Korean Job Discussion Forums

df1983 · Joined: 15 Aug 2009 Location: Pyongtaek, Korea

I recently accepted a position with a company and for the first two weeks everything was OK. This past week I was informed that in addition to my 9:00AM-7:30PM day... with a two hour lunch break.... that I will be required to wake up even earlier on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and take a bus to a nearby city to teach ONE class at the City Hall and then take a bus back to my school to work 9:00AM-7:30PM. This means that I would have to wake up at 5:45 three days a week to work an already long day and have to commute. There was nothing about split shifts in my contract when I signed. The head boss of my company (who works at headquarters in Seoul... I'm not in Seoul) came in the school last week to drop this bomb on us (all the foreign teachers... the Korean teachers aren't required for this). He told the supervisor to TELL us this was mandatory and told her to not ASK us if we wanted to do this (she is actually really cool and told us about this). Are there labor laws in Korea that protect you from working this many hours in a day? I am a newbie, what would you guys do? I did NOT sign sign up for this. I made it pretty clear from the get go that I would not be doing this.... no one in the office really knew what to say to me.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2009 4:55 am Post subject:

Assuming you're here on an E-2, you're in luck - it's illegal to work in a place other than that listed on your ARC.

Just say - "Sorry no... can't do it because it's illegal." Cool

littlelisa · Joined: 12 Jun 2007 Location: Seoul

Plus your contract should have something to say about working hours, no? But it's moot if you're on E2s anyway.

big_fella1 · Joined: 08 Dec 2005

If your an E2 visa holder you need immigrations permission to work in any other buliding, so without that permission it is illegal to do the work.

It is also my understanding that unless you are teaching at a government office in the morning, permission will not be granted. Sorry I can't source this as the English version of immigrations website is down at the moment.

This is the best way to avoid the extra work.

As far as working hours unless you are required to teach/prepare for more than 8 hours a day, you don't have a case there. Article 56 of the English version of the Korean Labor Standards Act (unfortunately the article numbers in the Korean version don't match the English Sad

) doesn't count rest hours. Further if the working hours are between 6am and 10pm they don't automatically count as overtime hours. You can find an English version of the Labor Standards Act at http://www.molab.go.kr/english/main.jsp

df1983 · Joined: 15 Aug 2009 Location: Pyongtaek, Korea

Thanks for the info... I am here on an E2 Visa.

Demophobe · Joined: 17 May 2004

cruisemonkey · Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2009 4:41 pm Post subject:

TheUrbanMyth · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Location: Retired

blonde researcher · Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2009 8:30 pm Post subject:

Any second location to be teaching at also has to be a registered education premise signed off by the education ministry.
I doubt that City Hall is that, however a number of City Halls do seem to organize the teachers in public schools.
I know the Gimhae City Hall hires and organizes all the public school teachers there.

What sort of a contract are you on to start with?