Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Kryten]

Sooo....

I'm seven months into my contract, and leaving the job early to take a position at a uni. As the boss and I were talking today about the details of my last day and tying up loose ends he mentioned something about having to pay back half of the airfare. I said, What do you mean?, and he said that he purchased a return ticket for me way back when (I had no idea this was the case, but sure enough when I checked the eTicket it was a return).

Anyway, he said it cost $2000 for the ticket and I should pay half since I'm leaving early. I didn't want to say anything at the time before double checking with my contract, and as I suspected it has the regular clause about 6-months:

[satishku]

Good for u

[oldtactics]

Yeah, it's his problem, not yours. You don't owe any money according to the contract. Unfortunate situation but not your concern.

[iggyb]

If it were me, and my boss was being this reasonable, I'd check what the cost of a one-way ticket home is right now and probably give him around 25% to 50% of that.

$1,000 is not right. I just checked on one-way and round-trip tickets to Korea from Atlanta. The cheapest one-way was $700. The round-trip we bought was right around a $1,000.

Since he bought the two tickets together, he saved money on the 2nd ticket, so to speak...

I'd discuss with him giving some percentage of $700. Maybe $250-300. And he'll get the $100 back as you mentioned.

If he'd been reasonable with me for the past 6 months, and I had not spent all my money day-to-day, I'd probably do something like that. Too many hakwon bosses screw people over left and right. I'd reward a decent one for not doing so.....(and I'd feel an obligation since he did by a round trip ticket to start with - thus not making me have to worry about whether he was going to stiff me at the end - like some bosses do)...

[yoja]

Well, since you asked what *I* would do

I would first contact the airline and find out what the restrictions on the ticket are. There's a possibility that you could pay $100 and change the flight date to Christmastime or something, or if you could possibly change it to a new destination for a flight to Thailand or wherever.

Then I would think about it, and decide what the flight is actually worth to me--what it would cost me to pay for my own flight over Christmas vacation (or whatever), and I would offer the boss some money based on that.

On one hand, yeah, technically it's not your problem, but on the other hand, you could go about resolving the issue in a way that benefits the both of you. It doesn't necessarily need to be a zero-sum game of "who gets screwed, me or you." After all, you're leaving early and you will have to be replaced. Who is paying for your replacement? Was the boss nice about letting you out of your contract, even though he will now have to pay another recruiter's fee and for another plane ticket?

Finally, I would consider the likelihood of whether the boss is just planning to deduct the $1000 from your final pay. Then proceed with caution....

Good luck, and congrats on the new job. Hope it works out!

[matthews_world]

Tell him to show proof of purchase.

[frankly speaking]

Contractually you are obligated to pay for your return ticket. I don't know why he bought a return ticket in the first place, but you are responsible for it. You are not responsible for the trip here, but you are responsible for the pre-purchase of the return ticket.

I wouldn't want to pay it either, but if you want to keep a good standing and not have problems in the future, I would be responsible. One time when I left my contract before completing it, I actually worked a week without pay, instead of giving money for my ticket.

Definitely work something out with your boss. A total refusal to pay will end up in a *beep* storm.

Next time check your ticket before. Don't let bosses by your a non refundable round trip ticket. Make them buy 2 individual one way tickets. It is more expensive for them, but if you don't complete your contract you will have to pay them more.

Good luck on your new job.

[DCJames]

[Kryten]

Hey, first let me say thanks for all the comments and good advice. I kind of gave up on Dave's a while ago, but it's nice to know there's still some people on here who are willing to take some time and give thoughtful replies.

Anyway, here's a rundown of what went down today. We had a talk about the flight situation and I handled myself pretty well, but when it came down to it he wants me to pay $1000. I brought up the fact several times that there's nothing in the contract about paying back airfare after 6-months and asked him to point it out to me. His response was that it's just "common sense". I also asked him why he bought a round-trip ticket and he did say that it was cheaper, but also because he's convinced it's a legal necessity for me to work in Korea, having an exit flight that is. I know this isn't the case, but he wasn't having any of it.

At this point he was getting a little annoyed and started going off the deep end a little bit - going on about how I might have to pay half of the recruiter's fee. To this I said that this wasn't in the contract - it is for leaving before 6 months - but there are no penalties of any kind afterward. He replied that he still hadn't decided about the recruiters fee.

I told him that I felt it was pretty unfair for me to pay for a flight which I'm 99% sure I won't be using. He said it could be extended for a small fee, but it can't. I called up Korean Air and there's no way it can be extended past it's last day. By the way, I'm from Toronto, and looking at Korean Air ticket prices it looks as if he did pay around 2 grand after taxes and everything.

These two (a married couple) have been the easiest bosses to work with while staying in Korea (up until now..heh), so I took the advice of some and didn't flat-out refuse to pay, instead offering to make a deal of some kind. But to that he just said, No you have to pay the full amount. "Ask any recruiter, they'll tell you the same thing". He did encourage me to talk to my recruiter, so I told him I would . Of course the recruiter agreed with me and I knew there was nothing much he could do about it, but I asked him to phone or email this boss and talk some sense into him (read: follow the contract).

Well, the more I think about it, the more I despise having to pay for a mistake that he made. I also don't appreciate him pulling sh*t out of thin air and making threats about having to pay even more money. He flat out told me that he'll be deducting the money directly from my last pay. I just got paid yesterday (in full) so I could easily walk away from this situation right now with not much of a loss (sans $300 apartment deposit). But I'm not going to... I'm hoping he'll come to his senses and be able to come to terms with his mistake. However, I feel like I'm working for free right now, and it's not the best feeling. We both agreed that taking this to the labour board is something that we'd like to avoid, but it may come to that.

Sorry for the long post. Feel free to add your thoughts and comments.

[iggyb]

If he paid me in full and had been pretty good through my time working there, even though he keeps insisting on the full $1,000, I'd probably still go with my first comment: I'd check on the cheapest 1 way flight and pay him some percentage of that.

He didn't have to buy a round-trip ticket. That was a risk for him. He also didn't have to use Korean Air. That is not the cheapest carrier. But, given the fact I was leaving early and he'd have to pay to bring someone else over (or hire in country), I'd feel obligated (personally, not contractually) to help him out. 50% of a one-way ticket would be about the highest I'd probably go.

[Kryten]

Oh, and to Frankly Speaking, I'm curious as to why you think I'm contractually obligated to pay for the return ticket?

Here's a relevant part of the contract:

[Princess Soraya]

Thank heavens I don't have to deal with hagwon drama anymore! Out of pure ignorance (I didn't know I could get a uni job at the time), I started working at a rather posh hagwon. The problem was a business manager from hell: we went through 5 receptionists in one year (one developed Bulimia because she told the skinny girl to lose weight ). She also randomly fired part-time Korean teaching staff. By the time I left I was a nervous wreck with stress-induced acne and digestive problems. NEVER again!!!!

[iggyb]

The first quote you offered speaks to the heart of the issue --- unless there is another clause somewhere that mentions breaking the contract early...

[Kryten]

[frankly speaking]

You have a roundtrip ticket and you didn't complete one year. That means that you are responsible for the return fair. You worked more than 6 months so you are not responsible for the trip here. I have been in a similar situation before.

It is slightly your fault for not insisting that he buy a one way each way. I know that you didn't know ahead of time that you weren't going to complete the contract. It is a standard rule for tickets here that you work for 6 months and you don't have to pay for your inbound ticket, but if you don't complete the contract you don't get an outbound. Since, he paid for the outbound ticket already and you didn't fulfill the year, you are responsible for it. I am certain that if you go to the labor board you will lose.

Now your new job, is responsible for giving you both inbound and outbound ticket. Just take the money from that and pay back your boss. Or keep your existing ticket and arrange for a short holiday back to your home and have your new school buy your a roundtrip ticket from Canada to Korea. There are many solutions.

Your boss is an ass, for threatening about recruiter fees. He has no right to do so and just threatening you with that creates a hostile environment.

Not that I am one to screw people over, but since he will not ever give you a reference (he will bad mouth you as soon as you are gone) and have your full pay. Just leave and tell him that he can keep your housing deposit for the difference of the ticket.

I cannot stand bosses that make outrageous claims to justify something else. I had one boss say "we have lost a lot of students this year and because your workload is less than 6 classes a day, we will pay you less this month" I said, in what world do you live in that makes you think that you can break a contract with a stated salary. I said your business problems are not mine and I am not responsible for them"

I do wish you good luck. I feel that everything will come out ok for you. The only thing that I would stand strong on is that it was his fault for buying a roundtrip ticket when the contract states that you will be provided with 2 one way tickets. I would try to be compromising like you seem to be, but don't bend over. I think that you are doing the right thing.