Korean Job Discussion Forums

bap · Joined: 10 Apr 2003

so i'm going to leave my hagwon at the beginning of september.
i'm planning on giving my director one month's notice in august, and i was going to go to immigration in july to give them two months notice.
but if immigration takes my alien card at the airport anyway, why should i give immigration two months notice to terminate my contract?
are there any benefits to notifying immigration?

waterbaby · Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Location: Baking Gord a Cheescake pie

bap - I have some questions for you.

1. When you will give notice to your Director, will you have you been working for six months or longer?

(If it's less than six months, your boss does not have to follow the termination clause in your contract)

2. Are you leaving for good or do you wish to teach somewhere else?

(If you want to teach somewhere else, you need a letter of release - it's the easiest way to secure a new a job.)

3. Has your hagwon been giving you a hard time?

If you are planning to leave Korea for good and not obtain another job until at least your current E2 visa has expired, then there I can't see any reason why you need to notify immigration.

People generally notify Immigration of their intent to leave because they are having trouble with a difficult director and they are afraid their boss will do something drastic when they resign. The benefit of notifying Immigration is so that they are aware of your situation (why you are resigning) and if your boss threatens you with the blacklist or says that he/she never recieved your letter of resignation, Immigration will know that you're not lying as they have a copy.

bap · Joined: 10 Apr 2003

answers to your questions waterbaby:
1. when i give my director notice i will have been working for 5months+1week so my last day i will have been working for 6months+1week.
2. i'm leaving for good.
3. i've got a few reasons for leaving (which all relate to my hagwon). the main ones are: working 9am-7pm (you may think i'm a sissy but i can't deal with that much work), not being paid on time, and losing so many students that i think the school's going to go under soon (we only have fifteen preschool kids and 18 elementary kids).
i think my director will be happy to have me go - he's not even breaking even right now. he has never done this before (managed a hagwon, dealt with foreigners, etc.) so he probably knows no more than i do about any of this. also, he hasn't really read my contract so i'm not sure if he even knows about the termination clause. we'll see.

Anda · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: South Korea

Do a midnight run after you pay all your bills and hand your alien card in at the airport and just say you aren't coming back. It will be far better this way than any other.

Morning Calm · Joined: 28 Jan 2003

rapier · Joined: 16 Feb 2003

bap: I did the same in my first year. My bos was in shock and tears, I felt terrible, etc etc. They started offering all sorts of incentives for me to stay. Eventually I settled for only teaching four hours a day on the same pay, not having to teach classes I didn't like, having an assistant in the class when I wanted, etc.
Tell them up front you want to leave, and why. Its the best policy. You may find they make all sorts of concessions as well which actually make it worth your while to stay.
Theres no need to inform immigration about anything.

Anda · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: South Korea

Your boss is going broke so if you give notice he might finish you up on the spot or pay you short on your last pay etc. If he was doing okay then notice would be less of a risk. If you are dependant on your last pay to get home etc then I'd personally do a runner in your case. As I said I'd pay all my bills and leave everything in order but that's all I'd be doing. In the last six years I've walked out once so it isn't what I normally do.

Morning Calm · Joined: 28 Jan 2003

William Beckerson · Guest

Morning Calm · Joined: 28 Jan 2003

waterbaby · Joined: 01 Feb 2003 Location: Baking Gord a Cheescake pie

bap - to answer your original question... As you are not planning to come back, there is no reason for you to notify immigration. Just hand in your alien card when you leave. They cannot stop you from leaving.

Anda · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: South Korea

Dear Morning Calm why don't you offer to back any loss of pay that Bap might incure from your advise. This is Korea and the law here is useless to someone who is leaving the country. Bap's hogwon boss is going broke so all this law talk is useless. Who is going to pay for legals.

I have been finished up on the spot by one Korean boss when he decided that it was no longer a paying concern to him to have a foreign teacher. Result we are still friends and he has helped me quite a lot since. Hogwans finish up foreign teachers on the spot when it suits them and lots of us get shorted on pay. I have been shorted a number of times. My worst experiance was with Chedju National University on Jeju Island I lost millions of won by expecting honesty from them and taking them at their word.

Taking your money and walking out when you are getting late pays etc is not dishonest, it is more of a protest than anything else.

Morning Calm · Joined: 28 Jan 2003

Anda · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: South Korea

Two things happen often when giving notice to a boss in fiancial trouble. They sometimes finish you on the spot. This leaves you short on a months wages and I've never heard anybody getting make up wages yet. Two they short you on your final pay. I have never heard of anyone, bar one getting payed money owed them once they have left Korea. The goverment departments at one stage helped us but not much is being done these days. So if you want to chase for money owned once you are out of Korea then you are up for paying for someone to represent you here in Korea. This means legal costs.

Common sense will tell you that chasing money off a boss who is broke is a waste of time. Why would you want to take the risk of being done is beyond me.

All immigration can do is threaten to stop his boss from employing another foreigner. Big threat when he has no students. All the other ways of getting help take time to arrange. Not much help if you no longer are getting paid and have to pay for accommodation and living costs while you run around trying to get one or two million owed you.

You need to think your advise through before giving it. He is here not back home and things get done different here.

Morning Calm · Joined: 28 Jan 2003

Once again, you failed to understand my post OR is didn't explain well enough. AFTER he gets his next pay check, I'm saying get out of dodge. What could he possibly deduct if de man been paid G? ...and WHY does he have to worry about not getting his next pay check if he has no intention of working anymore?

Rolling Eyes