My Experience with English First in Russia

On October 15th, 2008, I awoke at 4:30 a.m., ready and eager to travel to St. Petersburg, Russia to embark on my career as an EFL teacher for English First. This was to be the adventure of a lifetime but little did I know just what kind of an adventure it was to be.

My taxi arrived at 5:30 a.m. and whisked me to Vancouver International Airport, where I checked in and paid $450.00 for my excess baggage. I had winnowed down my belongings as much as I could but had to pack my winter clothes and took along many classroom resources including some books I thought essential. I was not worried about the cost as I had been told that I would be reimbursed for my travel costs and believed that, surely, the transport costs of my luggage would be included. That was the first, but certainly not the last, of my misapprehensions about English First and their commitment to the Native Speakers they recruit from the other side of the world.

I arrived in St. Petersburg, after about 24 hours of travel time, at about 1:30 p.m. local time on October 16th. I was met at the airport by the Assistant Director of Studies (herein after referred to as the ADS), who had ordered a taxi. Instead of going directly to the apartment of my host family, we went to the school. Being anxious to see the facility and meet the other staff, I didnt mind what I thought would be a detour of short duration. Had I known that I would have to lug all my suitcases up five flights of stairs, I would have insisted upon dropping them off before going to the school.

As a small token of welcome, the school had bought a cake, which was truly appreciated since I had eaten only once since leaving Vancouver. After a short break with tea and cake, I was rushed to a bank to exchange my currency and then made to literally run (in order to keep up with the ADS) to look at an apartment.

At one point, I fell in the street due to the mud. I am 55 years old and have arthritis so running down mud-covered streets in the pouring rain while wearing improper footwear is not something I am in the habit of doing. Had my feet not been swollen from the hours of air travel, I could have worn appropriate shoes and could possibly have been better able to hurry. None of these details seemed to be a concern for the ADS. As it turned out, the agent for the apartment did not bother to show up.

We walked back to the school where the ADS saw fit to have me sit in a room and attempt (in my jet-lagged state of exhaustion) to absorb her hour-long orientation lecture. No amount of telling her that I could not be expected to remember any of what she was saying seemed to penetrate her resolve so I just sat and willed myself to at least stay awake while she droned on about the intricacies of attendance records and progress reports and what-have-you. She achieved nothing aside from confusing and overwhelming me.

At 7:30 p.m., the ADS finally called a taxi to take me to my host family. The taxi did not arrive until 9:30. Although the ADS called several times to try to ascertain what the problem was, it did not occur to her, I believe, to call a different taxi company after the first hour of waiting.

I was finally on my way to a bed, but not for long. I was expected to be back at the school by 10 a.m. the next morning ready to teach a class. That meant being up at 7:30 a.m. to prepare a lesson as none was prepared for me. While I recognize that lesson preparations were my job, I have to question the decision to have me do so in a state of near collapse. Not only was I suffering from sleep deprivation, I had still not been offered any food aside from the cake. If I had been able to speak Russian, I could have gone to a store and bought myself something but that was not possible.

When we arrived at the home of my host-who spoke no English-the ADS quickly introduced me and then unceremoniously left, claiming exhaustion! I was finally given a meal and then shown to my bed.

I spent the next couple of weeks in a virtual fog as concerned my administrative duties. When I asked questions, the ADS would point out (with a tone of disdain) that she had told me that point during my orientation. I learned to ask few questions and to try to figure things out for myself.

On Friday, I taught a class from 10 a.m. until noon and was then taken to purchase a mobile phone. I did not want a mobile phone nor had I budgeted for such an expense but the ADS insisted that I had to have one for the convenience of the school. I am still wondering why I had to pay for an item meant only for their convenience. I then had a class to teach from 7-9 p.m. so did not return to my host home until nearly 10 p.m.

Between class time and phone purchase time, I signed my contract. Despite being told that I would be hired for a year, my contract lasted only until June 30th. I was told that I could sign a new one in September and that I would not be employed during the summer months. Neither the DS nor the ADS understood the problems this would mean for me financially, nor did they seem to care.

Saturday was my much-needed day off but I was called in to the office to go and look at an apartment. The appointment was cancelled before I arrived but no one bothered to call me and tell me so I walked for a total of over an hour. So much for a chance to rest on my day off!

Sunday I was taken to look at an apartment and stood in the rain for 45 minutes (still wearing the slip on shoes) and did not even get in to see the place. I was told repeatedly that I would have a very difficult time finding a place to live and that it could take up to six months to find one. This made me wonder why English First did not start to search for a place prior to my arrival since they had asked for (and been sent) details of my accommodation needs in July. In retrospect, I believe that I was made to fear for my chances of finding accommodation in order to encourage me to take the first place into which I could get, thereby saving English First the expense of my host home.

When I did agree to rent the place I saw on Monday-which was inadequate in a number of ways-I did so knowing there was no washing machine. The Director of Studies (DS) had told me about the lack of a washer but did not tell me, until after I had signed the lease, that there were no Laundromats. I was relegated to washing my clothes by hand in the bathtub for the duration of my time in St. Petersburg.

Having not expected to be pushed into renting a place before the end of the month, I found myself short of funds and could afford little food. At least I had a phone for the convenience of English First!

On Wednesday, after finishing my workday at 9p.m., I moved my belongings into my apartment with no help nor offer of help from English First. The taxi fare was outrageously expensive and borne by me. I again lugged my suitcases up several flights of stairs. I was definitely getting the impression that I could not count on the DS or ADS of English First to make my transition easy or smooth in any way. This was a fact that I would be more and more convinced of as time went by.

Within a short time of my arrival, Russian lessons were arranged for me and the Native speakers at the other English First school in St. Petersburg. The postings on the internet for Native Speakers at English First state that one of the things provided is Russian lessons. What is not advertised is the fact that the employees are responsible for the cost of said Russian lessons. While we were offered the lessons at a reasonable price, we were still made to pay for them ourselves. Conversely, it is my understanding that any Russian-speaking teacher is given free English lessons. I do not begrudge those teachers the benefit; I simply believe that all of us should have received the same language training perks.

Because the school was in the process of being re-certified, all staff had to undergo medical examinations. I was escorted, by the DS, to a clinic where they administered, among many other things, an HIV test. I had to pay for this test and, because no one at the clinic spoke English, the process was facilitated by the DS. I would need the results of the test in order to apply for my new visa in November-which would carry me through the remainder of my time in Russia.

When I subsequently asked about reimbursement for the test fee, I was informed that, because I had no receipt, I would not be accommodated. The DS would not even call the clinic and request a receipt after the fact for me, despite the fact that getting one should have been her responsibility. I had no way of knowing what was on the pieces of paper I was handed at the clinic.

To add insult to injury, I later learned that I had been taken to the wrong clinic for the HIV test and would need to have it re-done at another clinic. The good news was that the second one had English-speaking staff. The bad news was that I was given inadequate (read incorrect) directions-by the DS-and spent an hour wandering the streets in the area of the clinic looking for it in the dark. I was unsuccessful and had to return to the neighbourhood the following morning and try again. The second time was the charm and I had the test administered and got a receipt.

Meanwhile, my Russian lessons were going well. My teacher asked that I make up a list of things I was having difficulty with while shopping. I told her the most important thing for me was that I was unable to find any reference in my Russian books to anti-inflammatory medication for my arthritis and was therefore unable to ask for what I wanted at a drugstore. She was concerned that I ensure I was getting the proper medication (since the brands and types of over the counter meds might be very different) and suggested I see a doctor. This seemed a prudent suggestion.

Later that day, when I went to my school to prepare for my evening class, the DS told me that my teacher had called and asked her to arrange for me to see a doctor. The DS informed me that my health care (provided by the school) would only cover me for an appointment at a Russian-speaking clinic and that neither she nor the ADS would accompany me to any medical appointments. She further stated that if I needed an interpreter, I should ask my Russian teacher to go with me. It seems to me that the DS and ADS should have been the people who were looking out for my welfare, not the person who I paid to teach me Russian-and with whom I had no other relationship. I continued to simply rely upon my own resources and found what medications I could to manage my arthritis.

Although I was studying Russian, it is quite a difficult language to learn and one cannot be expected to grasp it in a short time. Despite that, all notices on the teacher board were posted in Russian and I had to ask for translations in order to understand what was being posted-even though some of these notices had my name on them. At one point, I was told that my presence was necessary at a special staff meeting and, when the meeting commenced, it was conducted entirely in Russian! When I protested, I was told that I should not worry about it and that the gist of the meeting would be translated for me. It seemed to me a terribly rude and ineffective meeting plan.

When my rent became due on November 22nd, I was experiencing some difficulties with my Canadian bank account. I asked the DS to call my landlady and explain that I would have to pay part of the rent on the due date and the remainder a week later. She told me that I should call her myself and practice my Russian! I could say several words at that time and sound out most words I saw in Russian, but explaining the intricacies of a problem with the bank and the fact of a late rent payment were definitely outside of the realm of my abilities. She only made the call after I insisted she do so. Perhaps the school could have offered to loan me the money for a few days (money was being transferred to me from Canada) and the DS would have been saved the trouble of making a simple call on behalf of the person who had traveled half way around the world to teach for English First. Of course, had I been reimbursed for my un-necessary HIV test and my excess luggage, I would not have been in the position of needing to borrow money.

Late in October, I was told by the HR person that I would soon have to start the process of applying for my long-term visa. I approached her in mid November and was told to come back in a week or so. When I returned about 10 days later, she looked at my file and informed me that my visa had expired. I was now in the position of working and living in Russia illegally! What followed could rival the Keystone Kops for ineptitude and comic relief.
Over the course of the next few weeks I was told that I was going to be sent to Finland for a weekend to apply for a new visa, then told I would be sent to Finland for a month, then told I would be sent to Finland for a few days to be followed by a trip to England for a month. Finally, I was told that I was being sent to either England or Canada for a month and told that I would have a couple of days to decide which. That evening I was called and told that my ticket to England had been booked and that I was leaving in a few days for a month. So much for making the decision myself as to where I was to spend my time, not to mention sorting out the costs I might incur during a month in England.

I flew to London on December 16th and was, as was par for the course, left to my own devises to find my own way to the airport. The following morning, I traveled to Bournemouth where a distant relative (who I had never met) had offered me a place to stay for two nights and an official address to which my letter of invitation could be sent. I had been told that the letter would arrive by the 21st. It arrived on the 24th. So far, including the night of the 16th, I had paid for six nights accommodation and a train ticket. A substantial dent had been made in my budget of one thousand pounds.

I returned to London only to find that the Russian Embassy had closed for the day and would remain closed until the following week. The next day was Christmas, the following day: Boxing Day (a holiday in England), and then the weekend.

I found a room for the night and then called another relative I had never met. He offered to put me up for the Christmas week. I could not ask to impose on him for any longer than that. He is 89 years old.

When the Embassy office re-opened, I went there and was informed that I needed a letter from my employer to apply for the visa. This is a fact of which I would expect English First to have knowledge. I left the Embassy and went to an internet caf, paid for internet time and e-mailed the HR person. She sent the letter, which I printed off and took to the Embassy the following day. This meant that I had not only incurred the cost of traveling into the part of London which housed the Embassy twice, but also the internet fee.

On the 2nd of January, I set out for a small town outside of London where accommodation would be much cheaper and would include at least one meal per day. Since I had little money, I had contacted English First and requested that they send me my wageswhich I had been told would be paid while I was away since the entire fiasco was deemed to be NOT my fault but that of the HR person who did not start the Visa process on time.

When I ran out of money, I returned to London and found that my bankcard had been sent to me. I have no idea how much money had been deposited to the account, and could not get any accounting of this when I returned to Russia, despite requesting it. The card came in an envelope with a brochure in Russian and no translation at all was provided by English First.

I had also informed English First that my visa would not be ready until the 15th of January and asked them to change my return airline ticket, which they had booked for the 10th of January, to the 16th. I later found that they had instead booked it for the 19th, which meant that I had to impose upon my uncle for an extra three days. Despite my having made it clear before leaving Russia that, although I had family in England, these were people I had never met and with whom I had no prior relationship, English First seemed to be quite comfortable with the fact that these same people would be responsible for feeding and housing me for the time I was in England clearing up English Firsts error!

I headed out of London again to find a place where accommodation would be cheap and would include at least one meal per day. I would like to be clear, at this point, that I spent my money as frugally as possible in England. I attended no shows, visited no museums or other attractions that charged an entrance fee, bought no clothes or souvenirs, and ate only one meal per day aside from the one provided with my accommodation.

By the 14th of January, I was low on funds and returned to London-where I believed I was booked on a return flight on the 16th. It was then I realized the flight would be on the 19th and found that I was expected to pay the 50 pounds being charged for the change in flight plans. Had the flight been booked for the day I requested, the following would not have been a problem, however, in the interim between the 16th and the 19th, a medical emergency arose which took the little funds I had, leaving me with no money to pay the 50-pound penalty.

I changed the flight to the next available date, which was the 21st of January. Because there was no seat sale available for another week, I was to be charged an extra 173 pounds, bringing the cost of changing the ticket to 223 pounds. I contacted English First and let them know of the change and asked that they deposit the 223 pounds to my account. The response I received suggested I borrow the money. I could only assume they meant that I should attempt to borrow from my 89-year-old uncle who lives on a pension since I knew no one else there! I declined to do so and told them I needed the money deposited. They agreed to do so on the morning of my flight.

Had the 2000 Roubles that I was expecting to be deposited in my account on the 20th (the usual amount paid to every staff person as an advance on their salary), I would have been in less dire straits. However, my account was empty.

On the morning of my flight (January 21st) I arose at 4:30 a.m. (sound familiar?) and set out for the airport. My access to the internet during the past few days had been nil. I made it clear on several occasssions to the ADS that I had no phone access nor did I have anymore than sketchy access to the internet. With no funds, I had no access whatsoever. She was later to point out that all that followed was my fault for not having a way to readily communicate with the office. I am not sure what magic she expected me to perform to make communication between us instantaneous, but she certainly did expect it. Since, prior to my leaving Russia, neither she nor the DS could help me to make an international call to England to try and reach any relatives there, I doubt she would have had any luck calling me anyway.

When I arrived at Heathrow Airport, I tried repeatedly to access funds from my account. There was simply no money to be accessed. I finally got through a long line to speak to the person at the counter and was then told that, since it was 45 minutes before my flight, the gate was closed, and I had missed my flight.

I found myself with about one pound in my purse and a transit card that had two passages left on it. I returned to the heart of London where I could go to the Canadian Consulate and use the internet to contact English First. I learned that the ADS and DS had changed their minds and decided to wire the money to me, despite having no way to tell me this! I was now in the position of possibly needing even more money as an additional penalty for missing my flight and changing it AGAIN.

Fortunately, the Canadian Consular helped me to get a flight booked for the next day with no further penalties. Now I just needed to get the money wired. I had sent an email telling the ADS where I was and to wire the money. The response I received said that I had to be in London, asked where I was, and asked if they should wire the money. I have no idea what she could have possibly read into my previous email that would make her question everything I had told her but I responded again with a request that she wire the money and confirmation that I was, indeed, in London.

By this time, it was about 1 p.m. I had had nothing to eat or drink since having a cup of tea at 4:30 a.m. and had no funds to purchase anything. I pointed out that fact in my email as well.

I finally received a response to my email saying that the DS would send the money at some time in the next two hours. I left the Consulate and sat across the street in Trafalgar Square- cold, hungry, tired, and weepy-biding time till the wire transfer would take place.

I returned to the Consulate and learned that the money had been sent. I was given the first and last names of the sender (the DS) and the code I needed to receive the funds. I walked the five blocks (keep in mind that I was lugging my suitcase with me this whole time) to the Western Union only to be told that the name was incomplete and I could not have the money. I returned to the Consulate and emailed requesting the entire name and was sent an email asking me what other name and suggesting I use the name of the school too. I walked back to Western Union where my form was again rejected and then back to the Consulate. By this time, the Consulate was officially closed but the staff at the front desk, who had witnessed my comings and goings all day long and empathised with my plight, allowed me to use the internet one last time.

I was finally sent the proper name-which included the DSs middle name-and set out again for Western Union. My reply stated that it would have been nice to have received the proper name in the first place and been saved the extra trips back and forth in my state of extreme hunger and thirst. This was my final access to the internet in England.

When I received the funds (236 pounds), I went straight to a phone booth and tried to make a collect call to Russia. I tried the ADS, the DS and the EF office to no avail. I gave up and headed back to the airport. Upon arrival, I paid the extra fee I owed and was confirmed on the flight for the next morning. Now I had to choose between buying some food and drink or finding an internet outlet and paying to contact the office. I chose to eat and drink since I had had nothing but a few sips of water from a fountain in over 16 hours. Having no money for a place to stay, I slept-so to speak-on a bench in the airport waiting for my morning flight.

When I reached Russia, I was not surprised to find that no one met my flight to help me get home, despite there being several inches of slushy snow covering all sidewalks. I had set aside a few Roubles so had some funds, but not enough for a taxi. I struggled onto a bus and then the Metro and then dragged my suitcase through the snow for four blocks to get home-a feat that took nearly three hours. I was, to say the least, exhausted and very upset to be back in the place where I knew my welfare was of no consequence whatsoever to my employer.

I contacted the school and was berated, by the ADS, for having not contacted them from England the night before and then ordered to come to the office and hand in my passport so that it could be taken to the Nevsky Office the following day and my registration be applied for. I said I would bring it in the morning as I was too tired to do it that evening and was told that she had no intention of going into the school in the morning to pick it up before heading to Nevsky. I told her I would contact one of the teachers from Nevsky and give it to him as he lived only a couple of blocks from me. She agreed to this but insisted I call Nevsky and find out what documents they needed. I asked if there had been any changes to my classes and was told that I could not conduct any classes until I had met with her and the DS. I agreed to a meeting the following day. Having been through the registration process, I was well aware of what was needed but called the HR person anyway. Unfortunately, my phone ran out of money part way through the conversation and we were cut off.

Now came the time to try to feed myself., I had stopped at a store and spent most of the money I had left on some milk. I now had enough money to get me to and from work for three days but none for food. All I had in the house was some rice, tea, sugar, and oatmeal. Dinner was a bowl of rice and a cup of tea.

I met up with the teacher from Nevsky and gave him the papers needed for my registration. He took them in to the HR person at 9:30 the following morning.

The next day, I arrived at my school at 1 p.m. and was ignored by both the DS and the ADS-aside from a perfunctory hello from each-for over half an hour while they discussed something with a receptionist. Since-as were all conversations not directed to me-the entire exchange was in Russian, I cannot vouch for its importance or lack thereof.

The ADS left the room and the DS informed me that I owed the school the money it had sent to me. I had been informed of this through our emails and had replied, at that time, that I was unsure why I was being held financially responsible for the mistake of the school. I reiterated that concern and was ignored. I was then told that since I was flat broke, the school would be willing to lend me the money I needed to pay my rent (due that day) and to buy food. My next paycheque, however would only be for one week of work and I would therefore need to borrow the money to pay rent and buy food again. Despite my insistence at the outset of the whole fiasco that I not be left with no means of supporting myself upon my return ( and an assurance that I would not be,) I was being offered the position of an indentured servant to the school.

The DS pointed out that my rent had been covered, during my absence, by the school. I reminded her that the school only did so to save themselves the expense of storing my belongings, paying for another stay with a host family, and paying another agent fee to find a new apartment and not as a favour to me. In fact, I had said I wanted to move shortly after moving in to the apartment and was told that I would then owe the school the money they had paid the agent to find the inadequate apartment. Suffice to say, I would have gladly let the apartment go while I was in England.

The reason I was given for not receiving my entire pay while I was absent was that I had been paid out the vacation time available to me within my eight-month contract. Let us be clear. I was NOT on a vacation. I was forced to leave the country due to the gross negligence of the HR person (as per the Government of Russia) and was not even allowed to decide where that time was to be spent.

At that point, I reminded the DS that we had come full circle back to the initial lie I had been told. I was promised a yearlong contract and only given one for eight months. She responded by offering to let me out of my contract-if that was what I wanted. I agreed wholeheartedly.

The DS then went to talk to the Director of the school ( a person who had never approached me and did not deign to speak to me now, in a time of crisis). She came back with the decision that I could be let out of my contract but that I owed the school three days of work. I agreed to this, not because I concurred with their assessment of the situation, but because I wanted a chance to bid farewell to my students and explain why I was leaving them. When I left for England, I had promised them I would return and did not want to simply desert them.

I was told that my visa cost (45 pounds) would not be reimbursed. Since I was flat broke and had no food and no way to pay my rent, one would think that the organization responsible for my being in the country would help me out in some way until I could arrange to change my return ticket home. They offered nothing.

I left the office and went to Nevsky School where I met with a colleague who was treating me to lunch since he knew I had not eaten a proper meal for several days. While at the school, I informed the HR person that I had quit and asked for my passport back. She told me that they were still responsible for registering me since they had brought me to Russia. Despite the apparent urgency to receive my documents, she had not even bothered to scan them in the ensuing 7 hours they had been in her possession and proceeded to do so.

While doing this chore, she informed me that the reason I owed them the money for the changed flight was that she had called the airline and been told that I changed the class of my ticket and they did not pay for a change in class. I informed her she was mistaken and that they do not seat first class passengers in row 15 over the wing-the seat assignment I had been given. She insisted over, and over that I had changed my class. I finally took my passport and left the office in, admittedly, a huff.

I returned to my school and started to prepare for my evening lesson. The ADS came in and informed me that, since I had told the HR person I would not do the shifts I had agreed to (????) they had found someone else to cover the classes and my services would not be needed. The very person whose ineptitude had resulted in the entire fiasco was believed out of hand when she told them anything!! Surely, the fact that she had cost the school tens of thousands of Roubles in fines alone should have made them question her judgement. It did not.

I was sent in to see the DS who brought me a document to sign, which would dissolve out contract. The document was in Russian. I pointed out that my trust in English First was not such that I would sign anything in a language I did not understand and told her to let me know when it was available in English. I left the school.

My friend from the other school offered to put me up until my travel arrangements could be made and, he and I carried all my belongings to his place. This involved four trips on slush-covered streets.

The school did not bother calling me for four days. I can only believe they could not have possibly cared less whether I lived or died since I had no place to live, no money, and no food.

My friend, meanwhile had the Nevsky School translate the document and send it to my school who called and had me come in and sign it. While I was there, the Ds informed me that the school had not, and would not register me with the Russian Government and that I had better deal with the situation on my own. The Nevsky School later informed me that this was not true and that the registration was done. I did not know whether to assume the DS incompetent or cruel.

My family loaned me the money I needed to change my return ticket home, pay for the taxi to the airport, cover the excess baggage fees, and get home. I did, however leave behind an entire suitcase of books, clothes, resources and a sleeping bag since I did not have enough to pay for two extra bags.

My adventure in Russia left me owing close to $2,000, without many of my books and resources, and with fewer articles of clothing than I had when I set out.

Please consider this a warning to Look Before You Leap with English First...in fact do not Leap at all.