I think he said the foreigners are the poorest which is probably true. Beer and Mac Donald’s is expensive.
The loan stuff is crazy for sure. It is happening now.
Schools are leaving people with no hours so no pay and then saying don’t worry, we can give you a loan.
I don’t think people should stick around if their company isn’t going to be paying them and have the guts to try to offer a loan.
I’m not currently in taiwan, but when I left my old job when I was working there in 2019, I was able to get a visa extension for 6 months.
It’s probably be the best strategy to quit, get the extension and teach students online in private tutoring sessions until lock down ends if your school is refusing to even offer online classes.
How many people do you know like this ? Sounds bad.
it could be illegal, though.
I think that’s up in the air due to the public health order which prevents you from working at your job. In fact if you don’t get hours you’re already violating the labour law since you’re supposed to maintain I think it was 14 hours a week in order to maintain your arc in the first place
I’ve heard of a ton of people not getting any hours at all. They moved online as quickly as they could and the rotten quality/experience led to parents cancelling. The hourly foreigners were sent home. No pay.
One job I work on, big name business English chain, my boss is Taiwanese and also a teacher for big name clients, he too is home without work. He says no class no pay.
Until the teachers and staff are vaccinated I don’t see the schools opening. The teacher’s unions etc will demand the jabs and schools won’t open until they do. Right now there’s over 500 kids from college to kindergarten that have been infected. New cases are reported each day. Riding buses and the mrt to school is risky. No school until 1st quarter, maybe late first quarter before things begin a return to normal in my estimation. I think there are hundreds more infected out there that are unknown.
I should say that at my school, they are not being left with zero hours now. Just not many. And doing a lot more unpaid work to get them.
How many have taken the loan? I only saw the announcement of financial assistance over email. No idea who and how many have taken the assistance.
I read in a different post somewhere that 600NT/hr is the lowest one should ever accept. Now, what is the minimum leverage one should have to request a pay raise to 700 or even 800? Any thoughts?
Doesn’t it depend on a lot of things? How well has your school weathered the online transition? How many years has it been since you last had a pay bump? Do you meet the minimum legal expectations? Were you a good online teacher; how good, have your students signed up for more already?
One thing that seems for sure to me. There are more teachers leaving than coming, so the looming post-covid teacher shortage works in your favour.
But until face-to-face classes start again I would avoid this conversation if possible, since there are all sorts of teachers not getting any work at all your school might try to get someone for less than what they pay you. Are they renewing your contract now, or can you wait until the market changes in your favor?
As a matter of fact, because there are “a lot of things”, that’s exactly what I would be interested in knowing. What are these “legal expectations” that you talk about? I have been with this school for less than a year but I was earning roughly 900NT in another country before coming to Taiwan. I know it may not apply here but I ask specifically because I see the students always coming back and the parents thanking me for their children’s progress which the school has been happy about, I assume, since they lately have been hoping I take on more responsibilities (other courses).
I agree, I don’t want to discuss this with them at the moment because of the current situation, but I do feel like I could be getting a bit more than the low 600NT. I can wait for a bit before my contract has to be renewed.
Are you able to teach your students things that not many other teachers are qualified to teach, is a big factor.
Is your boss an asshole? Have they expressed to you that you are lucky to have anything and are totally expendable? I have given some examples, there are lots of things to consider…
Are you working legally? Not everyone in the buxibans are. If you aren’t legally qualified for the work, that doesn’t give you a position with leverage (it kinda makes you lucky to have anything)
So, not much leverage there.
Agreed
These things give you some leverage, don’t you think?
Yes, still seems to me you’re better off waiting, because you’ll be in a better negotiating position when your contract is up and other schools are desperate for teachers.
No, they are the nicest people.
Yes.
Yeah, I know.
That’s what I’m thinking too.
My interest in asking this is because I have seen other positions at other schools do start around 700 and up. I know I should not be asking for too much, and even if I were to pop up the question, realistically speaking, and if the boss is even in the mood for it, the most I could get is a 10-20 NT raise. More now that I have agreed to the 600NT when I first signed the contract. I should be grateful I have a position still, I am completely aware of that. But my question concerns during normal situations (no covid), is there some regulation that says people with certain qualifications are entitled to a higher pay that the average 600NT? I get the feeling that they don’t give a rats ass if you have a Masters or even a PhD degree under your belt. It’s more like hey, take it or leave it cuz we can find another teacher in no time.
It all comes back to the question from this thread, why is the pay so low?
no such regulation for cram school teachers.
Obviously it’s primarily down to supply and demand, although there are a few factors that skew this.
Work sponsored ARCs reduce the negotiating power of many new teachers. Also, people who enter teaching often dislike and/or aren’t very good at negotiating pay rates. They probably expect pay rates to be fixed as they would be in schools in their home countries and aren’t accustomed to dealing with private enterprises.
In addition, owners of many cram schools don’t really care about education. As long as no students are leaving they are happy. They also don’t particularly care about losing an experienced teacher. This makes asking for more pay because ‘I’m a really dedicated and experienced teacher’ tricky when the person you are negotiating with doesn’t particularly give a toss about a teacher’s dedication and experience.
Finally, teachers who come here often don’t know what a good hourly rate is so accept 600 an hour thinking that’s all that’s available.
It is difficult, but not impossible, to negotiate a significant hourly rate rise after accepting employment. It is much easier to demand it before signing the contract. However, you must be prepared to walk when initially refused the rate you desire. Again, work sponsored ARCs make this tricky.
There are many gigs that pay a lot more than 600 an hour. The British Council, for example, pay 950 an hour for part time work. However, they require a minimum of two years post CELTA teaching experience, and you will have to pass the interview of course. A lot of other teaching gigs offer more if you have specialised teaching skills.
The current Covid situation makes now a seller’s market, so teachers are in a strong position to demand more pay. If you’ve seen other positions at 700 and up why not apply for a job with one of them? If they accept you can either take the job, or use it as a bargaining chip with your current employer.
I know I should not be asking for too much
Stop thinking like this!
Like, now now, or in the near future?
@BiggusDickus summed it up nicely. I’ll add a few more points:
Teachers are in a weak position by the very nature of the ARC system and Taiwan’s labor laws. The boss is free to cancel a work permit without notice, throwing an ARC (and thus residency) into jeopardy.
As I said in another thread, even if you try to quit and change job, the boss is free to withhold a termination letter with very little repercussions.
There seems to be very little legal recourse for a boss not honouring the terms of a contract or paying an employee’s tax.
There was even a thread recently about an employee anonymously complaining to HelloTaipei, only for the boss to find out and sue them for slander!
All of these things add up to a culture of foreign workers having to accept bad pay and/or conditions.
Anecdotally, now. Three cram school teachers I know have been approached for work. That hasn’t happened in recent years.
Location. Too far. I guess it would be ideal now since everyone is online but not in the long term when we go back offline.
Land the job, then threaten your boss that you’ll leave unless they at least match the hourly rate. Threaten very gently and politely, of course.