well as the Office of Ministry of Education if requested.
B. Again, the school may ask the teacher to work at the Provincial Office of Education, Teacher��s training center or other educational setting while the school is in recess.
C. In this case, the school shall not claim any additional pay other than the monthly salary.

5. Airfare
A. The school agrees to provide the teacher a round trip ticket.
B. Initial airfare to Korea will be reimbursed to the teacher upon submitting the receipt of the ticket and at the end of the contract the school will purchase the return ticket to the teacher.
C. For a local hire, the school will provide a cost for a visa run to other country for the teacher to obtain a proper working visa.
D. However, in the event the teacher fails to complete the full contract term, he or she will reimburse the school the cost of the said airfare.

6. Accommodation
A. The teacher can choose to have a non-shared one-room studio provided by the school or receive a housing subsidy for 300,000 Korean won.
B. The school is responsible for housing rent and the teacher is responsible for the payment of utility bills.
C. Once the teacher chooses the type of housing condition, it will stay the same throughout the contract.
D. The school will provide appliances and furniture such as a bed, bed line, table and chairs, a closet, a gas range, a refrigerator, a washing machine, a microwave, and a TV set. The teacher shall not request or demand any other appliances or furniture than those provided by Employer.

7. Insurance
A. Medical Insurance Plan from an insurance company or Korean Government will be offered to the teacher. The school will pay 50% of the monthly premium and the teacher will pay for the other 50%.
B. The teacher��s portion of the monthly premium will be deducted from salary. Dental and pre-existing conditions are not included.

8. Instructor's duties
A. The teacher shall not behave in any manner, which may damage or tarnish the reputation of the teaching profession. The teacher shall comply with and observe any codes of conduct applicable to Korean teachers.
B. The teacher shall not engage in any other job (including a part-time job) during the term of employment
C. The teacher shall not be involved in any activities, which may cause harm to the students or be of detriment to the reputation of the school.
D. At no times should the teacher display any misconduct towards the students.

9. Holidays/annual leave/tardiness notification procedures
A. There are 13-15 days of National Holiday and the teacher will be off with pay on these days.
B. Annual vacation: The teacher will have 7 days in summer and 7 days in winter vacation and require to give at least 7 days notice in advance to the school.
C. Unpaid leave: Unpaid leave is permitted only under extreme and unusual circumstance. Extreme and unusual circumstance includes, but not limited to, serious illness of self or death of the immediate family member. Upon presentation of proper notice and proof to the school, the teacher may be granted up to seven days of unpaid leave.
D. Sick leave: The teacher is permitted up to 3 days of paid sick leave per year. Unused sick leave may not be taken as annual leave. In order to be eligible for paid sick leave, when the teacher is unable to attend class due to illness, he or she shall notify the school with an accompanying proof of illness from a physician, at least a half an hour prior to the commencement of the class. If the teacher fails to notify the school with proper of illness, the school will deduct one day's pay for every day the employee is absent from work.

10. Release from contract
Both parties have the right to make the contract null and void less than one of the following circumstances:
A. The health of the teacher is such that it is deemed impossible for him or her to continue work
B. Blatant misconduct by the teacher either professionally or otherwise
C. The teacher or his or her dependants violate Korean law
D. In the event of war, civil strife, or other disturbances or matters that are deemed by either the teacher's government or Korean government as being unusual and of adequate reason for leaving the country, provided that official document from respective embassies presented.

11. Notification Requirement
A. The school or the teacher may annual the contract by giving a minimum of one-month advance notice in writing.
B. If the school seeks annulment, reasonable and adequate grounds must be provided in order for the contract to be dissolved.
C. Reasonable and adequate grounds for annulment include but not limited to, persistent blatant and gross misconduct, conducting classes under the influence of intoxicants, continual absence and/or tardiness for classes.
D. If the teacher desires arbitration, a mutually agreed upon third party must be provided to settle the matter.
E. The teacher may seek annulment if the school fails to abide any contract terms that are stated in the contract.

11. Legal action
If there is a dispute between the parties involved in this contract, parties agree to the final judgment of a Korean Civil Court, or Korean civil law, whatever the final decision may be. If at anytime the teacher leaves the school without giving prior notice and without going through the appropriate procedures, the school has the right to pursue legal actions, for damages and attorney��s fees against Employee. If the school has left Korea altogether, the school has the right to pursue legal actions outside of Korea.

Date
School��s name
Principal��s name
Principal��s signature

Date
Teacher��s name
Teacher��s signature

[Gollum]

FYI, you might... and I say MIGHT be in store for a lot more vacation than they publicize. It all comes down to the school and what they do for summer/winter school.

This past year, I had about 3 1/2 months of paid vacation. My next contract required signing to only 2 weeks, but my school assured me not to worry (I'll believe it when I see it, but I sorta trust them).

This was all done by order of Gyonngi, and happened to everyone at my school. We were pretty pissed, but wasn't much we could do.

[Grotto]

[manlyboy]

GEPIK and EPIK are hit and miss. It's very difficult to figure out exactly what you're going to be in for. There are too many variables: communication issues, co-workers' attitudes towards you and yours towards them, superiors' flexibility and management skills, culture clashes, etc.

It's a risk, but compared to hagwons, public schools are a much safer bet.

If you look at the complaints people make on this board; Public school teachers tend to write about things like communication breakdowns, crappy curriculums, pay negotiations and bureaucracy, whereas hagwon teachers tend to complain about things like...well...getting completely and utterly screwed over by thoroughly unscrupulous employers.

I know some people on here have suggested that conditions in public schools are getting worse, and that soon it'll be no different to working in a hagwon. I don't see it that way at all, and I think that an overwhelming majority of my GEPIK co-workers who made the transition from hagwons last September would agree.

[Ekuboko]