So I finished my contract at an English school and my boss is trying to rip me off all of my bonuses. The major one is that she sent me an email saying I received a good teacher bonus, but she doesn’t want to give it to me now. She keeps changing her story, she sent it by accident, someone else sent it, she doesn’t know how it was sent. She said she was going to give the bonus, but she decided not to, after talking to another teacher. I have no idea what’s going, but I’ve got the email. Do I have any legal base to get this money?
Was it in a contract?
It was in the contract that I could receive a bonus, if my performance was good enough.
They have a grading system and conveniently I was graded the mark that is below any monetary amount.
I guess that might be difficult to prove.
1 Like
Is the email not enough proof? It states that I earned the grade, with the monetary value.
She posted in the email that you were to receive a bonus and the amount of the bonus in clear numbers?
Yes, it has my name and then two bonuses (one I received) with the value and the grade for the performance bonus.
And she’s now claiming she sent the email by accident, or someone else sent it?
Probably the Ministry of Labor Affairs would be your best port of call.
2 Likes
Wow. What an idiot boss.
5 Likes
So first you received the email saying your performance was sufficient, than you later received a grade below the standard? Yeah, if I had that kind of documentation I’d first mention to them I would take it to the Labor dept, that will probably improve their attitude. If not, I’d go there with it.
6 Likes
Thanks both. I received the email but then she told me in person when I went to pick up my pay, that my performance wasn’t good enough.
I didn’t accept the pay, as I said that I would speak to a lawyer first. My boss said I could talk to a lawyer, like she wasn’t worried.
Do you think it’ll be a problem if I accept my pay and then go to the labour ministry?
Accept what pay she’s offering, without signing anything, then gently threaten to go to the MLA after you’ve got the cash she’s currently prepared to give you.
“As a foreigner I am not aware of all the labor laws in Taiwan, so I will talk to the Ministry of Labor Affairs for confirmation. I am sure they will help with any misunderstandings.”
8 Likes
Everyone’s already given the good advice here about the ministry of labour but also be prepared to find a new job as they will make an excuse to get rid of you after. That is a good thing though, you don’t want to stick around working for a tool like that.
2 Likes
I don’t think you’ve got anything to work with even if you go the MOL. Your contract says you might receive a bonus. You didn’t get it. You got an email saying you got it, but the boss says it was a mistake. They have documentation that you don’t deserve it.
You probably deserve it, but they can say anything they want about your performance. I think you’re just going to waste your time and energy trying to chase after it.
1 Like
It doesn’t make much sense to hand over cash and not get a receipt for it, especially when there’s a dispute going on.
Offer to sign with a note along the lines of I accept this as partial payment and believe more money is still owed.
At least you’re not calling it the CLA anymore! 
The CLA is now the Ministry of Labor (no Affairs at the end), not to be confused with any city or county’s local Department of Labor (sometimes with Affairs added on). You can ask the MOL for information, but in terms of getting things done, in most cases they will advise you to talk to your local labor department.
1 Like
I would start looking for a new job. Doesn’t sound like someone you want to work for.
2 Likes
I agree, with two points to add.
-
Pursuit of the bonus is probably a waste of your time and other people’s time. That would include your boss and the labor department.
-
If you’re going to spend the time doing this, why not look into possible violations of the Labor Standards Act? You may discover that you’re owed holiday pay, overtime pay, etc. In that case, it’s not such a waste of time after all.
There’s no pleasing you, is there.
1 Like
From CLA to MLA… you’re like, halfway there, man. Don’t give up yet! 
1 Like
Initialisms aside, I’ve made it work for me in the past.
1 Like