| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
gujer
Joined: 31 Jul 2007
|
 Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 1:18 am Post subject: sick days |
 |
|
Well ... I have a question
I am sick of flu and I went to the doctor and the doctor says i have to stay at home for 2 days ,I then phone in to the school informing them...the teacher says that she has to see the prescription...
omg...my contract doesnt say anything to that effect why must she come to my house to pick up my prescription?
My contract says that if I am off for more than a week i need a doctors certificate and not for two days.
 |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
sconner
Joined: 26 Jan 2006
Location: South Carolina
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 2:20 am Post subject: |
|
|
| If you have it just show it to her and avoid a hassle. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
gujer
Joined: 31 Jul 2007
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 3:06 am Post subject: |
|
|
yeah
I just did ...and guess what...they want one for the next day too so I have to go back to the doctor and get another one..... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
sconner
Joined: 26 Jan 2006
Location: South Carolina
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 3:32 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Well that's just ridiculous, I don't know what to tell you.... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Atavistic
Joined: 22 May 2006
Location: How totally stupid that Korean doesn't show in this area.
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 7:55 am Post subject: |
|
|
DO NOT GO AGAIN! You have the contract, contract says seven days (are you GEPIK by chance?), tell her to shove it.
And if she shows up at your house, don't answer the door. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
gujer
Joined: 31 Jul 2007
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 10:51 am Post subject: |
|
|
yep..GEPIK it is ..
I was also told that i cannot get an hour off at the end of the month to go the bank ..if i want to go then they will take of an hour of my pay...
Neither can I leave the school premises during lunchtime to do it ...so I have no idea how I should pay my bills or transfer money? 
For the past two weeks I have been teaching camp and it was 3 hours per day which initially should have been 4 hours but the 4th hour was actually for teachers classes ..then 3rd week comes and I was told that i have to do 6 hours per day...Well I just refused and said that my contract says 20 hours per week in vacation time ..then i get told that I have to make up for the lost hours in the previous two weeks.. I then said well I was at work where I'm supposed to be and if the teachers did not pitch for class its not my fault...
yeah well... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
boyne11
Joined: 08 Jul 2007
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 1:01 pm Post subject: Re: sick days |
|
|
| gujer wrote: |
Well ... I have a question
I am sick of flu and I went to the doctor and the doctor says i have to stay at home for 2 days ,I then phone in to the school informing them...the teacher says that she has to see the prescription...
omg...my contract doesnt say anything to that effect why must she come to my house to pick up my prescription?
My contract says that if I am off for more than a week i need a doctors certificate and not for two days.
|
Tell your co-teacher or who ever told you to see the prescription to go f**k themselves. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
icicle
Joined: 09 Feb 2007
Location: Gyeonggi do Korea
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 1:30 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| gujer wrote: |
yep..GEPIK it is ..
I was also told that i cannot get an hour off at the end of the month to go the bank ..if i want to go then they will take of an hour of my pay...
Neither can I leave the school premises during lunchtime to do it ...so I have no idea how I should pay my bills or transfer money?
For the past two weeks I have been teaching camp and it was 3 hours per day which initially should have been 4 hours but the 4th hour was actually for teachers classes ..then 3rd week comes and I was told that i have to do 6 hours per day...Well I just refused and said that my contract says 20 hours per week in vacation time ..then i get told that I have to make up for the lost hours in the previous two weeks.. I then said well I was at work where I'm supposed to be and if the teachers did not pitch for class its not my fault...
yeah well... |
I am going to assume that you know that the 20 hours in a vacation is 20 hours of classes ... not 20 hours at work ... So that under the contract you are required to physically be at work for your normal hours ... Just only required to teach a class for 20 hours ... (I do know that actual enforcement of this does vary from school to school ... but under the contract you cannot expect to be entitled to only be at school for 20 hours in the week ... even in school vacation time) ... But then in the position you describe I would probably do what they want and teach the extra classes in the third week for the good will that this would produce ... which would probably end up at least in my school ... of creating a positive payback down the line ... For me it is also a question of choosing my battles wisely ...
I would however agree that the school is clearly in the wrong over the sick leave position ... But it is also understandable from the Korean cultural mindset position ... They are not just being hard on you ...
I have a suggestion for you on the bank position ... I am in a similar position with you with regard to the bank ... There is no bank which is close enough to my school for me to go to it during my lunchtime ... And in fact to transfer money overseas I actually have to travel 20-30 minutes on the bus ... because it is only possible from some branches ... So it is simply not possible in a normal day because I work until the bank closes ... I was allowed to leave early as a "business trip" on one day in the month to go to the bank ... Under the normal conditions which apply to the Korean teachers as well ... But to me it was still a pain to have to go to the bank to do it ... So last month when I went to the bank I got them to set up Internet banking for me and know I can pay my bills and make the transfers (including overseas) without needing to go to the bank .. For paying bills it is also possible to do much of that on ATM's as well ...
Icicle |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Atavistic
Joined: 22 May 2006
Location: How totally stupid that Korean doesn't show in this area.
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 3:43 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| gujer wrote: |
| Neither can I leave the school premises during lunchtime to do it ...so I have no idea how I should pay my bills or transfer money? |
Call in sick.  I'm serious.
Somewhere on GEPIK's homepage is a FAQ that says that teachers should be allowed to leave for personal business.
| Quote: |
※WORK HOURS※ Teaching hours are listed as 22 a week. What are our working hours? What are our duties during non-classroom hours?
Your working hours are 9 to 5. Your are expected to remain at your school during this time, but you may excuse yourself for personal business. Your primary focus is teaching. You should not asked to do anything irrelevant to English teaching.
|
http://gepik.ken.go.kr/r/bbs/board.php?bbs_code=f_faq
Show them this and go to the bank. Perhaps contact that dude at the office that's supposed to deal with us? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
icnelly
Joined: 25 Jan 2006
Location: Bucheon
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 3:49 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| gujer wrote: |
yep..GEPIK it is ..
I was also told that i cannot get an hour off at the end of the month to go the bank ..if i want to go then they will take of an hour of my pay...
Neither can I leave the school premises during lunchtime to do it ...so I have no idea how I should pay my bills or transfer money?
|
Geez, what is this, a sweat shop? I think you need to give the GEPIK liason a call - her name is Dain Bae: 031-249-0045.
Leaving early is a a priviledge for the Korean teachers, and it should be for you, and as you stated, it's not for fun/games; its for banking, so your purpose is quite clear. The docking of pay is utter nonsense. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
gujer
Joined: 31 Jul 2007
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 6:39 pm Post subject: |
|
|
qoute:icicle: I am going to assume that you know that the 20 hours in a vacation is 20 hours of classes ... not 20 hours at work ... So that under the contract you are required to physically be at work for your normal hours ... Just only required to teach a class for 20 hours ... (I do know that actual enforcement of this does vary from school to school ... but under the contract you cannot expect to be entitled to only be at school for 20 hours in the week ... even in school vacation time) ... But then in the position you describe I would probably do what they want and teach the extra classes in the third week for the good will that this would produce ... which would probably end up at least in my school ... of creating a positive payback down the line ... For me it is also a question of choosing my battles wisely ..."
Well I do know very well it is 20 hours of teaching and not at work asI have been at work for the full time i am supposed which means that I leave at 4h40 normal time. And straight after the kids leave the aircon is put of so I sit in a stuffy room ....how can I forget....
You talk about teaching the extra class? Excuse me add it up and you will find that it adds up to 30 hours teaching for the week .....IN normal school time even if you have extra classes you ar not supposed to teach for 30 hours ....Well u may be able to do it but I am not willing to cos that is not in my contract and secondy having not been paid as yet for three months overtime ....
Qoute: icicle: But it is also understandable from the Korean cultural mindset position ... They are not just being hard on you ...
Why does this sound a bit apologetic to me?Is it also their culture not to welcome you to the school when you first arrive and not introduce you to staff members? Is it their culture to treat you like nothing and get away with it? Is it their culture to tell you not to have religion? Is it their culture to tell u that even if you leave 10 minutes earlier to catch the bank open that it would be subtracted from your pay?
Well then I wonder what about my culture...Or do i just shove it?
qoute:icicle: So last month when I went to the bank I got them to set up Internet banking for me and know I can pay my bills and make the transfers (including overseas) without needing to go to the bank .. For paying bills it is also possible to do much of that on ATM's as well ...
I prefer to do transfers myself as I would like to have receipts etc and from experience I do not trust doing long distance transfers via ATM or Internet banking. Also the bank is not too far away either...
Thanks anyway but I dont think the the give and take thing works here...It seem to be just a take take not a give take..... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
marlow
Joined: 06 Feb 2005
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:17 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Here's my advice: get a transfer, or quit.
Your school is really assholey.
And if schools want to keep teachers more than a year, they should give us a real vacation and pay us extra for vacation work. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Jizzo T. Clown
Joined: 27 Mar 2006
Location: at my wit's end
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| icnelly wrote: |
Geez, what is this, a sweat shop? I think you need to give the GEPIK liason a call - her name is Dain Bae: 031-249-0045.
|
I don't trust that woman as far as I can throw her. When I tried to get my pension straightened out, she took the school's side and said that I wasn't eligible (I'm American). She's there to make life easier for the schools--not the foreign teachers.
And OP--I wouldn't do anything except mention that you are within the bounds of your contract. If they don't like it, put in your notice and go to a hagwon or another PS. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
icnelly
Joined: 25 Jan 2006
Location: Bucheon
|
| Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 12:54 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Jizzo T. Clown wrote: |
| icnelly wrote: |
Geez, what is this, a sweat shop? I think you need to give the GEPIK liason a call - her name is Dain Bae: 031-249-0045.
|
I don't trust that woman as far as I can throw her. When I tried to get my pension straightened out, she took the school's side and said that I wasn't eligible (I'm American). She's there to make life easier for the schools--not the foreign teachers.
And OP--I wouldn't do anything except mention that you are within the bounds of your contract. If they don't like it, put in your notice and go to a hagwon or another PS. |
JTC: I forgot about your debacle; that just happened a week or two ago too.
OP, I revise: don't call her, but I would try to figure some way for you to be able to leave eary; it's a privilege that you deserve: there's nothing in the contract about it, but it's common place, and it seems kind of required for the position most of us are in: we've got to pay the bills.
That would irk me to no end that they would dock my pay for an hour absence...B.S! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Fresh Prince
Joined: 05 Dec 2006
Location: The glorious nation of Korea
|
| Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 1:01 am Post subject: |
|
|
| gujer wrote: |
Well I do know very well it is 20 hours of teaching and not at work asI have been at work for the full time i am supposed which means that I leave at 4h40 normal time. And straight after the kids leave the aircon is put of so I sit in a stuffy room ....how can I forget.... |
Just talk to your boss and tell them that the aircon is being turned off even though you are still there and that you would like it to be left on the entire time that you are at work. You can volunteer to be in charge of turning it off if you like. If they don't know that it's a big problem for you then explain that foreigners aren't used to the heat in Korea and they need to keep it on.
| gujer wrote: |
Qoute: icicle: But it is also understandable from the Korean cultural mindset position ... They are not just being hard on you ...
[color=darkred]Why does this sound a bit apologetic to me?Is it also their culture not to welcome you to the school when you first arrive and not introduce you to staff members? Is it their culture to treat you like nothing and get away with it? Is it their culture to tell you not to have religion? Is it their culture to tell u that even if you leave 10 minutes earlier to catch the bank open that it would be subtracted from your pay?
Well then I wonder what about my culture...Or do i just shove it? |
Koreans almost never take sick days. If they have the flu they show up to work anyway. I've seen them show up to work at restaurants even, with a tissue stuffed in their nostril as a solution to a severe runny nose. They probably don't understand why you are taking sick days for something like the flu when they don't. Comparatively, it would be like someone back home calling in sick when they cut their finger.
It might be a good idea to talk to them and explain that you are from a very different culture and that because you are a foreigner you have not built up a resistance to the flu viruses here in Korea like they have. (If they give you any guff about it then you can always show up to work and get them all sick with your western germs, when your all better and they are experience the worst flu they have ever had in their entire lives, you can remind them that that you didn't take sick days so they can't either  )
| gujer wrote: |
qoute:icicle: So last month when I went to the bank I got them to set up Internet banking for me and know I can pay my bills and make the transfers (including overseas) without needing to go to the bank .. For paying bills it is also possible to do much of that on ATM's as well ...
I prefer to do transfers myself as I would like to have receipts etc and from experience I do not trust doing long distance transfers via ATM or Internet banking. Also the bank is not too far away either... |
They shouldn't be stopping you from leaving the school during your lunch breaks, your're not a child. Back home there are places that don't let people get paid time off for going to the bank but they don't stop people from going during their lunch breaks. Maybe they don't understand how hard it is to deal with banking and bill paying when everything is in another language, you might have to remind them of this.
| gujer wrote: |
Thanks anyway but I dont think the the give and take thing works here...It seem to be just a take take not a give take..... |
Sometimes this is the case but sometimes they just don't understand cultural differences, especially if they haven't traveled outside of their country. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
