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Gorf
Joined: 25 Jun 2011
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 Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 6:44 am Post subject: Interviewed secretly at another school, beans were spilled |
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My school found out somehow that I interviewed with another program. They knew that I was still working there and that I hadn't put in notice. I have posted on here before about how my school and I have come to odds with each other. They don't like me and I don't like them, and so I was proactive and started looking for another job. Now, I get this e-mail from my recruiter (who I haven't talked to in months) that says:
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Hello Gorf,
I hope everything is well with you in Korea.
I am afraid to email you with some concerns.
I understand that you have been working at XXXXX English school for the last 3 months and I recently heard that you are interviewing with some schools.
So, I wanted to find out if you want to resign from XXXXXX English school.
Could you explain about the situation?
Do you want to resign from the school?
If yes, I recommend you to keep a good relationship with the school until you quit.
Without good reference and support from your current employer, it would not be easy to transfer to a new school in Seoul.
As long as the foreign teachers have working experience in Korea already, the schools check the foreign teachers' reference first especially when you don't complete the 1 year contract.
You also would need a release letter from XXX to transfer to a new school in order to make the visa process quicker.
Finally, the school hopes that you would keep any conversation between you and the school in secret according to the contract.
Because the school does not want effect other employees by this situation.
We will discuss more after I hear back from you about the interviewing sitation with another school.
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First of all, why would my recruiter be the one to contact me and not my bosses that I see every day? Fear? Face-saving? Does my recruiter have to give my school back their fee if I quit and they're worried about that?
Second, should I even respond to this? I do plan to stay as professional as I can and follow my contract's stipulations, but knowing there's nothing illegal about interviewing at other schools, what are the repercussions I might face from my school knowing I'm looking for work? Holding my LOR over my head like a prize? |
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jrwhite82
Joined: 22 May 2010
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 6:56 am Post subject: Re: Interviewed secretly at another school, beans were spill |
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| Gorf wrote: |
My school found out somehow that I interviewed with another program. They knew that I was still working there and that I hadn't put in notice. I have posted on here before about how my school and I have come to odds with each other. They don't like me and I don't like them, and so I was proactive and started looking for another job. Now, I get this e-mail from my recruiter (who I haven't talked to in months) that says:
| Quote: |
Hello Gorf,
I hope everything is well with you in Korea.
I am afraid to email you with some concerns.
I understand that you have been working at XXXXX English school for the last 3 months and I recently heard that you are interviewing with some schools.
So, I wanted to find out if you want to resign from XXXXXX English school.
Could you explain about the situation?
Do you want to resign from the school?
If yes, I recommend you to keep a good relationship with the school until you quit.
Without good reference and support from your current employer, it would not be easy to transfer to a new school in Seoul.
As long as the foreign teachers have working experience in Korea already, the schools check the foreign teachers' reference first especially when you don't complete the 1 year contract.
You also would need a release letter from XXX to transfer to a new school in order to make the visa process quicker.
Finally, the school hopes that you would keep any conversation between you and the school in secret according to the contract.
Because the school does not want effect other employees by this situation.
We will discuss more after I hear back from you about the interviewing sitation with another school.
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First of all, why would my recruiter be the one to contact me and not my bosses that I see every day? Fear? Face-saving? Does my recruiter have to give my school back their fee if I quit and they're worried about that?
Second, should I even respond to this? I do plan to stay as professional as I can and follow my contract's stipulations, but knowing there's nothing illegal about interviewing at other schools, what are the repercussions I might face from my school knowing I'm looking for work? Holding my LOR over my head like a prize? |
Busted. That sucks. I think that your recruiter is concerned about his commission, obviously. You're not sure if your school knows or not? I would send an email to your recruiter and say that a friend recommended this place to you and they were offering a really sweet deal and you thought you would check it out. But you haven't made a decision yet. Or just say nothing or deny, deny, deny. I don't know what I would do.
Yes, follow your contract. Since you need that LOR, they might just hold it over your head and make you sweat. But stick to your guns, do the right thing and hope for the best. They aren't required to give you the LOR, so you have to do your best to stay on their good side. So, I would weigh that into consideration when being honest about looking for a different job.
Is the new place willing to wait for you so that your old place can find a replacement so they don't have to go without a teacher? That might go a long way in getting that LOR signed. Another thing I would do is just bring in your own LOR and a pen and have him just sign it and fill in any necessary information on the spot. You'd be surprised how much more willing people will sign things when you hand it to them already drawn up with a pen to write with. (old sales technique...don't give em time to debate it) Don't wait for him to type it up and bring it to you. |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:09 am Post subject: |
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| First of all, why would my recruiter be the one to contact me and not my bosses that I see every day? |
The recruiter represents the school when offering you the job. They have a responsibility to get things straightened out. It's like being in court, the attorney would talk to you representing the client. You wouldn't be talking to the client. In this case you are representing yourself, so it makes sense that the school doesn't contact you about this.
Seems like a new potential school contacted your current school.
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| should I even respond to this? |
Of course. The idea here is that they would get a replacement, and then you would find another school. However, you are looking for a school first, and this would leave them without a teacher. They are concerned about this, and I see nothing wrong in what they are doing. I think you should ask the recruiter about finding a replacement. Then, it will put you in a better situation to find another school. I think you are doing it wrong.
It's not a matter of being busted. You are simply only thinking about yourself, and that's not how it works. You need to give them a chance to get a replacement. Then, they are more likely to sign over a LOR. Right now, you are the teacher they have and they don't want you to go.
Last edited by koreatimes on Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:11 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Gorf
Joined: 25 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:10 am Post subject: |
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My contract states I need to give them two month's notice and pay my airfare back if I leave earlier than 6 months. Standard stuff. However I am willing to part with the airfare money and I think I can save them the recruiter cost by finding my own replacement, so there's no net loss for them financially.
The school HAS to know, how else would my recruiter be involved? I never mentioned them on my application for this job or anything. It's crazy, but I still have enough sway at my work to get the LOR. The tricky thing is finding a job more than two months away. |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:14 am Post subject: |
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| It's crazy, but I still have enough sway at my work to get the LOR. The tricky thing is finding a job more than two months away. |
I completely don't understand this. If you get a replacement, the school is going to force you to wait 2 months? What if you get a replacement now and just say you want them to interview a possible replacement?
Work with them. I don't understand your tactics, completely backwards and not productive. |
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The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:15 am Post subject: |
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| Seems like a new potential school contacted your current school. |
Yup, reference checks are happening a lot more otten nowadays. |
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Gorf
Joined: 25 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:20 am Post subject: |
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| koreatimes wrote: |
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| It's crazy, but I still have enough sway at my work to get the LOR. The tricky thing is finding a job more than two months away. |
I completely don't understand this. If you get a replacement, the school is going to force you to wait 2 months? What if you get a replacement now and just say you want them to interview a possible replacement?
Work with them. I don't understand your tactics, completely backwards and not productive. |
My thinking is that when the appropriate job came along I would give them my two month's notice and help find a new teacher in that time. I'm not sure how willing this school would be to be flexible on the teacher time-table. We're incredibly brain-drained and two months is a long time for most of the teachers I work with.
I will work with them, I plan to be honest about what's going on, and I understand they might be scared I'm going to jump ship. I'll let the recruiter know that isn't so but I don't want this information to also hurt my job search retroactively. |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:25 am Post subject: |
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| My thinking is that when the appropriate job came along I would give them my two month's notice and help find a new teacher in that time. |
WRONG. They don't want you to leave and them not have a teacher. You HOPE you can get a teacher, but you DON'T KNOW. The same reason why you are doing it this way is the reason why they would want to do it the other way. They want to get another teacher first. They don't want you going behind their back finding another school first. You are doing it backwards. |
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Gorf
Joined: 25 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:34 am Post subject: |
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| Yes, but I also want to hedge my bets by securing a job first and then putting in my notice. If I start the resignation process now I might be the one left out in the cold while the school gets a new teacher and I get nothing. If this school can't recruit or have me find a new teacher with 2+ months time then they're even bigger failures than they have shown themselves to be. |
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Pa Jan Jo A Hamnida
Joined: 27 Oct 2006
Location: Not Korea
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 2:24 pm Post subject: |
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Sounds like you gorfed up  |
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Swampfox10mm
Joined: 24 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:30 pm Post subject: |
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| When I interviewed at other jobs in the past, I made damn sure they promised not to contact my current school. I had other references to give them, though. If you had mentioned such, and they called anyway, putting your job in jeopardy, I would go there and raise hell for it. |
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Malislamusrex
Joined: 01 Feb 2010
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:46 pm Post subject: |
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I have done exactly the opposite, I always tell the people I am leaving that I need a reference and the reason why I am leaving. Then if they can fix it or match the price I will consider it.
| Swampfox10mm wrote: |
| When I interviewed at other jobs in the past, I made damn sure they promised not to contact my current school. I had other references to give them, though. If you had mentioned such, and they called anyway, putting your job in jeopardy, I would go there and raise hell for it. |
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WadRUG'naDoo
Joined: 15 Jun 2010
Location: Shanghai
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 10:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Recruiters sometimes talk to each other or have more than one company. It's possible your recruiter found out this way. |
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braindrops
Joined: 13 Sep 2011
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| Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2011 11:39 pm Post subject: |
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i'm a big fan of this thread title. "interviewed with another school, beans were spilled."
tremendous use of the passive voice in the second clause. it gives it a james bond-esque, high-intrigue feel. thank you for spicing up our lives, if but a little at a time. 
any updates? |
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Swampfox10mm
Joined: 24 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2011 3:56 am Post subject: |
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| Malislamusrex wrote: |
I have done exactly the opposite, I always tell the people I am leaving that I need a reference and the reason why I am leaving. Then if they can fix it or match the price I will consider it.
| Swampfox10mm wrote: |
| When I interviewed at other jobs in the past, I made damn sure they promised not to contact my current school. I had other references to give them, though. If you had mentioned such, and they called anyway, putting your job in jeopardy, I would go there and raise hell for it. |
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yeah... But do you do that a few months into the contract, like the OP, or between contracts? |
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