Korean Job Discussion Forums

[haleydawn333]

Hi there,

To give a bit of background, I am here on an E2 visa and had been working at a private hagwon up until last week. The owner of the school came into the office last Monday and told us that they were closing down the school for financial reasons, and I was out of the door by Wednesday. Being that I have only been working in Korea since May (ie: less than 6 months) I am not protected by the labour laws, and a result had to take what they offered me. Aren't I just living the cliche? Bah.

Anyhow... I am allowed to stay in my apartment until the end of the month and will be paid for the month of September...minus 500,000 W that will be withheld until my Sept. bills are paid. I realize that this is standard practice and I will (hopefully!) get that 500,000 back.

NOW....what I NEED to figure out is......what about the unmentioned (but expected) chunk of money all hagwons take off your first 3-4 paychecks for an initial security deposit? Isn't this the norm for contracts in Korea? Shouldn't I get that back?!! They won't give me a straight answer about anything, so I am trying to figure out if I am entitled to that money, and should be pushing them for it.

Does anybody have any advice or experience dealing with this type of situation? I would greatly appreciate the input! Thanks very much.

[mmstyle]

If it were me, I would be pushing VERY hard for that money (based one what you have written). The school is the one breaking the contract (if they are the one who set up your housing, rather than you) with your landlord. That is to say, they are the one's who signed the contract.

This is my assumption based on what MOST teachers do. Let us know if that is accurate, and it will give people with more experience than I have more info to weigh in on.

As to whether you will get your money....of course, that is a different story.

[TheUrbanMyth]