Re: Screwy Contract Clauses

Is this kind of legal language so common in China?[/quote]

In my experience, such 'legal language' is not common in Chinese contracts for foreign teachers. I feel that if you avoid applying to private schools or training centres for teaching jobs here, you'll seldom see that kind of 'legal language' in teaching contracts.

Is this kind of legal language acceptable to just get a job and keep money rolling in?[/quote]

Unfortunately, some happy-go-lucky foreigners think it's acceptable.

What actual legal recourse do these training schools have other than simply withholding pay to cover the "fines"?[/quote]

If you've signed a contract that has been stamped by your employer, its clauses are binding. Even so, I'd reckon in practice there's little they'll do to try to recover fines if you haven't got the money to cover them, apart from withholding pay. However, you could find yourself fired and blacklisted with the Foreign Affairs Bureau. That would mean you couldn't get other teaching posts in China. but maybe you wouldn't want to in any case, especially after having had so much trouble at your former workplace.

To sum up, I'd advise job applicants to be very wary of the terms and conditions of employment set out in teaching contracts, and not to sign them until all unfair penalties and vague language have been modified or edited out completely.

P@3 - 2009-12-01

Screwy Contract Clauses

I recently applied for a teaching position at yet another training school. Although the training school where I worked previously was completely insane and made you constantly feel threatened, the contract for the recent school where I applied must take the cake.

The contract was so totally one-sided and full of ambiguous stipulations that my head was spinning.

The contract included clauses that allowed:

the company to subtract a total of 1,500 RMB from your pay as a "deposit".

the company the right to fine you up to the total refund to a student if the student quits based on vague reasons to do with the teacher, plus an additional "mandatory" fine of 1,000 RMB.

the company to fine you up to another $2,000 - $4,000 USD (the total possible fine is unclear) based on fuzzy and undefined accusations from a student.

Is this kind of legal language so common in China?

Is this kind of legal language acceptable to just get a job and keep money rolling in?

What actual legal recourse do these training schools have other than simply withholding pay to cover the "fines"?

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