[quote=“Back Packer”]
God no! And I don’t own stock in them either. Anderson and GTE were lessons never to bank on a chain school. But as managers or staffers, or whatever they are, I still think the counter people are just doing their job.
Get out of here! Are you serious? They must have gone local and adopted micromanagement policies.
If you want to be told how to dress, what to say and how to do your lesson and basically how to behave, then go to a big language school like Wall Street.
They’ll treat you like a child, if that’s what you’re into. They’ll treat you like a 17 year old high school student.
And if you want to have a manager like that White Guy behind the front counter, who watches you all day long - the things you say, the way you dress and how you teach - Then Wall Street is for you!
If you like to be controlled all day long - Then Wall Street is for you.
If you don’t mind being paid $325 - $550 per hour - Then try getting a job teaching English at Wall Street.
But if you want to work in a friendlier more relaxed work environment, one where you can exercise more discretion in the way you teach and how you dress - Avoid Wall Street.
Wall Street micro manages it’s employees.
And I don’t like that or the type of people that get promoted in large language schools - Most of these people are scummy and I can’t stand being around them.
They’d f*ck you over in a heart beat without feeling any remorse.
Personally, I think the OP should be thankful that they showed him what kind of as sholes they could be up front.
Better than finding out 3 or 4 months down the road.[/quote]
I can’t imagine why you find it strange that the people in charge would want to tell you how to dress and teach which, in effect, is simply explaining company policy. After all, they are IN CHARGE. Any school that doesn’t do as much is probably not very efficiently run. Policies regarding teaching, dress codes etc., don’t necessarily preclude a relaxed work environment. In fact, working creatively within a structure is often easier and more effective than just winging it–which by your posts, I assume, is what you intend to do.
Wall Street may not be a fun place to work and their pay may be well below what is acceptable to you, but ragging on them because they have certain standards which you aren’t willing to meet seems childish at best.
I think Back Packer is on the money. Why? It is not always so much what these WASPy management types do but HOW they do it. Of course you need to set clear guidelines and communicate effectively with teachers or employees in any organization. I have seen guys show up for lessons in their
[quote=“Epicurean”]However, those are the vast minority and the type of corporate hitmen Back Packer refers to are those superior, self-important types that think they know best about every aspect of your work and are usually very threatened by your competence because of their severe lack of it.
[emphasis added] [/quote]
I think Epicurean has hit the nail on the head. Of course it is necessary to manage people, but good managers have skill in doing this. Many head teachers/academic directors in Taiwan simply lack these skills. They are often appointed to these jobs simply because they have been there for a while or they have good guanxi with the school’s owners not because they have management skills or experience. If they were working in their own countries they would never be in management positions. Some of them couldn’t even manage a root in a brothel 
I have alot to say, but no time to say it right now. I’ll just say that BackPacker is full of it. He doesn’t know what he is talking about vis-a-vis wage or micro-management. I will get into this more tonight but I have to get back to my great job at WSI.
Be true to your school…just like you would to your girl… 
This is my company and we do things my way. Not your way. My way. That’s the deal if you want any money off me. You want to do it your way, start your own damn company. Sheesh! Kids today. 
Ay, that’s the bloody truth!
And here’s some more…
A full time teacher starts at 55 not 40 and w/ bonuses :shock: 60…
You work the easiest 5-6 hours a day you’ll ever work as a teacher.
No homework to correct.
No final reports to do.
The curriculum is teacher-proof. Trust it and you are livin’ on Easy Street…and I know, cuz I’ve spent a few nights on East Street… 
Look it up www.canada411.com Easy Street, Whistler BC
And I’ve spent more than a few uneasy evenings right here on old Lucifer Lu…I learned alot about being a non-respected child-slobbered parentally disatisfied (not really, parents love me, just sounds good) corpo-clone working for one of your bigger, yellower chain buxibans…and I learned in my old-fashioned, tried and true fashion…hard knox…I guess I can take some pride on how my “bravery” is admired by my former colleagues…I am not one to suffer injustice quietly and my little yellow school bux was driven by the definition of dragon-lady…motivating with fear and taking no prisoners…
“I’ll none of that”, sez I…
And was rewarded with closet friendships to the extent that colleagues were afraid to be seen with me in public…you may think I wax hyperboliac, but, with all fairness to truth, I say I exaggerate solely with plurality…it happened once… 
Why go into all this ancient history? Merely to give you, dear reader, a sense of the depths of ugly that can be reached here in the biz of ESL Taiwan…and I faced the dragon and didn’t flinch…I know from whence I come when I say
Wall Street Rox
…
I wear a tie to work everyday and I feel better about myself…which is hard…cuz I’m so damn pleased already.
I have bright, eager, motivated students in groups of 4 max, with the odd octet tossed in for fun and adventure…
I have just started and certainly wish I’d found them a year earlier…
I think I’ll side with Toe on this one. Backpacker, I don’t know what you did in your previous job that wearing a tie makes you shudder so, but it’s a reality in business almost anywhere. In addition to me liking to get dressed up for work, the chicks really dig it as well. The reason they have a dress code in the first place is to top off the professional appearance of the school. If you have been in and worked there for a stint than you realize that it is not set up like any other English school. It has a more relaxed and professional atmosphere due to the fact that they deal primarily with business professionals. As for the pay, once again, Toe was on the money. I work 27 hours a week teaching and hardly prep at all. If a student cancels, the teacher does get full pay for it as long as they are doing something constructive like reviewing material during their spare hour (hardly a hassle).
As for the “white corporate manager”, mine is one of the nicest people I have met in Taiwan. And I am not sure who you think is getting stabbed in the back by this guy. What good would it do the manager to stab his employees in the back. He has responsibilies to run the school and he can’t get any higher in the chain of command so he has no reason to stomp on anyone. The only problem one would incur by his / her manager, would be if a) you were late for work or b) you were a bad teacher. I’m pretty sure I can handle those outrageous rules :shock:
That being said, Wall Street is by far one of the best places I have worked at. I have the chance to move up the corporate ladder if I wish. Not because I will be stabbing my fellow employees in the back to do so, but because they are expanding to accomodate the influx of students and so other branches are opening.
Backpacker, I do know how or why you had such a bad experience, but I, as well as many others love it there.
I haven’t found an easier or more relaxed job.
Happy Hunting…
You are right…even I am a Chinese English teacher, I have to say they are really MEAN and CHEAP, not only to you, but to we Chinese English teachers… They pretend being friendly to you and ask you to do a lot without extra pay… If there is anything wrong with the school, they will blame you even that’s their mistake.
I had a very bad experience with a cheap Chinese boss… she was unhappy with me because I interviewed the foreign teacher for her and she promised to pay him 42000 a month with only 13 teaching hours…she complained everything to me because I translated the foreign teacher’s complains. when I translated what the boss said to the foreign teacher, he complained to me as well…I was a go-between…
I empathize with all the mean boss stories…I too worked for the Leona Helmsley of Taiwan. Vindictive, childish and rude but begin to define this dragon lady.
But as this is a thread about Wall Street, I’ll share with you an experience that made my jaw drop…as it will yours. When I first came to WSI, one a my co-teachers, a Californian, pulled the ol’ midnight move on us. Using SARS as an excuse, he bailed with no notice as soon as he collected his salary. Now, even the most considerate of bosses would be well within his rights to be upset, even blacklisting the teacher, in my mind, would be acceptable.
What did WSI do? They kept his ARC active in case he changed his mind and came back. This is when my mandible dislodged from my cranium elasticizing my Sterno Cleido Mastoid muscle a approx. 168 cms to the office floor. Is yours on your keyboard now?
Another incident…a Canadian guy decided to go back to University half way thru his contract. He didn’t want to give notice, but I suggested that he should. He did. He is welcome back anytime.
If you are paid to work 40 hours as a secretary, you are not expected to work a minute more. More than this, you are not wanted to. I have heard this from the owner’s mouth.
I have had many, many jobs. The worst boss I’ve ever had was Geraldine at KoJen Kids, school 4. The best boss I’ve ever had is Rick Lee, owner of WSI Taiwan. He is an innovative, creative, forward thinker. He has invested in a world-reknown ESL system that is a complete departure from the “learn a thousand words” curriculum so prevelant in Taiwan’s ESL industry.
Yes you make more than I do teaching kids. I’ve taught kids. Loved it, loved the money. And, I’ll never do it again.
RAZ wrote:
[quote]
"It has a more relaxed and professional atmosphere due to the fact that they deal primarily with business professionals. "[/quote]
Since when did wearing a tie (or suit) contribute to a stress-free or low anxiety classroom environment?
???
TOE SAVE WROTE:
Corporate Johnny, get your head outta the owner’s ass - lol!!
TOE SAVE WROTE:
aha, ha! - What is is this “world reknown ESL system”
TOE SAVE, you’re a little confused here I think. Taiwanese aren’t ESL learners. Ask yourself this: Is English the official/dominant language in Taiwan?
Man, you two jokers are so full of corporate sh*t (I actually sit here and laugh out loud while I read your posts - lol!).
At any rate, let’s not bs the readers here - many DO NOT love it at WALL STREET ENGLISH.
[quote=“Fudge Packer”]RAZ wrote:
[quote]
"It has a more relaxed and professional atmosphere due to the fact that they deal primarily with business professionals. "[/quote]
Since when did wearing a tie (or suit) contribute to a stress-free or low anxiety classroom environment?
???
TOE SAVE WROTE:
Corporate Johnny, get your head outta the owner’s ass - lol!!
TOE SAVE WROTE:
aha, ha! - What is is this “world reknown ESL system”
TOE SAVE, you’re a little confused here I think. Taiwanese aren’t ESL learners. Ask yourself this: Is English the official/dominant language in Taiwan?
Man, you two jokers are so full of corporate sh*t (I actually sit here and laugh out loud while I read your posts - lol!).
At any rate, let’s not bs the readers here - many DO NOT love it at WALL STREET English.[/quote]
Man…you sure got ignorance blazing from both barrells don’t ya? To a person, each teacher I work with loves…LOVES…L-O-V-E-S his/her job.
What is it with you? Did you get turned down for a job here? Is that why you are so bitter about the place?
As for my sycophancy, I can assure you my name is not Toe-dee Save. Do you think I go by this name at work? No one here knows I write under this name. I write about Wall Street because the nature of boards such as these are to share good and bad information. And to have fun…are you having fun yet? Moron!
[quote]Did you get turned down for a job here? Is that why you are so bitter about the place?
[/quote]
Can’t believe that’s the case. Look at the way he comports himself here. Such stylish grace. Such eloquence. Come on Toe, you know perfectly well that if you interviewed a guy like this you’d be offering him double the hourly rate just to have him on board.
I believe that an employer is legally obligated to inform the Ministry of the Interior when an employee quits or otherwise changes jobs.
Wall Street would be breaking the law if it kept his ARC active.
This “wear a tie to class” concept is about 15 years old. Some other place(s) tried it too. I don’t know. A pig in a suit is still a pig. Unless you have to teach in the corporate head office, I see no reason why a teacher cannot wear leisure clothes. Clearly, no headbands (seen it) or ragged cutoffs (seen it) in the classroom, but wearing a tie doesn’t make anyone a better teacher or more professional.
The tie is one of the most harmful inventions mankind has ever produced. Ties have no practical application and seemingly only exist to make men’s necks uncomfortable. Just as around mid-20th century men realized that hats were pointless fashion accessories and decided to no longer require the wearing of hats to the office, so too should ties be chucked out on the heap of obsolescence.
I believe that an employer is legally obligated to inform the Ministry of the Interior when an employee quits or otherwise changes jobs.
Wall Street would be breaking the law if it kept his ARC active.
This “wear a tie to class” concept is about 15 years old. Some other place(s) tried it too. I don’t know. A pig in a suit is still a pig. Unless you have to teach in the corporate head office, I see no reason why a teacher cannot wear leisure clothes. Clearly, no headbands (seen it) or ragged cutoffs (seen it) in the classroom, but wearing a tie doesn’t make anyone a better teacher or more professional.[/quote]
The point being, Wolfman Hack 
, that they were willing to hire him back even after he lurched ‘em. Damn skippy of them I thought. That Pack Rat guy did get me goin’ a might tho…think I’m in order for a grumpy medal after that post of mine? Not even the late great Popo managed to get me to use such cantankerous language.
As for ties…now I have a reason to buy really colourful, whacky shirts and ties. With me, like most everything, it becomes a form of self-expressionism. I am saving up for matching suspenders. Some day I hope to have 3 white silk suits tailored in Phuket and take on a pseudo Peter Ustinov style. I already have a lovely silk tie that I got in Thailand. I call it “The Wife”.
Why?
It’s my Thai tie. 
Totally…like…I know…
Things you read when you don’t have a ban…
The last time I wore a tie, President Chen Shui-bian came up and shook my hand. And I am not lying. I have the proof.
Somehow wearing goofy ties doesn’t seem to tie in with the professional aim of wearing a tie.
TOE JAM:
You are a corporate, ass-kissing IDIOT.
Former and current WSI teachers I’ve spoken to really dislike management at Wall Street and have told me that teacher turn-over is high.
TOE JAM, If you were a bit smarter, you could have bumped that B.A. degree up to something worthwhile, perhaps bumped your gpa up a bit too, and then got a real job!
Have fun wearing your neck-tie you corporate monkey!
I like this Back Packer guy. :mrgreen: