Korean Job Discussion Forums

Yesterday · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2004 7:23 pm Post subject: Double Dutch Standards

Fact: - If a Foreign person/qualified teacher is teaching illegally in Korea and is caught (busted) - the Immigration/Police may/can/will freeze the persons bank accounts and keep any money within the banks accounts (without the consent of the person) because - it was earnt illegally.

Fact: - If your director/employer does not pay your salary/severance pay - and you sue/make claims/etc through all the LEGAL channels - Labor Office/Lawyer/Public Prosecutor/Police/Courts - and it takes 6-8 months - AND your employer is found GUILTY by all the (before-hand mentioned) groups/officers - and is even fined huge amounts of money for it (paid to them) - if your director/employer STILL refuses to pay you - even after the (before-hand mentioned) groups/officers have decided that she MUST pay you - the beforehand mentioned groups/officers then INFORM you - "sorry - we can't make him/her pay you - its their choice and there is nothing we can do to make him/her pay you".

Question - Is not this double standards - one standard for them - one standard for us? - (They have the power/technology to take the money from a foreigners account but not a Korean persons account?)

kangnamdragon · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Location: Kangnam, Seoul, Korea

Why shouldn't there be a double-standard? We are not citizens. It is not our country.

Just open a bank account using a Korean friend's i.d.......duh

Yesterday · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2004 7:38 pm Post subject: Misunderstood

kangnamdragon · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Location: Kangnam, Seoul, Korea

You are right. I misunderstood what you wrote. I apologize. Embarassed

Zed · Joined: 20 Jan 2003 Location: Shakedown Street

Yesterday claimed:

Yesterday · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2004 8:42 pm Post subject: Perhaps we could meet

Perhaps we could meet....

I am interested in knowing what further options I have left - to force the former employer to pay - up - (its not really for the money anymore - after months of exhausting the legal channels - and winning) it is now more for the principle of collecting what is rightfully mine.

Zed · Joined: 20 Jan 2003 Location: Shakedown Street

Did you miss my question?

Yesterday · Last edited by Yesterday on Wed Jan 21, 2004 4:27 pm; edited 2 times in total

the source is my whole case.....

I have written an (unpublished) 27 page statement about the whole affair I had with my former Hagwon (in Pohang) and have been through the Labor Office/Public Prosecutor/Police/Court etc during the last 7 months and what I stated above is what happened - my director was found guilty by all the (beforehand) mention people and paid huge fines etc -(to them) however still refused to pay me - etc etc.....

If you are really interested - I am able to hand over all the paperwork, letters and evidence from the Labor Office (pohang) Police (Daegu and Pohang) Public Prosecutor (Pohang) and Court (Pohang) and you can see that I have only stated the truth - and you can do with the information/evidence anything you choose too..... (except publish it) - thats illegal....

I have more korean friends etc in korea than I do Western friends - and one of my korean friends has also supplied and published my story onto all the Korean sites - Teachers site, students site, directors site, Presidents site etc -(in korean) and it has had the most sympathetic replies from Korean people than any other thing published on the Presidents site - maybe my case will over the next few months change the course and history of how foreign teacher disputes are handled in Korea - Apparently many Korean people don't have a clue as to what things are happening to Foreigners working within Hagwons - and many were shocked that these things were happening....

Send me a P.M. - I will happily hand over all the evidence....

VanIslander · Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2004 12:08 am Post subject:

If foreigners are treated in such a heavy handed manner then I think I'll just send the bulk of my money to a bank account back in my home country where I'm a citizen with constitutionally-protected rights.

And I won't rely on getting more than my last paycheque. I don't think a long court case for nothing is worth my time (not that I'll admit it to my director, who'd lose a lot of face in the small community I live in if I started to raise a fuss.) I think smalltown hogwan workers have some leverage in terms of community reputation. Has anyone found such to be the case?

kiwiboy_nz_99 · Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Location: ...Enlightenment...

Harpeau · Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Location: Coquitlam, BC

I think it is definitely a double standard. It only hurts Korea's image in the end. Hopefully it will one day change, but I have my doubts. I guess wiring money home is the safest bet.

Harpeau

justagirl · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Location: Cheonan/Portland

Do people who teach privates really put the money in their bank accounts? That seems pretty stupid to me.

justagirl

Universalis · Joined: 17 Nov 2003 Location: Seoul

Koreans have a double-standard. The sooner you can come to grips with that the sooner you can enjoy the country for what it does offer.

Brian

tsgarp · Joined: 01 Dec 2003

There is no double standard. The Police/Immigration are an enforcement agency. The labor board is an arbitrating body. They can render a decision but cannot enforce it. As an example think of the Sheriff vs. the local city council. One enforces the laws, one makes the laws. You get a decision on your behalf but the boss won't pay, take him to court. Hell, if you have a strong enough case, skip the labor board and go straight to the courts. Of course, you'll need a lawyer...

~edited by waterbaby~

Yesterday · Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2004 11:46 pm Post subject: