Korean Job Discussion Forums

On the other hand · Joined: 19 Apr 2003 Location: I walk along the avenue

Homer wrote:

Homer · Guest

Ok,

Whose exploitation and abuse is he protesting? His?? Laughing

Good one.

dulouz · Joined: 04 Feb 2003 Location: Uranus

Thats a good point homer. What issues are there to target? Whose pet issue? That will define the target audience and the message. Is there exploitation? Yes, there is so much that the USA issued a warning about
working here. If there is any benefit from doing doing a protest, every gets the benefit, not just me.

My peeve is exploitation and well, its a legitimate one. Someone else's peeve is likely the current slander/libel/harassment campaign that foreign teachers are perverts and thats legitimate too.

One protest should be aimed at the hogwan association and government and the other at the media.

Can we be honest? I'm perceived as having a hard time with my schools. I am and thats the cause of the series of the latest rants from me. Thats true, I am having a hard time and I'm met with skepticism from people that are getting along with their employer.

I'm thrown the idea that I am really the problem and that I did not behave somehow and somehow its my fault. Yes, my credibility is questioned and I have been on that side of the fence keeping silent while the trouble maker flailed and got deeper into trouble and I laughed at that person and was very smug doing it. Yet I have always felt, there by the grace of God, go I.

I am interested in addressing the exploitation issue. The issue, that of White guys kissing Asian girls is out there and needs to be dealt with. Me? I am not a "Rice King". I did not cause this problem, but I have to deal with it. We all bring our baggage.

Certainly, lets have a protest. It seems there are two protests for two audiences. I'm not interested in doing a protest until the demands are elucidated. I would not ask anyone to help until they are.

What say you?

ulsanchris · Joined: 19 Jun 2003 Location: take a wild guess

A protest will do nothing for you. IF you want some changes made in the system form a lobby group and lobby the government.

ladyandthetramp · Joined: 21 Nov 2003

Homer · Guest

I respect your right to protest....but...you are not being exploited.
Teachers here come over willingly and always have the option to quit and leave.

True the school system needs to be improved but that will happen over time.

You mention exploitation but what about the teachers who pull a runner and stiff their boss just because they refuse to take their responsabilities? There are many of those and they do nothing to improve the situation here.

The recent unrest (if you can call it that) is a result of the action of a few dumb foreigners posting idiotic crap on a website and of the over reaction of the media here. Bad combination.

As for kissing your korean girlfriend in public if you are a foreigner, that might cause irriation or anger in koreans.
This happened before (in 1997 when I arrived) and it still does. Why? It is something that Korean society does not look well upon, even between two Koreans.

When you are aware of this and still insist on giving your korean girlfriend (not you but an example) a public tonsil exam you are just asking for trouble. Living in a different country means adapting to a different rules to a certain extent. Also by using this "its my right so the hell with them" approach, you are ignoring local customs and causing stress and perhaps aggravation for yourself and for your korean girlfriend (again, I am not speaking about you dulouz but just in general).

Finally dulouz, what exploitation are you postesting?

jaykimf · Joined: 24 Apr 2004

What exploitation would we protest? Well, the obvious of course. The fact that we make so much less than professional basketball players, less than prostitutes and drug dealers (who do not have degrees from highly regarded universities), less than Korean public school teachers who only have licenses and 20-30 years of experience, only slightly more than Taxi drivers who work only 100 hours a week, less than investment bankers etc. On top of that many of us gave up lucrative careers at home to come to Korea, only to discover the horrible truth--the extreme difficulties foreigners face in Korea makes it impossible for us to find our way to the airport and go back home. There is NO EXIT. That is the reality of the exploitation we face in Korea.

JongnoGuru · Joined: 25 May 2004 Location: peeing on your doorstep

[repeat post]

JongnoGuru · Joined: 25 May 2004 Location: peeing on your doorstep

visviva · Joined: 03 Feb 2003 Location: Daegu

The current US embassy advisory is here, but it's much less entertaining than it used to be. Downright intelligent, actually: http://usembassy.state.gov/seoul/wwwh3550.html

There used to be an warning that said, essentially: "Don't come to Korea. EFL employment in Korea cannot be trusted. Lots of Americans come to Korea and get screwed. And no matter what happens, don't expect us to help you." I always felt like that had something to do with the 10:1 Canadian:American ratio in these parts. I suppose now that the embassy is posting actual useful information, I can only look forward to more of the very people I crossed the wide water to escape. Evil or Very Mad

hypnotist · Joined: 04 Dec 2004 Location: I wish I were a sock

I'll come if I can carry a placard like Father Ted.

Down with this sort of thing!

buymybook · Joined: 21 Feb 2005 Location: Telluride

Get back under your bridge.[/quote]

I don't own a bridge!

Wasn't that you I saw today cutting your fingers off with the Koreans in the protest against Dokto? If you had the guts to protest or the mind of your own to take a stand once in your life you might know better to do such a stupid thing as to cut your fingers off!

Put a band-aid on it!