Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ya-ta Boy]

Has anyone found a good way to negotiate a way out of MT (Membership Training)?

I have been offered a job but it is not a perfect job and if the negotiations don't go my way I am prepared to forego the pleasure of being a dancing monkey and wait for a real teaching job.

One of the ONLY advantages at my present job was that the head teacher understood that two nights and three days of hanging out with 13 of 14 people who couldn't speak to me was not a recipe for a good time. I decided to try to negotiate an out in the new job. Unfortunately the Principal and Vice Principal didn't agree with him and blamed me for not going on those fun-filled excursions. But then, they also scheduled me in for classes during the weekly Wednesday afternoon fried chicken and soju parties in the office and then blamed me for not being social enough.

(I did have the pleasure of telling the Principal today, "You don't want to be here. None of the teachers want to be here. Why would I want to be here?" He seemed stunned. He should have stayed a PE teacher.)

[Hapkido-In]

Just try to think like a Korean. What do they put high values on. 1. Family and 2. Education.

So just explain that you are expecting a phone call from your family at that time and you left your phone at home. Or you can go with having a class at that time.

I study Hapkido (go figure) and make it clear to everyone at work that I do. I bring my camera in with 100s of pictures of me practicing and show them to everyone. It's a bit of a chore but worth the investment of time. I then have a 'special' Hapkido meeting/tournament/training session any time there is some work party. Never, ever had any problems.