ralec123
- 2015-06-13
It would be 'nice' if Yuncheng EV adjusted their policies and attitudes, but they do not. Similar issues arose in 2011 and 2013 and now 2015.Seems they prefer to do things 'their way'.
So be it - we will make sure others know their business model and how they treat their teachers.
It must be very seldom that this board deletes a link to a school in the 'English Schools in China' section based upon valid complaints made solely by a lone poster, that poster being you. The saying 'one swallow doesn't make a summer' clearly does not apply in this case.
I know that you think a TA is at best a waste of space. However, some FTs like to co-operate with a TA. Those FTs will be attracted to agents who provide TAs, even though the employment package offered to the FTs will necessarily be less attractive due to the TAs' wages being part of the financial equation as employees' wages paid by the agent.
However, those kind of FTs will very likely avoid applying to EV for a job on reading all the negative aspects about EV that you have been selfless enough to post. Despite being attacked, you have stuck to your principles. It's indeed a pity that other FTs employed there and badly treated kept it all quiet. They are doormats in my view. EV does not deserve the privilege of being able to hire FTs as it treats them very badly.
Thanks again for having stepped up to the plate.
The Truth
- 2015-06-13
I work at a University in Shanxi province and we are offered full pay for July and August if
we renew.
As some offer in Yuncheng.
Direct Hire is obviously the best way to go. There are direct hiring middle schools, boarding schools, and universities, in Yuncheng area.
Whilst Yuncheng English Village is officially approved by the .gov to hire foreign teachers, they place them into various schools in Yuncheng. They are not a school, per se. Their offices are on the second floor of Yuncheng MingYuan Elementary School off of WeiNan Street in Yuncheng, but they themselves are NOT a school. Just two offices there.
Just an agent, recruiter, placement firm.
It would be 'nice' if Yuncheng EV adjusted their policies and attitudes, but they do not. Similar issues arose in 2011 and 2013 and now 2015.
Seems they prefer to do things 'their way'.
So be it - we will make sure others know their business model and how they treat their teachers.
San Migs
- 2015-06-13
However, those who use forgeries do so because they don't have university degrees, a no-brainer, isn't it?
A no brainer yes, but it doesn't make it right. Not being personal here, just saying it how I think it is.
And another thing: In China most, if not all, two-semester SAFEA contracts are for 10 months, either commencing 1st March and terminating 31st December, or from Ist September until 30th June. So, 10 months of salary is paid, not 12 months of salary.
That's the reason the airfare is bundled in, they want you to piss off right away. You can be Hong Kong's problem, not theirs.
]China is not the Gulf States.
Where did I say it is?
Danny
- 2015-06-13
I work at a University in Shanxi province and we are offered full pay for July and August if we renew.
It makes sense to the University, it is an incentive to keep foreigners and it costs them less in the long
run in terms of recruitment and all the paperwork and rigmarole that goes with it.
Sadly some Chinese schools, and certainly by the sound of it Yuncheng English Village are very short sighted
when it comes to things like this. They constantly nickel and dime you and what they may pocket in the
short term costs them double to fix in the long term. They may eventually see that but I doubt it in my lifetime.
Just my two cents here as I came across this thread purely by accident. I have no doubt what you are saying
is mostly true, I am just surprised that nobody else who works or has worked at Yuncheng EV has added their
feelings.
The demonstration of clear disparities between what one independent school is doing at what Yuncheng EV does
should be enough to shame them into at least taking note that their game is up, however I suspect that EV
are dealing with recruiting many teachers whereby the independent school just a handful so they would argue
if challenged that their costs are higher bla bla bla, nonetheless I would certainly make a point of telling them
about the considerable difference with another school in the area if I applied. Even though I don't know
anything about the boarding school they certainly seem to be unusually transparent so as you say there are
good eggs out there.
Well done for pointing this out.
The Truth
- 2015-06-12
If you and the school decide to renew, you won't get the salary during the major annual holiday period following the expiration of your initial contract.
A boarding school in Yuncheng does just that.
This is what a job advert for Yuncheng should look like.
We are looking for someone to begin at the beginning of next semester that is from 10th September 2015. If you are already in China and on
an appropriate visa we can offer you free accommodation during the summer whilst we transfer your visa to us. Your contract will end on 30th June 2016.Salary is 7,100 rmb per month. You will be provided with an 8,000 rmb flight allowance in addition to a 2,000 rmb travelling allowance at the end of your contract.
Full salary will be paid for July and August should you elect to renew your contract with us. Full salary is also paid during the Spring Festival vacation.
95,200 rmb per year.
-----------------------------------
Compare that to a Yuncheng English Village advert.
Salary: 6,000RMB (20 teaching hours per week)
No salary for summer holiday, but 1,000RMB as travel allowance
Accommodation: Well-furnished apartment
Airfare reimbursement: 8,000RMB upon the completion of one academic year contract
Visa: F/Z
8 months X 6000 + 8000 airfare (if you get it) + 1000 travel money.
No July, August or Spring Festival pay at all.
57,000 rmb per year. 59% of the above offer.
Plus the games, abuse, paying to travel to Qingdao or Hong Kong for a visa run, and other nonsense.
Note the initial 'F' visa later converted to Z - that's now expressly illegal folks, and you are the one who will get in trouble.
If one were willing to put up with the aspects of living in Shanxi that have nothing to do with Yuncheng English Village, obviously working at the former boarding school would be preferable to being placed through Yuncheng EV.
Some schools, agents and placement agencies actually *do* the right thing. That ad above is one such school.
Google the text to find the ad.
ralec123
- 2015-06-11
BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE TEACHER MAKING BIZARRE CLAIMS RE SERIOUS PROBLEMS
You have not read the thread, posts as far back as from Silverboy - 2011-05-29 claim similar issues.Since you say you have never worked in the Yuncheng area, you have no knowledge of the place.
You don't know anything about the subject and thus your opinion is quite irrelevant.
I only said that I haven't worked for EV, not that I HAVEN'T WORKED IN THE AREA! I HAVE WORKED IN THE AREA.
Silverboy's complaint is levelled against 'Hangzhou Helen', not EV Helen, and he definitely has never worked in Shanxi! Anyway, he is a good poster who deserves our respect.
I'm amazed that not one former EV teacher who has been mistreated there did not complain. How self-serving they all are! Shame on them. Now that you have posted more details, I'm very happy that the truth is there for all to see. You have done well. I apologize for my mistrust, and am very happy to slag off EV as a shit employer.
ralec123
- 2015-06-11
EV is clearly a rogue agent that should be forcibly closed down ASAP!
For anyone interested in easy access to the thread without nesting, click on this below the
thread/reply box:
View All - [To view all the posts in this thread at once click this link]Note that so many are attempting to discredit the posters, but no one is claiming that what
is posted is false.Yuncheng English Village could post and address the concerns of the dozen or so teachers, but
instead they choose to have the message attacked.Says it all, really.
============================
There is naught else to report, other than most were able to receive their pay this week and
are leaving. Although, the usual Yuncheng English Village pay tricks occurred.-Short pay
-Attempt to pay the month as though it were a holiday month
-Ignore the airfare/annual bonus
-Not mention the bonus to new teachers to see if they can trick them into not paying the
bonus to them, or just plead ignorance. "Bonus? What bonus?".
-Game/test the new teachers to see what they can get away with, in terms of short paying, not
paying, and various other tricks to not pay the teachers their contractually mandated
full pay.For those concluding a contract, when Yuncheng English Village asks you to come in and cancel
your visa, DO NOT DO THIS. Demand all of your pay and your bonus first. DO NOT allow
them to steamroll you into anything before you get your money.Whilst your visa IS linked to the invite letter and that specific school, town, and
agency/centre, you are NOT legally required to cancel it. The visa is yours and with it
you may travel in China at leisure. You cannot work at another company on *that* visa,
you must get a new one. You can, however, travel about China looking for work on that
visa, and apply to another job and then get a new visa and new invite letter and
transfer your FEC to the new company.This requires a letter of reference from your previous employer in China.
Unfortunately Yuncheng English Village, and many employers in China, rarely, if ever, give
out these letters in the education sector. Thus it is nearly impossible to get a job on
the existing visa because Yuncheng EV won't sign for it out of spite as you went looking
for another job in China 'on their visa'. They consider you property, but this attitude
is also common throughout China. Future employers will contact Yuncheng EV for a
reference, and Yuncheng English Village will simply refuse to reply. It's happened to
nearly all teachers there since 2007.Once you are not making them money, you cease to exist. Not even so much as 'Goodbye'.
So normally Yuncheng English Village teachers work there, leave, and do not return to China
or even to the industry as they won't give you a reference. It is truly a black hole on
your resume.Often the reason people leave for a few months or year, then return. Cannot get work
elsewhere in China without the letter that Yuncheng EV will not write.Or people will relocate to another city in China and just apply from the beginning, perhaps
even going to Hong Kong to 'reset' the visa process and apply from outside China. One
would think that companies would want people to continue to work in China, but that is
not how Chinese employers think.Their response will at first be 'Ok, for which school?' and an hour later then this: 'I can
not give you the reference' :-). Yes, with a smiley emoji. Nothing more - talk about
'not understanding business culture'...If they do give one the letter, it will take almost one full calendar year to obtain it. They
delay, constantly.You are legally able to travel on that visa until it expires or is canceled, and the FEC is
your possession and can be used to get a new job in China. Do not turn it in to Yuncheng
EV.You will have to get a NEW visa *if* you work at a new place, but you are able to live in
China for some time as your visa is valid. If you have your FEC it is easier to transfer
it to a new employer. Again, Yuncheng English Village will demand it, tell them no. Just
another means of control and a way to enact revenge because they don't want you to go
work someplace else.(One major reason to hold the FEC is that it allows the foreigner to import one new auto
without duties or taxes. Many teacher's FECs are used to do this by their company,
without their consent or knowledge - it's a cash valuable document.)Of course out of spite and maliciousness and control, Yuncheng English Village *will* cancel
your visa in that act of revenge. Common in China, cannot be helped.That will be many weeks or so later and meanwhile you may travel in China freely *as is
your Right under Chinese law*.When they ask, simply refuse and ignore their threats.
This assumes that you have your FEC, docs and passport, and they are not stored 'for safe
keeping' at the company safe. If you do not have them, you can do nothing. Sorry.More updates to follow in a few weeks.
As for us, we are acting upon our values and getting out of here. Does not make sense to stay
in Yuncheng at Yuncheng English Village with all that is going on locally, nationally,
in and international waters. We managed to get our full pay, and even still have our
passport, documents and FEC.
Rverina
- 2015-06-11
- Debate is warm in this thread gentleman and that is good.- So you say, but I don't believe you!
- I agree...but is working on a forged one especially in some of the bigger cities really a good idea at this time? I'd say it is far better to have a bonafide degree certificate than not, given the way the job and visa situation is going in China at the moment.
Of course it is! However, those who use forgeries do so because they don't have university degrees, a no-brainer, isn't it?
And another thing: In China most, if not all, two-semester SAFEA contracts are for 10 months, either commencing 1st March and terminating 31st December, or from Ist September until 30th June. So, 10 months of salary is paid, not 12 months of salary. China is not the Gulf States. If you and the school decide to renew, you won't get the salary during the major annual holiday period following the expiration of your initial contract. But you'll have been paid full salary during the major holiday period immediately following the first semester of your teaching. I'm very surprised you don't know this. The Barber is not a training center lover. That is obvious from his post, isn't it? You should re-read it!
San Migs
- 2015-06-11
Debate is warm in this thread gentleman and that is good.
So you say, but I don't believe you!
I agree...but is working on a forged one especially in some of the bigger cities really a good idea at this time? I'd say it is far better to have a bonafide degree certificate than not, given the way the job and visa situation is going in China at the moment.
San Migs
- 2015-06-11
Nonsense. In the gulf it is standard you get paid over the summer, when you do not work, so off the top of my head that would be july and august, and as I remember you either get it when you resume work, or bundled in with septembers pay at the end of the month. So come the end of september all the broke FT's suddenly have a lot more in the pot after a summers travelling.
You seem to be defending crappy TC fruit seller monkey tactics!!!! GW!!
The Truth
- 2015-06-11
For anyone interested in easy access to the thread without nesting, click on this below the thread/reply box:
View All - [To view all the posts in this thread at once click this link]
Note that so many are attempting to discredit the posters, but no one is claiming that what is posted is false.
Yuncheng English Village could post and address the concerns of the dozen or so teachers, but instead they choose to have the message attacked.
Says it all, really.
============================
There is naught else to report, other than most were able to receive their pay this week and are leaving. Although, the usual Yuncheng English Village pay tricks occurred.
-Short pay
-Attempt to pay the month as though it were a holiday month
-Ignore the airfare/annual bonus
-Not mention the bonus to new teachers to see if they can trick them into not paying the bonus to them, or just plead ignorance. "Bonus? What bonus?".
-Game/test the new teachers to see what they can get away with, in terms of short paying, not paying, and various other tricks to not pay the teachers their contractually mandated full pay.
For those concluding a contract, when Yuncheng English Village asks you to come in and cancel your visa, DO NOT DO THIS. Demand all of your pay and your bonus first. DO NOT allow them to steamroll you into anything before you get your money.
Whilst your visa IS linked to the invite letter and that specific school, town, and agency/centre, you are NOT legally required to cancel it. The visa is yours and with it you may travel in China at leisure. You cannot work at another company on *that* visa, you must get a new one. You can, however, travel about China looking for work on that visa, and apply to another job and then get a new visa and new invite letter and transfer your FEC to the new company.
This requires a letter of reference from your previous employer in China.
Unfortunately Yuncheng English Village, and many employers in China, rarely, if ever, give out these letters in the education sector. Thus it is nearly impossible to get a job on the existing visa because Yuncheng EV won't sign for it out of spite as you went looking for another job in China 'on their visa'. They consider you property, but this attitude is also common throughout China. Future employers will contact Yuncheng EV for a reference, and Yuncheng English Village will simply refuse to reply. It's happened to nearly all teachers there since 2007.
Once you are not making them money, you cease to exist. Not even so much as 'Goodbye'.
So normally Yuncheng English Village teachers work there, leave, and do not return to China or even to the industry as they won't give you a reference. It is truly a black hole on your resume.
Often the reason people leave for a few months or year, then return. Cannot get work elsewhere in China without the letter that Yuncheng EV will not write.
Or people will relocate to another city in China and just apply from the beginning, perhaps even going to Hong Kong to 'reset' the visa process and apply from outside China. One would think that companies would want people to continue to work in China, but that is not how Chinese employers think.
Their response will at first be 'Ok, for which school?' and an hour later then this: 'I can not give you the reference' :-). Yes, with a smiley emoji. Nothing more - talk about 'not understanding business culture'...
If they do give one the letter, it will take almost one full calendar year to obtain it. They delay, constantly.
You are legally able to travel on that visa until it expires or is canceled, and the FEC is your possession and can be used to get a new job in China. Do not turn it in to Yuncheng EV.
You will have to get a NEW visa *if* you work at a new place, but you are able to live in China for some time as your visa is valid. If you have your FEC it is easier to transfer it to a new employer. Again, Yuncheng English Village will demand it, tell them no. Just another means of control and a way to enact revenge because they don't want you to go work someplace else.
(One major reason to hold the FEC is that it allows the foreigner to import one new auto without duties or taxes. Many teacher's FECs are used to do this by their company, without their consent or knowledge - it's a cash valuable document.)
Of course out of spite and maliciousness and control, Yuncheng English Village *will* cancel your visa in that act of revenge. Common in China, cannot be helped.
That will be many weeks or so later and meanwhile you may travel in China freely *as is your Right under Chinese law*.
When they ask, simply refuse and ignore their threats.
This assumes that you have your FEC, docs and passport, and they are not stored 'for safe keeping' at the company safe. If you do not have them, you can do nothing. Sorry.
More updates to follow in a few weeks.
As for us, we are acting upon our values and getting out of here. Does not make sense to stay in Yuncheng at Yuncheng English Village with all that is going on locally, nationally, in and international waters. We managed to get our full pay, and even still have our passport, documents and FEC.
The Truth
- 2015-06-11
BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE TEACHER MAKING BIZARRE CLAIMS RE SERIOUS PROBLEMS
You have not read the thread, posts as far back as from Silverboy - 2011-05-29 claim similar issues.
Since you say you have never worked in the Yuncheng area, you have no knowledge of the place.
You don't know anything about the subject and thus your opinion is quite irrelevant.
The Truth
- 2015-06-11
Ralec wrote:
BTW, i've never worked for EV, AND NEVER EVER SAID I HAD DONE SO!
Thus your opinion on this matter is based in total ignorance.
Thanks for clearing that up.
I really do not see how you could claim to disagree with anything posted, since claim that you have never worked for Yuncheng English Village and would then have absolutely no experience in the matter.
ralec123
- 2015-06-10
Ralec, stop dissembling and trolling. I see you have been told to post propaganda as a
favour.
I think it is a case of you accuslng me of what you are doing. And I'm not doing anyone a favor by posting what I have posted
A degree is now a MUST to work in China.
So you say, but I don't believe you!
Well, unless you take Ralec's advice and wish to spend time in a Chinese prison.
I'm not advising westerners what you claim I am advising them to do! BTW, i've never worked for EV, AND NEVER EVER SAID I HAD DONE SO!
ralec123
- 2015-06-10
At the end of the day it is up to any intending teacher to do their own homework and read
between the lines, ask for details of former teachers at the school, if you don't get
them, run, if you do ask pertinent questions and remember just because one person had it
bad doesn't mean everyone else will. If in doubt there are other jobs out there.
"Well since so many teachers at Yuncheng English Village had so many issues - passports seized, passports held, contracts not initiated, inspections, told to vacate apartments (this one seems to be a constant issue at Yuncheng English Village) and so on, it seems clear that they should not read between the lines here but run from Yuncheng English Village.
This is not ONE teacher - this is a dozen teachers over the course of a year or more with these issues."
BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE TEACHER MAKING BIZARRE CLAIMS RE SERIOUS PROBLEMS @ EV, THAT'S U! Until what you have said in that regard is substantated by others, I refuse to believe you! Obviously you and that EV guy, AB...., HAVE A BONE TO PICK. So you should both pick away so that the truth will emerge. At this point I'LL REMOVE MYSELF FROM THE SO-CALLED DEBATE, at least temporarily.
The Truth
- 2015-06-10
Ralec, stop dissembling and trolling. I see you have been told to post propaganda as a favour.
People who are in China, people I know, have had issues with the PSB, the Police, and immigration because they did not have a 3/4 year degree.
Now those rules are being enforced strictly.
It is not as things were when you were there.
Hence all of the inspections, the visas sitting on desks for 5 months, the tracking of bank accounts to monitor those in country, and the deportation of those caught without the proper paperwork. Banks work with immigration to track illegals.
Lie and mislead all you want, but it is now not possible to teach in China without a degree.
Even if you DO get hired on forged qualifications or no degree (a very stupid idea), there is the 5,000 rmb bonus for foreigners that are working in China illegally, on improper or forged documents.
What TA's do is collect the information on all the teachers, quit, and report them all to the PSB to collect the 5k per person reward.
So the rules bending won't matter, guanxi won't matter - your assistant will see that big packet of Mao's and turn you in without hesitation.
TA's earn 1800 a month, 8 months, for perhaps 2 years at most. This can be easily exceeded by turning in a few illegally documented foreigners who were working under bent rules.
Too risky considering the consequences. Want to spend time in Chinese prison?
A degree is now a MUST to work in China.
Well, unless you take Ralec's advice and wish to spend time in a Chinese prison.
The Truth
- 2015-06-10
You were a teacher at Yuncheng English Village, Yuncheng EV? I find that hard to believe, your English skills are horrific.
Police took passport - to stop FT SKIPPING AWAY
Wrong. My passport is safe and sound in my possession. You have not read the thread.
AFTER HE HAD SETTLED OUT OF COURT FOR DAMAGES DUE
FOR ABUSING A LOCAL CHINESE, AND HE HADN'T THE MONEY TO PAY IN A ONER. BETTER THAN BEING
DEPORTED, EH?
Quite delusional, and in all caps.
sLOW TRAIN FROM yUNCHENG TO THERE, ABOUT 2
HRS, NO NEED TO WASTE MONEY ON A BULLET TRAIN!
The slow trains from Yuncheng to Xian leave at 4:59 am, 3:49 pm, and 9:10 pm.
All of them take 4 hours to get from YC to Xian, and the subway is then a few kms away. You would have to walk or take a taxi or bus, and they are ruthless in overcharging first time travelers. Time door to door is 3 hours greater by slow green train, at least.
Fast train trips from Yuncheng to Xi'ans are 90 minutes or fewer including taxi in YC to YC Bei station, and the 15 minute subway trip from the Xi'an North station into the centre of Xi'an.
The Truth
- 2015-06-10
They need
not foreign teachers during those holidays, so why should the employer pay the foreigner
a full monthly salary during those 2 major vacations?
Because other schools do it in other saner countries.
The Truth
- 2015-06-10
I suggest you call it a day before this thread becomes a slanging match.
Since I am not the person you assume I am, your suggestion has been rejected.
The Truth
- 2015-06-10
At the end of the day it is up to any intending teacher to do their own homework and read
between the lines, ask for details of former teachers at the school, if you don't get
them, run, if you do ask pertinent questions and remember just because one person had it
bad doesn't mean everyone else will. If in doubt there are other jobs out there.
Well since so many teachers at Yuncheng English Village had so many issues - passports seized, passports held, contracts not initiated, inspections, told to vacate apartments (this one seems to be a constant issue at Yuncheng English Village) and so on, it seems clear that they should not read between the lines here but run from Yuncheng English Village.
This is not ONE teacher - this is a dozen teachers over the course of a year or more with these issues.
ralec123
- 2015-06-10
Silver Star is a private boarding school, not a training centre.
And they are dumb enough to pay 12 months' salary? Or did he post bullshit. just like 21k in Shanghai?
Yuncheng is persistently polluted. Sometimes more than Xian.
I prefer real backwaters! Only have your word re pollution levels! I distrust that!
Yuncheng to Xian is 70 minutes by high speed train and it costs 69rmb, it is just over four hours by regular train and costs 38rmb. Unless you have a lot of time or are flat broke I can't see why you would take the latter.
I would take neither - he posted about the extra cost, WITHOUT MENTIONING IT, which is in fact MINIMAL! He comes across as a skinflint!
I do question some of what has been said here but your above post is complete hogwash.
NOSIREE!
My honest opinion is that the OP calling himself 'The Truth' was a long term teacher in Linyi who left just before Spring Festival because of issues with Yuncheng EV and with the school he was at in Linyi for a considerable time. It is clear by his indepth knowledge of Linyi and the local area and his apparent obsession about security cameras that it is he. I won't go so far as to say a name but I know who it is.
No comment.
It's okay you mention your own issues and everyone is now aware of it but I suggest you call it a day before this thread becomes a slanging match.
Nope!
At the end of the day it is up to any intending teacher to do their own homework and read between the lines, ask for details of former teachers at the school, if you don't get them, run, if you do ask pertinent questions and remember just because one person had it bad doesn't mean everyone else will. If in doubt there are other jobs out there.
AGREED IN PRINCIPLE!
The Barber
- 2015-06-10
They pay 12 months a year, 7k.
Must be a rubbish TC.
Yep, 12 month salary-paid contracts in China? Huh! Not issued in the public sector nor by private colleges nor by private universities nor by private schools in the traditional sense. Why not? Because those students go on holiday twice a year. They need not foreign teachers during those holidays, so why should the employer pay the foreigner a full monthly salary during those 2 major vacations?
By contrast, training center foreign teachers are equally busy during those 2 vacations teaching. That guy is a barber's cat, but not my barber's cat!
AB1988
- 2015-06-10
Just a few facts...
Silver Star is a private boarding school, not a training centre.
Yuncheng is persistently polluted. Sometimes more than Xian.
Yuncheng to Xian is 70 minutes by high speed train and it costs 69rmb, it is just over four hours by regular train and costs 38rmb. Unless you have a lot of time or are flat broke I can't see why you would take the latter.
I do question some of what has been said here but your above post is complete hogwash.
My honest opinion is that the OP calling himself 'The Truth' was a long term teacher in Linyi who left just before Spring Festival because of issues with Yuncheng EV and with the school he was at in Linyi for a considerable time. It is clear by his indepth knowledge of Linyi and the local area and his apparent obsession about security cameras that it is he. I won't go so far as to say a name but I know who it is.
It's okay you mention your own issues and everyone is now aware of it but I suggest you call it a day before this thread becomes a slanging match.
At the end of the day it is up to any intending teacher to do their own homework and read between the lines, ask for details of former teachers at the school, if you don't get them, run, if you do ask pertinent questions and remember just because one person had it bad doesn't mean everyone else will. If in doubt there are other jobs out there.
ralec123
- 2015-06-09
They pay 12 months a year, 7k.
Must be a rubbish TC. BTW, 21k in shanghai is difficult to achieve, free accommodation thrown in too? No way Jose! 21K? = WORK LIKE A DOG AT A TC. U MUST BE A GW! SHAME ON U.
I see you've toned down your anti Yuncheng stuff. Plausible explanation re: Police took passport - to stop FT SKIPPING AWAY, AFTER HE HAD SETTLED OUT OF COURT FOR DAMAGES DUE FOR ABUSING A LOCAL CHINESE, AND HE HADN'T THE MONEY TO PAY IN A ONER. BETTER THAN BEING DEPORTED, EH?
Visa run to HK WITH FALSE DEGREE, UTTER CRAP. INVITATION LETTER AFTER IT WAS OBTAINED IN THE PROVINCE BY THE EMPLOYER WITH FALSE CREDENTIALS.
tHAT'S WHY we shoukdn't believe you!
And Xi'an is badly polluted, not Yuncheng, btw! sLOW TRAIN FROM yUNCHENG TO THERE, ABOUT 2 HRS, NO NEED TO WASTE MONEY ON A BULLET TRAIN!
U R A JOKE, PAL!
ralec12
- 2015-06-09
One of the attractions for ESL to China was that China did not require any degree.
Wrong! The local provincial education bureau had 'bent' the rules. Now they may be afraid to do so, but maybe not. We don't know if the longstanding rules are applied universally these days, as they always should have been!
Well, now they do
Probably not!
As a 2-year break, Yuncheng would be an OK choice.
Wow, how you've changed your tune, almost unbelievable - you are a big changeling
San Migs
- 2015-06-10
You are right, but I have had the degree and equiv of a CELTA even before I set foot in China, and many years teaching experience there and I STILL cannot get a effing visa for the place.
2 weeks, piss off mate, thanks very much peng you. A bloody joke!!! All these people who are saying it is easy, have never set foot outside China in the past couple of years, this is the plain truth.
The Truth
- 2015-06-09
SilverStar administration know the issues teachers now face, and they are direct in communicating these with teachers.
They direct hire, handle the paperwork in house.
They pay 12 months a year, 7k.
Still, you have that security cam directly facing your apartment door at the teacher quarters on campus.
Number 3 is good, Number 1 (usually just worded as CityName Middle School) is better, of course. KanJie is best, but good luck getting in there IELTS has that contract.
Yuncheng is not as severe as these smaller towns 20-50kms away, but you do get some of the same behaviour.
Oh- - forgot about the surveillance via mobile phone and constant photos taken of you in public without being asked.
If you want a great story, a break, and to see the REAL China, Yuncheng is very good. The fast train makes getting to places with western food and many more foreigners very easy, now. 80 minutes, 95rmb, from the Yuncheng fast train station and Xi'an subway to the Bell Tower in the middle of Xi'an. Makes it much more bearable, if expensive. Easier to spend your money now that it is so close, timewise.
Yuncheng is not like most of China, it isn't a mega-city with legendary traffic jams, 300 m buildings, and no greenery. As far as medium-sized Chinese cities go, it is better than most.
Pollution is bad, but it's like the internet - same all over China.
The Truth
- 2015-06-09
Even the smaller cities are no longer easier to get a cushy
teaching job.
The issue is that since China now requires a 3/4 year degree and a cert, often CELTA, that their requirements are on par with places that pay much more money and have a far superior living environment.
One of the attractions for ESL to China was that China did not require any degree.
Well, now they do.
As a 2-year break, Yuncheng would be an OK choice.
StevieB
- 2015-06-09
Thanks for the lowdown.
It is not SilverStar in LinYi, it is Yuncheng No.3 school. I did see an advert for SilverStar but it was for an elementary position which I have no wish to undertake. Just out of interest do you have any knowledge of that school and how it is run? You seem to be well versed with whats going on in that area without a doubt.
I'm still at the deciding stage, there are heaps of jobs out there but it is like the proverbial needle in the haystack trying to find the crap from good. I'm not in it for the long hall, two years maximum as I don't want a black hole on my CV. It's more of a career break for me really.
You are right I don't speak a word of Chinese, I'm not intending to have my head in a book memorizing it but just learn the fundamentals.
A very informative post far different from a lot of the drivel on here!
San Migs
- 2015-06-09
This anti-foreigner, paperwork hassle, snap inspection trend in smaller cities - all over China - this is new since about late summer of 2014.
A brief return, the tide had turned in the bigger cities in Autumn 2013, but yes, now it is nationwide like you said. Even the smaller cities are no longer easier to get a cushy teaching job.
The Truth
- 2015-06-09
@Stasis - 2015-06-08
It's all true, every word of it that I posted. It either happened to me, happened to other teachers in Yuncheng, or happened to teachers in other cities as confirmed by several DOS friends in other areas of China. Much of the more dramatic events have been redacted. It's even worse than I have posted.
This anti-foreigner, paperwork hassle, snap inspection trend in smaller cities - all over China - this is new since about late summer of 2014.
Many long term immigrants are leaving. Those with 5, 6, 8, years in China.
The signs are clear, it is time to go. They neither need us nor want us.
Those of us who have lived here a while are getting out while we still can.
Stasis
- 2015-06-08
One of the most informational posts on this site.
Thanks!
Seems rather hateful to me.
And so rather dubious.
Fifi
- 2015-06-08
One of the most informational posts on this site.
Thanks!
The Truth
- 2015-06-08
StevieB,
Sounds like you may be looking at SilverStar in LinYi, NW of Yuncheng.
If that is the case, you need to know that Yuncheng area has some fairly hard-core, nationalistic, formerly Red Guard (who were middle school students like yours) type people, who live in the smaller cities around Yuncheng. If you are in Yuncheng, not that bad. You will only hear the word 'laowai' 10 times a day. But if you go to Xinjiang, or Linyi, or XiaXian NE of Yuncheng, you need to know that these places are hotbeds of 'Traditional Chinese Culture'.
That is, off the charts xenophobic to the point that in public you will be stared at, commented on, and pointed at, about every 10 metres once you set foot off campus. Expect to hear the word laowai 40 times a day, constantly.
I will assume that you cannot speak nor read Chinese, so your ability to understand this will be limited at first due to language competency.
Your students will be great. Teaching in China is more of entertainment, but within that the kids are fine. It is not like teaching in other nations. The kids want to have a one hour break from their 16 hour days of memorisation, and you are it.
It's their mom's, dad's, relatives and anyone you meet outside the school gate who will become an issue.
You will be overcharged up to 5x the price the first few weeks, I suggest you avoid any large purchases to keep these loses to a minimum until you learn local prices.
Your apartment will have a surveillance camera pointed at your door, this all started late last year, and with the current administration being in power for at least the next 7 years and possibly longer (17 more of this?), it seems very unlikely that attitudes towards foreigners will change anytime soon. Locals will be opening their mobile phones and reporting your activities just about everywhere you go in the smaller towns. Yuncheng not so much.
Shanxi is much more traditional (nationalistic xenos) than most of the rest of China, and of course Beijing and Shanghai are nothing like the Yuncheng area.
This is from those in Yuncheng, as well as friends in larger cities in contact with people and schools all over China. These new anti-foreigner attitudes are in just about every smaller city in the country.
You could work in Shanghai for 3x the money.
It's up to you. If you want to put in the years and gain experience for a teaching career, this is an easy way to do it.
If everything written does not bother you, then go for it.
Just make sure that you are paid for 12 months a year, not 8; that you are paid at least 7000 a month to start; that you get a completion bonus and free accommodation; and under NO circumstances is anyone to hold your passport or FEC for more than 3 weeks for processing. The FEC is your property, under Chinese law. Do not let them keep your passport for 'safe keeping' - that is a means of control (and done all over China, not just in Yuncheng).
Lastly, the Internet.
You will be mostly cutoff from everything that you now assume you can do, and proxy VPN's no longer work inside China.
It is particularly bad in Yuncheng in the smaller cities, so keep that in mind. Banking, blogs, email to friends, all social media that you use, all of it will be gone once you set foot inside China. Many news sites will be blocked as well. Everything Google is gone.
The Internet issue is country wide, no matter where you go.
Good things?:
You will be able to save 5000 of the 7000 a month you earn, and the fast train is there to take you to Xian and Beijing.
You will see the real China not a showcase big city of it full of expats.
You will be the only non-Chinese person in town.
You will lose a large amount of weight your first months.
You will learn a near-Beijing dialect that is fairly commonly understand country-wide.
StevieB
- 2015-06-07
I was wondering has there been any updates on the situation in Yuncheng?
I am in contact with a school there about a position for September (they are a direct hire), I
just happened to come across these threads and it made me raise an eyebrow.
Should I be concerned or are these problems restricted to Yuncheng English Village?
The school I am in contact with have been surprisingly frank and forthcoming and don't
appear to have any inkling of the shenanigans which seem to have been mentioned but I would
be interested in the opinions of those in the area.
Thanks again.
The Truth
- 2015-05-14
...agent with an office opposite the main bus station...
That one is the third. A few schools are hiring directly and one long time foreigner is sometimes doing placements as well. So one could say four if one were imprecise.
The foreigner with no visa is still waiting for their visa, after over 5 months of having their passport sit on a desk at the Yuncheng Public Safety Bureau. I am surprised they continue to work, and are still in the area. This foreigner, btw, has been working as a dutiful employee for many, many, years in the same town.
June, end of contract season, is in 2 weeks and that teacher STILL does not have their passport with visa?
I can see why this is so - if the PSB are arresting headmasters, then it is going to make working as a teacher at that school very difficult and cause the local PSB's to be harsh with any teachers associated with that school, area, or placement agency.
If the headmasters are arrested, in jail, imprisoned, and telling all, then Yuncheng EV, Yuncheng English Village, as well as other local agencies, may be under suspicion as well. I repeat, may.
Recap of recent events:
-No passport with visa for an entire school year.
-Headmasters arrested and telling all about everyone they did business with.
There are other places to teach, other than at Yuncheng, Yuncheng EV, and Yuncheng English Village.
Kanjie
- 2015-05-13
Wow. Not a week goes by without more bad news from the Yuncheng area.It seems that the anti-corruption campaign has claimed one or more of the local headmasters, headmasters at schools that Yuncheng EV, Yuncheng English Village, has placed teachers at and continues to place teachers at. Said headmasters are now incriminating everyone in the area, which may or may not include the three major placement agencies in Yuncheng, and the local PSB are re-doubling their efforts to track down any teachers with the slightest error in their visa or FEC paperwork.
I'm intrigued. Can anyone else confirm this or provide more detailed information? Who is the third major placement agency? Is it a new player or the slimy agent with an office opposite the main bus station who places mainly Africans as kindergarten teachers in Yuncheng City proper?
The Truth
- 2015-05-13
Wow. Not a week goes by without more bad news from the Yuncheng area.
It seems that the anti-corruption campaign has claimed one or more of the local headmasters, headmasters at schools that Yuncheng EV, Yuncheng English Village, has placed teachers at and continues to place teachers at. Said headmasters are now incriminating everyone in the area, which may or may not include the three major placement agencies in Yuncheng, and the local PSB are re-doubling their efforts to track down any teachers with the slightest error in their visa or FEC paperwork.
San Migs
- 2015-05-09
From your typing/writing, I hope that is not representative of all "blacks". By the way, stop referring to people by skin colour please.
Sabhuku
- 2015-05-08
Bulldust
What [edited] is this [edited] talking about, whats wrong with employing blacks .They are far much better than you [edited].Native speakers!! Are uyou even a qualified teacher.Nonsense [edited]!!
The Pantalooned Poltroon
- 2012-01-07
"Good for Africans and Russians" means "bad for students" because you're selling them a highly non-standard form of English, spoken by people whom native speakers can't understand well. It doesn't mean that you aren't racist. Good luck finding a non-racist Chinese person. You still don't give a shit about any laowai beyond cashing them in, same as your competitors. I'm no fan of the "any white face" policy, but "any warm body from abroad" is even shittier and greedier.
Also, your Chinglish should remind you why you pay us. You'll never pass as us.
Moses
- 2012-01-06
No Africans, for sure, which their rival certainly does employ to a large degree.
Yuncheng IELTS School is not a racist employer . It is good for Africans and Russians . Mr Rivers is a good boss . I heard that EV asked it's teachers to teach in the evening and weekend with a little warning . This is not good. If the school you are sent likes you , you are ok . You should be careful with the Chinese teachers there. Mr Rivers does not bother you if the school does not make trouble. You can get the money.
foxy
- 2012-01-06
the ones doing less than 18 hours.
I do 18 teaching hours /week, @ 40 minutes/ teaching hour. That equals 12 clock hours. We should warn newbies that they can be duped by wily Chinese employers. If the contract offered states 'hours', that will mean clock hours, whereas if it states 'teaching hours', it'll mean teaching periods. But if it says 'hours of teaching', it also means clock hours (= sixty-minute hours). I wouldn't take any teaching post in China that requires me to teach 18 hours/week! I value my spare time very much!
The Pantalooned Poltroon
- 2012-01-05
Yeah, I just read an ad from that third company. Their package seems equivalent to the others, except I assume 5000 RMB is just to lowball people before negotiating. Everyone at EV makes 5500 at least, even really bad ones and the ones doing less than 18 hours.
Now if they all just began a bidding war for FTs, I wouldn't complain!
Mike
- 2012-01-05
You must have taught at Yuncheng EV. Unlike you, I taught at Yuncheng IELTS school, the 'opposition', and I had a good time working for them.
Now there's a third agent servicing the Yuncheng area, so I've been told. A new player will surely make things even more interesting, as regards business rivalry.
The Pantalooned Poltroon
- 2012-01-05
I taught here last year. Not bad. It's all white, except for American and British blacks. Last year, there was an American named Mario, who was definitely mixed-race. No Africans, for sure, which their rival certainly does employ to a large degree. I would go to dinner with three Africans from "the competition" in my district occasionally.
The biggest pro is Mr. Ji, the owner of the school, a stout old man. Charming guy, actually, who speaks little English (or pretends to) and grins and bear-hugs the unwary foreign. The other guy, who speaks fluent English and manages the foreigners, Mr. Dong, is unfortunately not quite as charming. Quite insincere, really. But that's a small gripe. You don't have to like the guy.
The job is accessible to older people and young people without experience. The pay is average to slightly-above for this category of ELT, but housing is better than the large cities, obviously. Many of their foreigners are on dodgy Hong Kong business visas, but they will renew the proper work visas, if you have them already.
They paid electronically and always on-time in my case. I had an irregularity with the accounting once and they fixed it. Maybe it was intentional to short-change me? It was never a pattern, so that might be unfair.
Also, the rivalry between this and the other school, which split inimicably around 2007-ish, is quite bad. Might be viral-marketing sabotage. Overall, the accusations are too highly-charged for what I witnessed there. I gladly left with more experience to get a better job in a more vibrant area, but I didn't part on bad terms.
Apollyon
- 2011-05-30
Well, they are at it again! This garbage school part of "Yuncheng English Village" Yuncheng EV apparantly. The are using a rubbish recruiter called Helen, chineselifebegin@126.com to obtain staff. This "school" mostly employs blacks, and a few GW white guys.
What a difference a day makes, or more like a few years really. English Village was brought about by a split between partners at the infamous Yuncheng IELTS. I thought that English village was still trying to nibble IELTS territory around the edges with a policy of only employing native born speakers as opposed to second language Africans. If theyre employing Africans as well perhaps they have taken over more of IELTS schools and can't get enough native born speakers. Years ago I had good reports about them from FT's [edited]
[Edited by Administrator (admin) Mon, 30 May 2011, 08:41 AM]