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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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dairyairy
Joined: 17 May 2012
Location: South Korea
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 Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 5:58 pm Post subject: Cut throat competition out there for teaching jobs |
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Especially for public school jobs. In the past I've heard of some applicants bidding down salaries, offering to teach extra classes for no pay, and one dude in Anyang at a high school who begged for the job by offering to pay his flight ticket home. But it's getting worse this year. Many are begging for jobs, bidding down salaries, and offering to teach alone, without any co-teacher in the classroom. Some are even offering free private lessons for the Korean teachers and staff. How low can some of these snakes go? They're only ruining it for everyone else, and themselves.
If you're looking for a job understand that there are snakes in the grass. |
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Rockhard
Joined: 11 Dec 2013
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 6:44 pm Post subject: |
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People selling out each other in the name of personal gain? Why I never!
Salaries will drop as long as supply outstrips demand. But worry not, there is a floor and that floor is called China.
As of today the average salary in China (10,000 yuan per month) is 1,737,444 won. We you factor in cost of living it's more like 2,100,000 won a month. That's the lowest possible pay scale as I see it. Right now your average Korean compensation is 2,700,000 a month (rent, severance, health) so there is room yet for a drop. |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 7:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Rockhard wrote: |
People selling out each other in the name of personal gain? Why I never!
Salaries will drop as long as supply outstrips demand. But worry not, there is a floor and that floor is called China.
As of today the average salary in China (10,000 yuan per month) is 1,737,444 won. We you factor in cost of living it's more like 2,100,000 won a month. That's the lowest possible pay scale as I see it. Right now your average Korean compensation is 2,700,000 a month (rent, severance, health) so there is room yet for a drop. |
Go to China if you want to die early. Have you seen the air quality maps for China? Any urban area is always in the red and even purple hazard. There are greener pastures in Korea you just have yo leave Seoul to find them. |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 7:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Rockhard wrote: |
People selling out each other in the name of personal gain? Why I never!
Salaries will drop as long as supply outstrips demand. But worry not, there is a floor and that floor is called China.
As of today the average salary in China (10,000 yuan per month) is 1,737,444 won. We you factor in cost of living it's more like 2,100,000 won a month. That's the lowest possible pay scale as I see it. Right now your average Korean compensation is 2,700,000 a month (rent, severance, health) so there is room yet for a drop. |
Go to China if you want to die early. Have you seen the air quality maps for China? Any urban area is always in the red and even purple hazard. There are greener pastures in Korea you just have yo leave Seoul to find them. |
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Stan Rogers
Joined: 20 Aug 2010
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 8:28 pm Post subject: |
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| You should keep in mind that there are some people who just want a visa. They don't care about the school, the salary, conditions ect. They have far more lucritive activities going on outside the school. |
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yfb
Joined: 29 Jan 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 9:22 pm Post subject: |
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Hope you long-term public schoolers have made backup plans for when your position is cut! No matter how much your staff loves you, if there's no funding, out you go. And if you're too expensive in one district (GEPIK) your chances of employment are drastically reduced in there. I was advised by my recruiter to edit my resume to make it appear to look like I had less experience than I truly had so that I could get more offers. How's that for a job market?
When I was looking for a new job these past few months, competition truly was fierce. My city-hall-funded position was affected by budget cuts so the maximum the school could afford was 2.1 million. And a flood of people were still jockeying to take the position, including one hagwoner who was making 1.6 million after he accepted a pay cut at his hagwon just to stay on. Another woman was making 2.4 at a nearby PS, but was willing to accept this lower salary just to stay employed.
Luckily I was able to find something in my pay range, but it was a rural school.
There may still be some naive optimists out there that count on recovery in the West as the golden ticket to higher salaries and better conditions. Don't count on it. It's a jobless recovery and there are still newbies out there with a boatload of debt and no realistic prospects to pay it off.
PS: The highlight of the job search was when Gyeongsangnam-do refused to recognize my ITTT TESOL certificate for a pay raise because it was "only online" without any in-class experience, despite me having been here for over four years and the EPIK website mentioning nothing of in-class components. Korea, ladies and gentlemen! |
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thegadfly
Joined: 01 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:23 pm Post subject: |
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| yfb wrote: |
Hope you long-term public schoolers have made backup plans for when your position is cut! No matter how much your staff loves you, if there's no funding, out you go. And if you're too expensive in one district (GEPIK) your chances of employment are drastically reduced in there. I was advised by my recruiter to edit my resume to make it appear to look like I had less experience than I truly had so that I could get more offers. How's that for a job market?
When I was looking for a new job these past few months, competition truly was fierce. My city-hall-funded position was affected by budget cuts so the maximum the school could afford was 2.1 million. And a flood of people were still jockeying to take the position, including one hagwoner who was making 1.6 million after he accepted a pay cut at his hagwon just to stay on. Another woman was making 2.4 at a nearby PS, but was willing to accept this lower salary just to stay employed.
Luckily I was able to find something in my pay range, but it was a rural school.
There may still be some naive optimists out there that count on recovery in the West as the golden ticket to higher salaries and better conditions. Don't count on it. It's a jobless recovery and there are still newbies out there with a boatload of debt and no realistic prospects to pay it off.
PS: The highlight of the job search was when Gyeongsangnam-do refused to recognize my ITTT TESOL certificate for a pay raise because it was "only online" without any in-class experience, despite me having been here for over four years and the EPIK website mentioning nothing of in-class components. Korea, ladies and gentlemen! |
I am a certified teacher in the US with a Master's degree and 22 years classroom experience (a decade of which is in US public schools). I looked at getting a job back in Michigan, and I could have taken any of several jobs -- if I agreed to be paid at the entry-level-BA-with-no-experience salary. America, ladies and gentlemen!
My point is, yfb, it is a tough market everywhere. It ain't a Korea thing -- it is a world thing. |
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World Traveler
Joined: 29 May 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:25 pm Post subject: |
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| yfb wrote: |
| There may still be some naive optimists out there that count on recovery in the West as the golden ticket to higher salaries and better conditions. Don't count on it. |
The reason being: tons of South Africans are coming over, which makes sense, as South Africa is a poor country. Awareness is increasing there. Did you think you, as an American/Canadian/English/Aussie/Irish/Kiwi male would be hired over a South African female. Unlikely. Public schools are giving preference to females over males.
Check this out.
http://pdf.reuters.com/pdfnews/pdfnews.asp?i=43059c3bf0e37541&u=2012_12_07_02_26_eca450cff2e340f29b1df5479a71afe3_PRIMARY.gif
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/12/US_JOBS0911_SC.html
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| The media hasn't been fair to male teachers here. It's quite natural for students to prefer a female tutor. |
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| Have you seen the ads on Dave's? It's practically impossible for a male to get a decent teaching job. |
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World Traveler
Joined: 29 May 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:40 pm Post subject: |
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| thegadfly wrote: |
| It ain't a Korea thing -- it is a world thing. |
Maybe it's just an education field thing (or maybe not even that; maybe it's just where you are looking and who is willing to hire you).
Here's the news coming out today:
"The nation added more jobs than expected in February and data for December and January was revised upward."
"Along with a sharp increase in wages last month, the jobs report indicated confidence among some employers that consumer spending will increase in the near future.
The severe winter appeared to have less effect on hiring than most economists had feared. Construction companies, which usually stop work in bad weather, added 15,000 jobs. Manufacturing gained 6,000 for a second straight month. Government added 13,000 jobs, the most in six months.
Daniel Alpert, managing partner at Westwood Capital, noted that roughly two-thirds of the job growth in January and February was in higher-paying industries. That's a reversal from all of last year, when about two-thirds of job growth was in lower-paying fields." |
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wonkavite62
Joined: 17 Dec 2007
Location: Jeollanamdo, South Korea.
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 12:15 am Post subject: Economic Upswing |
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Yes, I saw that article about job creation. It is even happening in the U.K. but it's patchy there. U.S. unemployment is 6% I think. I am in Korea now, and I have a job in a public school. But I am now willing to consider hagwons too. President Park is not interested in public schools. But soon fewer new graduates will be coming straight over from college to Korea. That will reduce pressure on jobs somewhat.
When I got my job it seemed that for public schools only rural districts were available..the bottom of the barrel basically.
Economic growth and job creation should improve this situation. |
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Chaparrastique
Joined: 01 Jan 2014
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 1:11 am Post subject: Re: Economic Upswing |
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| wonkavite62 wrote: |
| But soon fewer new graduates will be coming straight over from college to Korea. |
Lets hope.
Although there's probably a lot of lifers been created by the recession.
| Quote: |
| Economic growth and job creation should improve this situation. |
Certainly the UK is rocking now. |
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wonkavite62
Joined: 17 Dec 2007
Location: Jeollanamdo, South Korea.
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 1:28 am Post subject: Patchy |
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| The recovery in the U.K. I said was "patchy." But at least things are slowly improving. |
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schwa
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Yap
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 1:46 am Post subject: |
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| Seems like I rode the "Korean wave" just right. My luck. 1999 was a nice time to come here & I get the retirement boot next year. Made some bank & earned a small lifelong pension. Next stop looking like a tropical pacific isle where I can continue to be a school teacher (because thats what I like to do) & receive a local stipend there. |
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thegadfly
Joined: 01 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 2:20 am Post subject: |
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| World Traveler wrote: |
| thegadfly wrote: |
| It ain't a Korea thing -- it is a world thing. |
Maybe it's just an education field thing (or maybe not even that; maybe it's just where you are looking and who is willing to hire you).
Here's the news coming out today:
"The nation added more jobs than expected in February and data for December and January was revised upward."
"Along with a sharp increase in wages last month, the jobs report indicated confidence among some employers that consumer spending will increase in the near future.
The severe winter appeared to have less effect on hiring than most economists had feared. Construction companies, which usually stop work in bad weather, added 15,000 jobs. Manufacturing gained 6,000 for a second straight month. Government added 13,000 jobs, the most in six months.
Daniel Alpert, managing partner at Westwood Capital, noted that roughly two-thirds of the job growth in January and February was in higher-paying industries. That's a reversal from all of last year, when about two-thirds of job growth was in lower-paying fields." |
Fair enough, WT -- it may actually be an educational-field thing, and it is definitely an educational-field thing in Michigan...and Michigan IS in the "top" five states for highest unemployment rates across the board....
Just trying to point out it isn't just Korea, as was suggested by yfb.... |
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Rockhard
Joined: 11 Dec 2013
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| Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 5:47 am Post subject: |
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| nicwr2002 wrote: |
| Rockhard wrote: |
People selling out each other in the name of personal gain? Why I never!
Salaries will drop as long as supply outstrips demand. But worry not, there is a floor and that floor is called China.
As of today the average salary in China (10,000 yuan per month) is 1,737,444 won. We you factor in cost of living it's more like 2,100,000 won a month. That's the lowest possible pay scale as I see it. Right now your average Korean compensation is 2,700,000 a month (rent, severance, health) so there is room yet for a drop. |
Go to China if you want to die early. Have you seen the air quality maps for China? Any urban area is always in the red and even purple hazard. There are greener pastures in Korea you just have yo leave Seoul to find them. |
90% of people I see, especially foreigners here, smoke, drink heavily, and are overweight. It seems to me that most people already have a death-wish, so why should another layer of risk mean anything to most people. Healthy people, yeah, China not so good, neither is Korea for that matter, but it won't make a difference to that guy who smokes everyday or shows up late the next day cause he drank too much the night before. |
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