Korean Job Discussion Forums

[redhed]

When hours taught are being calculated, are 40 or 50 minute classes counted as one teaching hour? Or can they add up all of the actual minutes that I am teaching to count as 22 hours? For example, my GEPIK school has me teaching 32 classes. Some are 40 minutes, some are 50 minutes, and some are 75. But when you add up the actual minutes of all 32 classes, it equals 22 hours exactly with almost no prep time during the week. Is this the way that it should be calculated? Everyone at the school has been very nice about everything since our arrival, and has even offered to pay me extra for the 11 afternoon classes (600 minutes) but the rate of additional is a bit shy of what it would be were the classes to be counted as hours. I understand that a 40/50 minute class will fly by, and than a 10 minute break every 50 minutes in an 8 hour day isn't a bad schedule. My major concern is the almost absolute lack of prep time, how do I prep for 32 classes of 6 different levels and two programs (afternoon/morning) in the 90 minutes or so left available to me in the work week? I also am aware that there are more than 90 minutes spared by the 1320 minutes of my 22 hours, but they have me doing some sort of parent gladhanding, and it's difficult for me to focus on plans during a 10 minute break. Anyway, I know there is a lot of info here, but any positive ideas or information would be greatly appreciated.

[Rusty Shackleford]

Let me get this straight. You teach 32 classes a week? A 45 minute class is considered to be one teaching hour. Your school has made a massive mistake. You need to get it sorted ASAP.

Are you really serious? I've never called anybody on this before but this post is almost too absurd not to be a troll.

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

40 min class = 1hour. Are you teaching any classes outside your 8:40 - 4:40 regular hours? If so, you can charge what you like. I think you're obligated to teach 6 classes beyond you 22 hours per week (within working hours of course) but at 20,000 extra per class OT. After 28 you can again charge what you like...say 50,000 per hour or more.

[Otherside]

Are you working at an elementary school?

Basically it goes like this. At elementary schools, 1 x40min class = a teaching hour, 45mins for middle school and 50mins for high school.

Obviously, if you are at elementary school and the after school class is 45 or 50 (hell even 60) mins then you get paid for one hour.

My situation is like this. I teach the regular classes during the mornings, 40 mins each. In the afternoon I have a couple of 80min classes, as these are double of 40minutes they count as a double class.

Based on your scenario, you each 40/50minute class should be counted as 1 hour, and your 75minute classes should be counted as 2 hours.

I teach 24 classes a week, (40x24=880minutes) and I get 2 hours of overtime each week. If you are teaching 1320 minutes, you should be getting paid for about 11 hours overtime a week. (i.e. an extra W880,000 if you are on a standard GEPIK contract) Obviously, depending how your hours are worked exactly, this figure may be a little less.

For the record, in the contract the employee has the right to refuse anything over 6 hours of overtime a week. This means, that UNLESS you choose to teach the extra hours, they can't make you teach more than 28 classes a week.

What you should do now: Explain to your school how teaching hours should be calculated. And then decide, do you A) want to teach all 32 classes, but have to work VERY hard at school and perhaps have to take work home in order to be prepared, but in exchange be HANDSOMLY compensated at the overtime rate. or B) Put your foot down and say that teaching over 28 classes a week will make you burnt out, and show them the contract, however you'll still make some good overtime (an extra W480,000 a month). Be as diplomatic as possible. I'd go for option B.

Sorry this post has been a bit all over the place, i just wrote down what came to me, as it came to me. Good luck.

[redhed]

Thanks for the quick responses. I am not a troll, whatever that means. I had a feeling that public school hours had to be counted in a more reasonable manner. Also, I arrived just after school let out for the holidays, so I haven't worked much but a couple of camps and a few weeks of afternoon classes. So it hasn't been an overwhelming experience yet, and as I mentioned everyone at the school has been extremely kind. They may even be planning on paying me the overtime. The thing is the power's that be spent a lot of time this week hammering out the schedule for the english classes, and when they handed it to me I thought I was going to be rich, I calculated about a million won above my contract, then I added up the actual minutes out of curiosity, and bingo 22 hours on the button. So I feel like maybe this not coincidence, and they are planning on figuring the hours that way. So this leads me to my next question. When I sit down to talk this out with them where can I find the legal info to back me up? An hour is not defined in my contract, and I tried the search engine for this site but it sucks. Also, I work in a public elementary school, but was hired outside of normal hiring times, so I was hired independently by the school (not through GEPIK), if that matters.

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

They didn't use the 2009 standard GEPIK contract?

[redhed]

No, I believe that they used the 2008 "standard" GEPIK contract. It has all the basic stuff, but one difference is that we have 14 vacation days as opposed to the 21 that I think are in the 2009. Does a standard contract usually define what an hour is? Ours does not, it just says 22 hours. My contract is the same as many public school contracts that I've seen in the contract sticky, it just has the name of the school on the top though, no mention of GEPIK or anything like that. We got the settlement allowance and all that stuff though.

[TheUrbanMyth]

[Otherside]

[redhed]

Thank you all for your input, while the extra six days of vacation would certainly be lovely, at this point the hours counting problem and monthly pay rate are more pressing to me. Does anyone's contract define an "hour"? Also, those of you who were saying that 40/45/50 minute classes count as hours, where do you get your information? Is this just the reality of your school, or is there someplace in the law that defines this? (in english preferably) I would like to be armed with info when I talk to my school, and also to know that I'm right before I start pissing in the trough. Thanks again.

[redhed]

Article 8 (Work Hours)
① Employee shall work eight ( hours per day for five (5) calendar days per week from Monday to Friday and shall not work on Saturdays, Sundays and any national holidays of the Republic of Korea.
② The Work Hours of Employee may follow the normal work schedule of civil servants of the Korean Government; however, such Work Hours may be adjusted by Employer as he/she deems appropriate.
③ Actual class instruction hours of Employee shall not exceed twenty-two (22) hours per week. If, however, Employee's actual weekly class instruction hours exceed twenty-two (22) hours due to supplementary class instruction, Employee shall be entitled to a supplementary class instruction pay (20,000won/hour).


So, I figured out where my contract came from, the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education. So perhaps they're not bound by the typical GEPIK rules? At any rate the use of the word "actual" seems to be the key here. It sounds to me like I just may have to deal with it, or negotiate as opposed to demand. Still, facts and opinions welcomed and appreciated.

[Jeff's Cigarettes]

Look, just ask them if they are counting by minutes. If they say they are just give notice. They'll come around.

[redhed]

After further investigation, I believe I am working on the 2008 standard EPIK contract. Which as what I posted above uses the term "actual hours" as opposed to the GEPIK term "regular hours", so my question is this, anyone working EPIK had problems with there school or experience in defining what is meant by an "actual hour"?? I am going to talk to the boss tomorrow or the next day and would like to know where I can find this information or who would be responsible for interpreting the contract. Also, I know I can always bail, and financially that wouldn't be a big issue, but I like it at my school and would really like to fulfill my contract, just don't want to do it for suckers pay.