Korean Job Discussion Forums

[philipjames]

I have worked at GnB (Incheon) for seven monthes. I am an excellent teacher. On Thursday he says to me that Monday is my last day. "You're an excellent teacher", he says, "but you don't fit in". I tell him that he can't do that, it violates my contract.

The fucker simply smiles.

Here's the thing. He NEVER gave me a copy of the conract although I have asked for it for monthes. The photocopier was broken; it's at the other office; my wife has it; he never received it in the first place. When he fired me I demanded my contract again, only to be told that he lost it.

He's a typical corrupt Korean and in gross violation of my contract. I KNOW HE HAS IT, but he deems it not in his interest to show it to me.

He knows that 'm a married man with bills to pay in Canada, and that I barely sqeek by here in Korea. For an individual, knowing this, to fire me on two days notice is obscene. I was not given any prior waning that my work is sub-par, because it is excellent. He won't even give me a straight answer as to why he's firing me.

He is the most dishonorable man in Korea.

I contacted a third party and managed to get two weeks notice (as opposed to two days), but this is still wrong. I want and deserve my return ticket to Canada and my one monh severance pay. I'm angry and determied that noone else fall into the GnB Incheon trap.

Aside from this situation, the school is a nightmare. THe wife alks around screaming all day and slamming doors. I don't know if she's mentally unbalanced or not, but she creates a very tense atmosphere. Everyone walks around on egg shells. One day I asked her not to slam things down on the desk in front f me. Although I asked politely she said "Shut your mouth". I asked her not to speak to me like that (again politely), only to be baraged with a verbal assault in wild Korean sprinkled with as many Korean curse words that you care to count. THis was my worst case of culture shock in Korea. Apparently asking to be treated politely is an offence in Korea.

There is no teacher's room, and the teacher's are forbidden from using the computer in the lobby (although their children use it for hours a day to play computer games.) The children are shockingly rude, the 'English' in the textbooks shockingly bad, and the bathroom (disgusting) is in the next building. One has to get dressed to go out to it in the winter

The textbooks are mind-numbingly boring. THe children are bored to death, fully able to recite, word for word with their eyes closed, the lines of the text. When I try to enhance the children's chances of learning English, by innovating, I'm scolded. When I brought a few tangerines to class to teach the children how to request food and offer food (may I have a piece of orange please, etc..) I was repimanded for "eating in class". When I brought in flash cards to help teach the chldren phrases I was admonished not to play "card gaes" in class. On and on it goes as both the English teacher and students' brains go to mush.

Im glad to be leaving, but the manner in which I'm departing is symtomatic of the whole problem at the school. The owners are corrupt hogwan owners, evoid of ethics and disinterested in whether or not the children actually learn. Their bottom line is cash and he dominaion of their freign workers.

Don't fall into their trap.

[Tancred]

that does sound terrible...good luck with what you do next. Situations like that are infuriating beyond belief and i completely empathize with you. Hell, if someone told me to "shut my mouth" after i asked them something politely, i'd slap them in the face. I wouldn't really care who they were. Good luck to you...and i'll be sure to pass the word about your school.

t.

[yoda]

The Labor Standards Act states that he must give you a month's notice or at least a month's pay in lieu of notice. Article 32.

If you came to Korea legally, then immigration has a copy of your contract. Though, getting a copy from them may be a different story. Noone I know has tried.

[joseph]

Horrible arent they---I worked at a branch in a small town where the boss was very "religious" but also nasty---not as bad as you seem to have it but the books did me in. Endless repetition of these grammatically incoherent sentences...(O.K. then lets go!!!) And I was told that any outside material would just confuse the kids...no doubt..On top of it they think the materials are brilliant ... The sort of teaching that drives teachers away for good...They should be put up there with Wonderland....

[Lost Seoul]

Not too long ago there was a complaint about another GnB school in Donghae City.

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http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=179
scott oer
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Thu Jan 23, 2003 11:38 am Post subject: WARNING!!!! GnB English School - Donghae City
This is a warning!!! Mr. Mun Song-il is currently recruiting for his GnB Donghae and Cheongju sites. Mr. Mun is a very shady character who will promise you the moon and stars and then drop the bomb on you once you arrive. Not only did I go through my own personal hell with him (I worked at his school) but others had their fair share as his recruitees. When one teacher arrived at the airport, Mr. Mun tried to get him to work at a different school illegally, for much less pay, no vacation, etc. The truth is that the school he was actually hired for didn't even need anyone!! If you come to Korea Mr. Mun will pull a number of fast ones on you, and then most likely follow it up with his favorite line "i'm sorry, but I'm afraid you don't have a choice."
I know this is Mr. Mun's post because of his email address and phone number. GnB schools are best to stay away from to begin with because they are franchised out to owners who have no or little english proficiency and have no or little skill in running a language school. The catch to GnB schools is support from the corporate office (in the form of unique GnB textbooks ((which are full of mistakes)) and advertising materials) and low tuition rates, which mean large class sizes and limited resources. I'm sure there are some honest GnB's out there, I don't mean to make rash sweeping judgements, but in the past year i heard nightmare after nightmare stories about them, as well as my own.
My problems with Mr. Mun started the night i arrived in Jeju. He had promised me a private, studio apartment in Sinjeju (new jeju) and instead put me in a remote neighborhood outside of Gujeju (old jeju) in the village of Hwa Buk. This was a shared, tiny 2 room apt. with an older Korean man. Luckily I got along fine with him, but if not it would've been tough cuz the place was really small - not to mention i couldn't lock my bedroom door. The school was in Gujeju, so it was a 10 minute walk to the bus stop and then 20 minutes on the bus, once it eventually came which usually took 10 - 20 minutes.
From then he tried to force me to work a 6:30 AM class everyday and then 5 teaching hours spread out through the day, finishing at 7PM. Although my contract was for only 5 hours a day, he said "if you don't do the morning class, I'm afraid I won't be able to pay you." His school was very disorganized. My training consisted of him giving me a student book and saying "go teach." He promised me my airfare upon arrival, and after 2 months I only saw half of it. As for insurance, when I asked him about it he said "you look very healthy, i do not think you need insurance." Trust me and pass on this one. There are plenty of honest schools with ads up on this website. If you do take a job with mr. mun, remember that you've been warned.

[chi-chi]

As I just mentioned in another thread....some of these bosses HATE paying severance pay!

[Teleria]

I know that this is a really old thread but I have been offered a position teaching for GnB in Guri... does anyone have any experience there? The contract is unacceptable as it is and will have to be renegotiated. The recruiters are pulling typical pressure tactics (i.e. someone else is interested, first come first serve) for the first time. Anyone have any other experiences with GnB, even in other places?

Thanks

[crusher_of_heads]

No offense, but how does anyone not obtain a photocopy of the contract? I'm at a public school because I don't want to risk being exposed to the moral filth of Korean hogwan owners, but get a photocopy, it's leverage, and it's posture.

THIEVING DEGENERATE KOREANS

[Scarlet13]

I work at GnB in Changwon (Daebangdong) and my school is excellent. I get bored now and then but I am always paid correctly and on time, this includes salary, OT, pension, reimbursement etc.

The director and her family are lovely, my co-workers are people I would qualify as good friends for the most part. They have been great about sick days (I took 2.5) and personal days (2-one when my fiance was in hospital, and one a few days ago when my grandfather died). Even though I am only entitled to three days. They only expect me to stay at the school when i have classes, they let me leave early and come late. The kids are pretty good, and the head-teacher actually listens to feedback from the natives on ways to improve.

I'm a good teacher, I won't go so far as to say I'm excellent, I have no training so I tend to make things up as I go alone, but I get their work done, and some and I try to go that extra mile. My school appreciates that. They weren't used to having someone who actually wants to be busy and help the K-staff out. I have never received a complaint. They have never forced anything on me (i.e. OT) and if they make a request and my answer is 'No' there isn't an issue.

I have been very happy here, and I would have loved to have re-signed but a family illness means I have to go home.

A friend of mine works at a few GnBs and they are not as great, but they operate above board.

GnB's are like any other place do your homework! and go in with a good attitude but always keep it in your mind that things might go badly and have a backup plan. [/i][/b]

[CentralCali]

And that shows how worthless the Korean concept of franchising is. There is no uniformity among the local franchises. Why not? Because when you embarked on your employment here, you walked right through the looking glass, friend. Korean franchising is not American franchising, not evne similar.

In the United States, an entrepeneur will license his corporate name to a local franchise and the local individual will contract to follow the rules of the corporate headquarters. If the local outfit mucks around, the HQ can, by contract, pull the name immediately.

That's not the Korean system. It's opposite here. The local individual will rent the name from the headquarters and the contract between the two will require the headquarters to provide services (such as text books) to the local outfit[/i]. There is no supervisory relationship.

Did you get that last part? There is no supervisory relationship. The local punk is independent. That's one of the reasons you know the LP is lying when he hides your diploma and says, "The headquarters needs it for {insert disgusting lie here}."

Until the Big Names realize how much the dishonest local hagweon owners are tarnishing their Big Name, there's never going to be any improvement in the situation. The headquarters folks need to jettison the Korean concept of franchising and adopt a method that actually works.

But, of course, there's no way anyone in Korea's going to jettison a Korean concept, no matter how ineffective it is.

[johnny_larue]

What is GnB? I have accepted a public school position in Incheon, so I hope that is better. Is Incheon a nice city?

[CentralCali]

[regicide]

[Kimchieluver]

[Young FRANKenstein]