Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Forever]

I have a couple of friends who are SMOE teachers - employed and working in their respective Public school in Seoul.

Twice a year - they must go to a nearby school (in Summer and Winter vacation) and teach a 2-week camp - usually with other SMOE foreign teachers from nearby schools.

However, they are not given the "additional visa" required from Immigration to teach at another school besides their own school.

Therefore, twice a year, are the SMOE teachers working illegally by doing the 2-week camp at a different school other than the school for which they hold a visa?

Who is more powerful SMOE or Immigration? how can SMOE force their foreign teachers to do something that breaks Immigration laws?

[vaticanhotline]

No offence, but that's a ridiculous question. If your friends think the same as you do, they must have not have read their contracts. To be brief, the contract states that you can be "asked" to work anywhere should the school so wish.

[Forever]

strange

my friends said they had NO choice.

However, they did state they received a bonus of about 400,000won for doing the 2-week camp.

They also stated that SMOE usually insists they do it - and never provides an "additional visa"

not such a silly question after all.

[I'm no Picasso]

It is a silly question. As the poster above just stated, it's covered in the contract. They are not working for another organization -- they are working for their school. Just not at their school. They do not need another visa. They're also lucky they get paid extra for doing it, so long as it isn't over their contracted working hours. This winter I will have to travel to another school to teach teachers for three days with no extra pay. These things are par for the course with public schools. Your friends should have figured this out by now.

[ED209]

SMOE, EPIK and GEPIK are different to your average hagwon job. You are allowed to work at any public school under your POE. This is already agreed with immigration. 'Asked' doesn't mean a choice it can be pretty much treated as 'told to'.

[Old Gil]

It is ILLEGAL according to immigration. I put my SMOE　AS program on my resume and Immi flagged me for it. TECHNICALLY they can get you for it, but they eventually dropped it. This is a country where the left hand is only vaguely aware of the existence of the right, to say nothing of washing habits.

[Forever]

[Draz]

[jdog2050]

[Old Gil]

[schwa]

For years it was assumed in my province that the contract covered extra teaching venues within EPIK for Immigration purposes. I think the POE got called on it this year though. Immi here now requires a list of all our teaching places for their records (though not noted on our ARCs).

[outkast_3000]

You just need the requisite paperwork from your school principal, bring it to the immigration office and also fill out a form to "add an additional workplace"...they'll write something on the back of your ARC to show that it's been legitimized. So, it's illegal to do it without the immigration office knowing, but once you've jumped through the necessary bureaucratic hoops (which can be a pain in the butt), you're good. I'm not with SMOE, I'm with GEPIK, and I got permission from my principal to add a part-time gig at a unigwon, and it was pretty straightforward if not just a total waste of time, as the immigration office was pretty far for me. With all that being said, I think SMOE schools don't bother asking their teachers to do this since it's only for a couple of weeks work. It's not something consistent for the long-term. If you found another after school program/camp that ran the duration of the year, or term, they'd probably give you the necessary documentation to run it by immigration. In any case, immigration pretty much does what you need them to do if you've got the proper documents from the proper authorities (which can be tough to procure).

[lifeinkorea]

The OP has a legitimate concern. I refused to teach this summer because students from other schools were coming. I was playing the same card, and the vice-principal tried to convince me for an hour it was ok to teach other students from other schools.

Eventually, he called up immigration in Suwon and their position was that as long as I didn't leave the school, it was ok.

I have had also different kinds of stickers put in my visa to indicate exactly where I teach. I would refuse to teach until immigration puts a sticker showing any additional working place.

If immigration comes to where you're teaching and your ARC card and passport doesn't reflect it, who gets in trouble? The school or you?

[Murakano]

[Young FRANKenstein]