Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ianinilsan]

https://www.koreaherald.co.kr/archives/result_contents.asp?id=200705230064&query=teacher

It is absolutely imperative that the citizens of Korea be made aware of an insidious problem that exists in what many Westerners perceive as one of the most developed countries in Asia.
Korea may be technologically advanced, but when it comes to equality and justice there is room for improvement.
Many foreigners come to Korea to have a nice experience with Koreans and learn about the culture by teaching English. Unfortunately when they arrive many are effectively turned into "slaves" and are viciously abused by hagwon management. It very common for hagwon owners to withhold pay from foreigners, lie to them and treat them like second-class citizens.
It is truly sad to see my fellow Americans treated like this, and what bothers me is that they have absolutely no enforceable protection under Korean law. This is where Korea must develop; delivering equality and justice to foreigners whose rights are recklessly violated by hagwons.
I came to Korea during the same week that the United States signed a free trade agreement with Korea. But after observing the intense abuse and exploitation of American workers by hagwons it will only be a matter of time before Americans begin to shun Korea.
As a political figure in the United States, I will return home and warn every legislator I know about the exploitation of Americans that I have witnessed.

Aaron Maloy

Seoul and Cape Cod, Massachusetts



I was unwittingly caught up in a program that I now believe to be quite illegal.
I am a teacher in the "after school program" and my company uses a bank account in my name to collect fees from schools, but I have no control over the account.
I am on an E2 visa, which I understand only allows me to work for the company that sponsored the visa, in my case, a recruitment/after school program outfit.
Despite my misgivings, a company man escorted me to the local bank branch and did all the talking. He took the bank book, cash flow card and secretly decided on the pin number.
There seems to be several versions of this scam, with the public schools involved in the after school program paying fees directly into an account opened by the teacher, thus avoiding all sorts of taxes for the company. The teacher is then paid a salary - obviously far less than the fees paid by the contracting school - by the company or hagwon who organized the scam.
The company is avoiding taxes, and the poor teacher could ultimately find himself facing a huge income tax bill for money he didn't actually see or receive.
I read about a similar case on an English teachers' message board who says he contacted the Labor Board and the local tax office but they expressed no interest in his case. If that is true, and given the power the employer has over my visa, it seems I am trapped in an illegal enterprise with very little recourse.
The only thing I can do is close the account and disappear. But then I will not get any salary, severance pay or reimbursement for my air ticket, and because the company controls my E-2 visa, I will not get a "letter of release" that will allow me to work elsewhere. My only option would be to leave the country, with little chance of returning.
This is another compelling reason to change the E2 conditions: So Korean employers cannot so easily manipulate foreign teachers to become unwilling accomplices in their illegal schemes.

Name and address withheld



　I was fired by my hagwon in late October last year after taking them to the Labor Board over unpaid overtime, excess tax and no pension.
　Although they fired me without just cause, they felt entitled to withhold my last pay cheque for recruiting fees and airfare. The Labor Board ruled in my favor but my hagwon has refused to pay.
　I took the judgment to legal aid at the end of November and the case is finally going to court on May 28.
　The Labor Board really needs to have more teeth. The legal system is stacked in favor of the employer since he has time on his side. It's much easier to hire another ignorant foreigner than to obey the law, especially when they can get away with not paying teachers.
　My boss has already told me he will appeal any decision made and would still refuse to pay regardless of any court order. He's assured me he will make it as difficult as he can for me, saying it would take two to three years for me to see any money. Immigration officials even told me not to bother taking it to court as it was a near impossibility I would ever see any money. The labor hotline had told me everything should have been resolved within two months. Had I known it would've taken so long, I probably would have just left, as sick as it would've made me.

　Things have got to change.

　Tyler Moorhead

no

2007.05.23

[wylies99]

Good to see these letters made it to print.

[kingtout]

[Tokki1]

WOW

We've come a long way. I never thought I'd see letters like this published in a Korean newspaper .

Too bad it's just the English rag. It's something, though.

[ED209]

It's a step in the right direction, any publicity is good publicity. It may appear to be a small and insignificant endeavour, but eventually it may help to embarrass the establishment into doing something, hopefully scrapping the whole E2 letter of release nonsense.

[excitinghead]

[Gwangjuboy]

[Mosley]

I wonder what Aaron Maloy means by saying he's "a political figure in the United States"?

[cerulean808]

Gwanjuboy

[Gwangjuboy]

[wylies99]

I believe that second letter is the most important. the cat is out of the bag and no one in Korean government can act like "Sgt Schultz" of "Hogan's Heroes"- I see NOTHING

[plokiju]

[wylies99]

They seem to know there are crooks in this industry, but they just don't seem to believe that "Mr. Kim or Mr. Lee" at THEIR hogwan could be one of them. After all, he's SO NICE.