Korean Job Discussion Forums

[jondepoer]

Hello,

I've been here a couple of years now, and I've learned that labor law is not viewed in the same way as back home.

However, I was wondering if anyone knows how break-times are enforced among foreign workers.

I currently work at a private school where I am required to work from 1:30-8:30 (including 1 hour of prep. for the first hour). My prep time is not paid, but I am required to be there.

My contract states that I work 6000 minutes a month, no more than 110 hours, and 1 hour of unpaid prep per day. Classes are 50 mins. each. For the first few months, I would have only 4-5 classes a day as the hagwon is brand new, and growing. Around the 4 month mark, my schedule was bumped up to 6 classes straight per day + my hour of prep. Now, assuming that the 10 minute breaks are paid, 6 classes a day puts me at 120 hours a month, or 10 hours of overtime...

...so I thought. The main branch of my school franchise ruled that the 10 minute breaks between classes are unpaid. Now, I rarely have an uninterrupted break, as I teach 150 students on a rotating basis, and someone always has a problem of some kind. I think the wording is extremely deceiving, and I fought to issue to no avail.

So the question: can anybody confirm that I have a legal right to a paid break after working 7 hours a day? Aside from being a dick-move to say that I'm off the clock for 10 minutes between classes, do I have any legal recourse?