I wouldn’t go by one individuals judgement.
You definitely need a thick skin if you want to work there or here. Its probably up to you if you can handle the level of ignorance out there .
I didn’t get raises every year. In fact I only got one semi significant raise in the last 3 years.
In four years in another job I never got a raise either.
Thats life .
Some Taiwanese have it hard I know that very well.
Others have it very very easy.
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You could say that about any country.
Of course some have it easy and some don’t.
15,000 on rent? For a family? Not happening in any of the major cities. 20,000 and up is more realistic.
Not all Taiwanese and certainly not a majority live with family. Many move out and into the cities to work. A lot send a good portion of their salary back home to help support parents and grandparents. It’s paying back for the help given to them. Family takes care of family. It’s a circle of cash flow.
I’m still standing firm that 80,000 is something to be grateful for living in Taiwan. Don’t compare it to what you would be making back home, it’s apples and oranges.
A foreign teacher making 80,000 can easily save money with a little moderation.
20,000 rent will get you a modest but decent apartment.
10,000 on transportation and food. Eating mostly local food and cooking for yourself.
10,000 for entertainment, bills, misc.
That leaves you with 40,000 to save, travel or do whatever you want.
That is a lot more than a lot of people back home are able to save monthly.
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If you are not getting a raise every year, you are working for the wrong school.
I have gotten a raise every year for the past 12 years I have been teaching here. Not all at the same school either.
Life in China is probably not the antidote to Taiwan. You didn’t say where your job there would be based, but I am guessing it is out in the shitty industrial boondocks where life would be grim indeed, and lonely as hell. As far as contracts there, yes they will screw you over if they can get away with it – that’s not even a racial thing, they do it to each other too. Unless it’s someplace like Shanghai, you run the risk of being completely isolated in a hostile environment. Oh, and you need a VPN if you want to watch YouTube – and VPNs are under attack there now. So you might not even have proper internet.
41K works out to 270NTD per hour if you’re on a 35 hour workweek. That is 9 USD per hour which is… well, it is what it is. It’s better than Federal US minimum wage, but not by much.
That said, you got to start somewhere. The good news is that if you are an effective teacher who produces positive language learning outcomes – or if you are capable of becoming one in what seems like an entry level job – then you won’t be on shit pay forever. Just get good at what you do, and keep looking for other opportunities.
When you do get a better offer, take it. You don’t have any overriding moral obligation to complete the full year of your contract – just give them the 30 days notice or whatever is stipulated in the contract. Commenters who seem to believe that an employment contract is some kind of biblical pledge are living in an alternate universe. It’s a business agreement and business conditions are subject to change. Just make sure that you stick it out at the next place, as excessive job-hopping is a sure way to ruin your CV.
Good luck, and I hope it gets better for you.
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for western standard. You can find them at 591.com. And in a same type of room we lived with 3, a family of 7 lived.
that’s true. Especially when they let you work illegally.
One of the problems with this is the average foreign English teacher wage is something around 55k per month, it’s nowhere close to 80k per month.
Then also factor in no bonuses and no vacation pay and no benefits. Don’t think there’s much to be jealous of to be fair.
I’ve done it and it’s a hard job you have to be switched on all the time, no job security.
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15,000 on rent? For a family? Not happening in any of the major cities. 20,000 and up is more realistic.
Paying 9000 here in Tainan for 3 bedrooms, 1 living room, 1 kitchen, 2 bathrooms, very good location too (does not come with furniture though). I guess you can find something similar in Taijong for 15 000.
Exactly!
Also some comments above about ‘They’ being racist are well… thats racisim isnt it? Lumping a whole bunch of people into a category and making negative judgments. Best to rise above rather than to join in the stereotyping.
Government policy is discriminatory against South east Asians and also against non Chinese who would like to get a passport.
If you talk to the average Taiwanese they don’t see a problem with it. That’s why it continues.
The most glaring examples are the dual citizenship for local born but not for foreigners and the lack of inclusion of foreign caregivers (who are 99 per cent SE Asian women) in the labour standards act.
They were very upset and disappointed about being left out of the latest minimum wage increase. This is shameful treatment.
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3 million Syrian refugees, out of a total population of 80 million. From time to time Western governments warn their nationals against unnecessary travel to Turkey, for fear that they may be kidnapped. In the east, a virtual civil war against local Kurds, in addition to the war against Syrian Kurds. The economy is propped up by profligate government spending. There’s talk of joining the Shanghai Pact and abandoning their EU bid, even though more than half of Turkey’s trade is with Europe. Journalists are in jail, basically for being journalists. It is a crime to criticize the president. Private universities and cram schools have been taken over by the government.
BTW I’ve been to Turkey twice, and have friends there.
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IME the people who make the best money are those who view themselves as self-employed. They have a variety of strings to their bow - running their own school, doing private classes, editing, examining, writing… They are jack of all trades rather than just teachers. They are often also not necessarily competent at what they do, although it helps if they are, but they are very good at selling themselves. Not hard sell - low key sell.
Anyway, with regards to the OP 41k is woefully low even at entry level. The standard entry level in buxibans is 600 an hour or 60-70k a month. This is the same now as it was 12 years ago. Being white I don’t know much about institutional racism in Taiwan, other than minor problems such as getting credit cards or loans etc, but I’m sure it exists. I strongly suspect it would be worse in China. If you want to get by here then you will need to let things go and pick your battles carefully. If you are easily frustrated then East Asia isn’t the place for you regardless of your skin colour.
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i agree for the most part. well i don’t think young taiwanese have it all that rough like some people like to make out. most of it is their own doing too imo.
I am guessing many of English teachers are young singles with not so much experience. less than 10% of graduates here get salaries more than 50000NTD. I don’t think just being a foreigner with a degree from an English speaking country does deserve 60k automatically. I think if you have enough qualifications, you can get a position at a regular school. If you don’t have enough qualification, you need to get more experience with less pay, or something adding you more value as a worker, in any country.
When English teachers have families, they often have APRC or local spouse. It’s not fair to compare their salaries with foreign countries.
Someone already said that nobody forces you take any contract. If the salary offered is suck, you have a right to reject it. If home country offer you better salary, you can take it anytime. Going back home is much easier than locals going to foreign countries for better pay.
Add some statistics
Less than 15% workers are getting more than 45k/month, and about 30% are working for less than 23k.
How can you say 60k is suck or 80k is a crap money. The salary range for English teachers is no secret. You have an option not to come here if the (expected) offer is suck, before you leave your home country.
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I think what’s “fair” or not is moot. The market sets pay rates and native English speaking teachers have been rated accordingly. Are we doing well compared to Taiwanese workers? IMO we’re now comparable to slightly higher than mid-income Taiwanese workers when we were about the same as upper mid-income Taiwanese 10 years or so ago. This will continue to go down over time due mainly to low birth rates affecting demand and a growing supply of South African employees. Probably within 10 years we’ll be on a par with Taiwanese average income. We may have been ousted by technology way before then, though, IMO. 
I have decided to stick with theTaiwan job. I have not yet signed a contract. Do you think I should ask for higher pay?
If so, how to say it without seeming ungrateful?
You’re kidding, right? For goodness sake, it’s not that hard. You sit down, read the contract and make a counter offer about 10,000 higher than the amount you really want. From there you negotiate down to the amount you are aiming for. You need proof of your worth. Resume, references, demo skills, etc. Bluff and tell them you are sticking around for the long term and that investing in you is investing in stability for the school. If they don’t budge, then walk. There are MANY schools hiring for more! We keep telling you this, but it’s falling on deaf ears.
Then give me the schools!
And ok. I will tell them that by me commuting an hour to work each day I would appreciate a bit more money to compensate. Does this sound ok?
I showed them my resume and Gave them the recommendation letter from my previous esl job (an assistant teacher to adults).
You’ve had 100 + advices… It’s time to make your own conclusion… We the bunch of strangers on the internet can give you some insight in our own experiences but can’t tell you what to do…
Man / girl up and take the lead in your own life… Or… Head back home…
Jaiyoo!
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I pray that is just poor typing skills resulting in massive typos. If the above quote is a reflection of your actual English skills, then you are not worth the 600nt per hour.
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