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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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Lekker
Joined: 09 Feb 2008
Location: Seoul
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 Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 1:41 am Post subject: I'm Fired for inquiring about my pension refund? HELP |
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Help me.
My boss fired me. All I did was ask him why he claimed that I am making 1.47 per month to the National Pension Service, when I am really making 2.3 per month.
WTF? I did nothing wrong.
Then he yells at me about how I always bother him when he is busy, which I don't. Then he says "I give you things, this, that. I payed your flight here!!!"
Actually, I paid my own way here and when I pointed that out to him, he became very embarrased, then he said he was angry. I said it would best if I were to leave, then he raised his voice.
He screamed at me in front of the director of the school. "YOU GO. Go! Get out! You are fired! I call the police on you if you are not out of your apt. in 10 minutes!!!"
I go home, call my friend, then mid conversation, my boss shows up.
He comes to my apartment. He says that he is sorry, stressed out, that he thinks I think he is a liar. I don't know what to do, where to go, who to talk to. I am embarrased to go back to the school. He told me to stay home and think about it.
What do I do? Where can I go? Who can I talk to? SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME.
If you are a job recruiter, please don't bother.
<mod edit - phone number removed> |
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loose_ends
Joined: 23 Jul 2007
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 1:45 am Post subject: Re: I'm Fired. Did nothing but inquire about my pension ref |
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| Lekker wrote: |
Help me.
My boss fired me. All I did was ask him why he claimed that I am making 1.47 per month to the National Pension Service, when I am really making 2.3 per month.
WTF? I did nothing wrong.
Then he yells at me about how I always bother him when he is busy, which I don't. Then he says "I give you things, this, that. I payed your flight here!!!"
Actually, I paid my own way here and when I pointed that out to him, he became very embarrased, then he said he was angry. I said it would best if I were to leave, then he raised his voice.
He screamed at me in front of the director of the school. "YOU GO. Go! Get out! You are fired! I call the police on you if you are not out of your apt. in 10 minutes!!!"
I go home, call my friend, then mid conversation, my boss shows up.
He comes to my apartment. He says that he is sorry, stressed out, that he thinks I think he is a liar. I don't know what to do, where to go, who to talk to. I am embarrased to go back to the school. He told me to stay home and think about it.
What do I do? Where can I go? Who can I talk to? SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME.
If you are a job recruiter, please don't bother. |
Calm down a bit. There are loads of available jobs. He needs you more than you need him. You have all the power here.
He lost face, not you. Give it some time and have a discussion with him later. If you really want to keep your job and get ALL the money you deserve, you might have to fight for it a little.
You have many options.
In the meantime please do not stress out. You have the upper hand here. Remember that.
Oh, and you don't have to leave your apartment until all is settled. |
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Juregen
Joined: 30 May 2006
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:07 am Post subject: |
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You are not fired yet.
Just talk to him again over a beer. |
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Fresh Prince
Joined: 05 Dec 2006
Location: The glorious nation of Korea
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:07 am Post subject: |
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Wow...
So he changed his mind and doesn't want you to leave now? It sounds like he wants you to go back to work and pretend nothing happened. |
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kimchi_pizza
Joined: 24 Jul 2006
Location: "Get back on the bus! Here it comes!"
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:11 am Post subject: Re: I'm Fired for inquiring about my pension refund? HELP |
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| Lekker wrote: |
| He comes to my apartment. He says that he is sorry, stressed out, that he thinks I think he is a liar. I don't know what to do, where to go, who to talk to. I am embarrased to go back to the school. He told me to stay home and think about it. |
So do just that. Both of ya take a time out, chill over the weekend, have a few brews and first thing monday try to have a calm and reasonable sit down chat. If you want to save face for the both of you and keep your job then play it off like there was some kind of "mistake" with the school's finances and pension payments AND would like it corrected. Wanna lose your job and make a big stink then call him on it and go to the labor board. Till then you might wanna remove the phone number. |
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inkoreaforgood
Joined: 15 Dec 2003
Location: Inchon
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:15 am Post subject: Re: I'm Fired for inquiring about my pension refund? HELP |
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| kimchi_pizza wrote: |
| Lekker wrote: |
| He comes to my apartment. He says that he is sorry, stressed out, that he thinks I think he is a liar. I don't know what to do, where to go, who to talk to. I am embarrased to go back to the school. He told me to stay home and think about it. |
So do just that. Both of ya take a time out, chill over the weekend, have a few brews and first thing monday try to have a calm and reasonable sit down chat. If you want to save face for the both of you and keep your job then play it off like there was some kind of "mistake" with the school's finances and pension payments AND would like it corrected. Wanna lose your job and make a big stink then call him on it and go to the labor board. Till then you might wanna remove the phone number. |
Sounds good to me. |
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shifty
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:17 am Post subject: |
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Fundamentally honest people don't seem to mind being tripped up in a fib.
On the other hand, dyed in the wool liars seem to place such weight on not being exposed.
They exude an aura of "allow me to lie and deceive you. And don't burst the bubble, for my very essence of being is at stake".
Lekker, I think it'll blow over, just sit tight and greet him effusively when next meeting him. However, raise the problem again next month, with genial face, as if we're all in this bs thing together. . Blood brothers.
By the way, the word lekker is a South African word often used as slang, meaning cool as in the sense of great. |
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Netz
Joined: 11 Oct 2004
Location: a parallel universe where people and places seem to be the exact opposite of "normal"
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:29 am Post subject: |
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Tell him to get his $&% together, and leave you out of his stress equation, or you WILL be leaving.
Tell him you undersatnd his problem, but your life is not easy either, and you always do a good job for the school.
Let him save face a little, but make him very aware that if it happens again, there will be ZERO negotiation, as you've already made plans to go home, you can postpone it for a short time to see if he can"behave himself as as an adult".
Also, Koreans LOVE to dramatize. Let him have his moment of agonizing tears on a bed of rose petals in the bloody snowdrifts of Korean anguish. He'll be back to semi-drunken self in a day or two, and this will all be forgotten.........just play along and pretend like you care.....a little...but not too much. |
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Lekker
Joined: 09 Feb 2008
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:35 am Post subject: |
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| shifty wrote: |
Lekker, I think it'll blow over, just sit tight and greet him effusively when next meeting him. However, raise the problem again next month, with genial face, as if we're all in this bs thing together. . Blood brothers.
By the way, the word lekker is a South African word often used as slang, meaning cool as in the sense of great. |
Blow over. Right on. He called me, apologized. I can't speak to him.
I am not out for blood. I don't have this ingrained hate towards him. He has actually been very good to me on a number of occasions, like when I cracked my skull open, my coworker called him, against my wishes, and he showed up to the hospital and paid my medical bill in full because the freindly staff refused to deal with a foreigner who had insurance. He has done a lot of good for me. I don't want him to be angry at me. All I wanted was information which I should be allowed to have when I ask for it. I guess I asked at the wrong time.
Thanks for the advice Shifty and everyone else on here. I have a few Dutch friends. Used to work with Afrikaaners as well. I learned a few words in Dutch when I was in Holland. Lekker, Kut, Lud, Boer, Klaap among some others. |
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matthews_world
Joined: 15 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:47 am Post subject: |
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Just think hard about all the hoops you have to go through now to find another job and transfer your visa.
Do you like the job? Do you like Korea?
If yes, then definitely apologizing really is the cultural thing here. Even if to smooth things out this will help you to get back in his good graces. I've learned this the hard way.
I'd fight for my pension, too but think about it, the worst scenario is that he could be even not paying you.
If you must leave, leave on a good note.
Last edited by matthews_world on Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:49 am; edited 1 time in total |
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kimchi_pizza
Joined: 24 Jul 2006
Location: "Get back on the bus! Here it comes!"
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:47 am Post subject: |
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| Lekker wrote: |
I guess I asked at the wrong time.
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Don't do that man. Don't take a passive stance and definitely don't take any blame for this 'cause there never will be a right time. And I don't recommend sitting on it for a month. He's been caught red-handed and off-balance. This is important and ya should press the issue while he is still humbled. Wait a month or more and you give him a chance to devise a way out of a bind as well as finding your replacement. He may be a nice guy, but this is business.
Last edited by kimchi_pizza on Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:48 am; edited 1 time in total |
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R. S. Refugee
Joined: 29 Sep 2004
Location: Shangra La, ROK
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:48 am Post subject: |
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| Lekker wrote: |
I guess I asked at the wrong time.
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A lot of times, I respond without looking at all the intervening posts, so please excuse me if this has been mentioned, but if you brought up an emabarassing issue while ANYONE else was there, it was definitely the wrong time.
That would cause him to lose face and he would be likely to respond more defensively.
By the way, how much do you drink to be getting your head split open? (I hope no one was here when I asked you this question. You might lose face and react defensively.   ) |
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Lekker
Joined: 09 Feb 2008
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 3:38 am Post subject: |
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| R. S. Refugee wrote: |
| Lekker wrote: |
I guess I asked at the wrong time.
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A lot of times, I respond without looking at all the intervening posts, so please excuse me if this has been mentioned, but if you brought up an emabarassing issue while ANYONE else was there, it was definitely the wrong time.
That would cause him to lose face and he would be likely to respond more defensively.
By the way, how much do you drink to be getting your head split open? (I hope no one was here when I asked you this question. You might lose face and react defensively. ) |
There was nobody there when I asked him. I knocked on his door, asked if he had a moment to talk, I came in and politely showed him my contract then showed him the print out from the NPS. I know it's not a good idea in this culture to confront someone while there are other people around and above all, to be calm, which I was.
When I split my head open I wasn't drunk. I jumped off a wall because it was fun, landed on a bottle, slipped and landed on my head.
He held that against me too. "I give you insurance, I give you this, I give you that."
Seriously, all I wanted to do was know what was up with the pension. That's all. I asked him a personal question, but I am allowed to know what's up with my pension, right? I mean, really, how old am I? Eight? For fucks sake, that's no reason to get upset, and I was inquiring about pension from my previous job here.
He takes care of us, but still, I should be able to know about where my money is going, right? |
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R. S. Refugee
Joined: 29 Sep 2004
Location: Shangra La, ROK
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 3:47 am Post subject: |
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| Lekker wrote: |
There was nobody there when I asked him. I knocked on his door, asked if he had a moment to talk, I came in and politely showed him my contract then showed him the print out from the NPS. I know it's not a good idea in this culture to confront someone while there are other people around and above all, to be calm, which I was.
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You were doing it the right (culturally sensitive) way then. I was just asking because the other comment you made, "He screamed at me in front of the director of the school" made me wonder if you had brought up this issue in the presence of someone else.
Best of luck. I hope it all works out for you in the least annoying way possible. It's especially stressful in our serf-like E-2 status where losing a job can lead to so many distressful circumstances like losing ones place to live and even having to depart the country (at least to get a tourist visa).
I'm having some contract issues right now with my public school not wanting to honor certain things in the contract and I know what the stress is like.
And I didn't really think your cracked head had anything to do with drinking. I was being unnecessarily obnoxious. My apologies. |
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yingwenlaoshi
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Location: ... location, location!
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| Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 4:08 am Post subject: |
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These wetodds can't be reasoned with. They just fkg talk around in circles and bring stupid fkg things up. You have a contract with him and basically your back isn't against the wall. If it were near end of contract time and you were waiting on your final pay and severance, that would be another story. But you're mid-contract. I would've had it out with him right there. You caught him stealing from you and he brings up other things like your flight (or non-flight), etc. He thinks he's well in his rights because you get this and that. But that's just not the case.
They're pretty much all a bunch of crying fkg babies that try to justify their wrong doings.
Tell him to clear up the matter. NOW. If he wants to fire you, tell him to give it to you in writing. I don't know.
"I did this for you so I can cheat you!?!" What a crock of *beep*. That's why Homer left this site. He couldn't handle the truth of it all. They're all screwing everyone in the arse. All. He'd come back with "It's not all blah, blah, blah." Might as well be.
Last edited by yingwenlaoshi on Fri Mar 21, 2008 5:34 am; edited 1 time in total |
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