Korean Job Discussion Forums

[waveslave]

Article 7-sec 3 of the EPIK contract for 2009 states...."employer may designate employee to work at the POE, training center, or other educational institute during the vacation, in this case the employee shall not claim any additional pay."

My recruiter sent me this response...

7-3. This clause is to clarify some misunderstandings. During summer or winter vacation period at the school, a foreign teacher is still required to come to the school and work from 9am-5pm. However, it has happened that some teachers asked for extra payment because they work during the vacation period at the school. You are aware that you still get paid a salary for the working hours whether it is during the vacation or not at the school. There isn't extra payment other than the salary unless overtime work is assigned.

I replied with the following, all input will be appreciated...

Hi,

Thank you for being so informative You have been very helpful. I will need just a little more clarification as I would prefer to sign the contract feeling comfortable having a complete understanding of what is to be expected of me when I arrive.

Okay so the "vacation period at the school" is separate from the 21 day vacation period allotted to the foreign teacher and the 14 national holidays in which the foreign teacher will be off from work right?

....my understanding, according to the explanation you received from EPIK, is that, excluding those days (21 vac + 14 NH)....

Only foreign teachers shall be in school when class is not in session during the school student break or summer/winter recess and for all intent and purpose the school will be closed except for the fact that one or all of the foreign teachers shall remain at the school from 9-5? What type of work is expected to be accomplished by only foreign teachers while school is not in session and the students and Korean teachers are not present? Can this work be accomplished some other way? Perhaps from home?

...is this correct? Is the always the case?

Is this mandatory only for foreign teachers or might it be possible to submit a request to lesson plan from home or use this time for professional development such as TESOL certification or some other TESL class? The contract states the school "may" ask you to work during vacation. Is this different from school to school?

It is my understanding that other teachers that work for the government both Korean and foreign have been able to participate in professional development from home.

Would the foreign teacher be treated as a government employee and allowed to work from home in order to lesson plan effectively and improve teaching skills?

I have been told that there exists an official document that a public school employee can submit in order to request permission to do home study on recess.

Is it possible to have a Korean teacher help fill it out and submit it with the other teachers at the school?

There is another issue not specified in the contract that has come to my attention and that is Summer and Winter camps.
I have read that foreign teachers in EPIK have been asked to work during recess alone(no co-teacher) at summer/winter camps teaching students Perhaps this is where the foreign teachers have been requesting further compensation. Would this not be considered further employment apart from and outside of the regular school schedule?

My intention is to have clarity. I am a professional and if the final word is that different rules apply to foreign teachers than that is okay. I would just like to know ahead of time. I want to make sure my expectations are realistic.

Thanks in advance for your response!

[I_Am_The_Kiwi]

You get 14 days in summer.
21 days in winter - they cant take this away from you. You dont work during this time.

However, school recess is usually for about a month in summer and 2 months or so in winter (depends on schools)

So that means there are 2 more weeks in summer, and about 4 or so in witner that classes are not on, but you dont have holidays.
During this time they can make you go to work, teach camps, do ANYTHING pretty much that they see fit. You still get normal pay but no overtime/extra.

You may have to warm a seat, you may have to teach extra class, maybe even teach teachers. Who knows.
Or your school may be so kind as to let you just go home and chill out.

A good one to use is 'Cultural Experience Travel' that excuse can get you some time off to travel around Korea and sample all its different kimchi and soju..blah blah blah

Professional development - maybe. Depends on your school, they can say come to school and you have to. Unless you can word it very well to get to be at home then they might let you off.

[poet13]

"You get 14 days in summer.
21 days in winter - they cant take this away from you. You dont work during this time. "

I thought we get (in the old contract) 7 work days in the summer, 7 work days, in the winter. I understnad the new contract is a little different, but about the same.

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

I get 21 days + 14 when I renew. But if school is in recess and no Korean teachers come to school, I don't come either...those day don't count as vacation days for me. It's always up to the individual school and ur relationship w/ them.

[Ramen]

[poet13]

True. He's in Kyeongbuk. I'm in Kyeong san buk do. Not sure of the difference...thought they were the same.

[cruisemonkey]

[Michelle]

Hi there,

In my case it is 7 in the summer and 7 in the winter.

They ask me to be flexible with this as well.

2 weeks of vacation comes in on renewal of the one year contract.

Last time they needed me to work so they eventually negotiated.

Took it to the office though.

It is a really good gig usually.

[daz1979]

Depends on the school also:

I teach in Gangwon-Do and my vacation this year was:

4 weeks summer (but I found 2 weeks work at summer camp bumping my salary up 1 mil)

2 months winter (but considering doing 3 week camp for 2 mil)

Happy Days at my school!

[daz1979]

Depends on the school also:

I teach in Gangwon-Do and my vacation this year was:

4 weeks summer (but I found 2 weeks work at summer camp bumping my salary up 1 mil)

2 months winter (but considering doing 3 week camp for 2 mil)

Happy Days at my school!