KMK: Gangnam Teacher Turmoil

Recently, the Gangnam City Board of Education has introduced an addendum to all the contracts of English teachers working in the district. Now teachers in gangnam will not be offered housing and instead will receive a monthly housing stipend.

The word came down from on high via email:

This email is for all the teachers working at the Gangnam Public Elementary, Middle and High Schools.

Starting from the year 2010, the Housing policies in the employment contract will change as follows:

A). Brief summary of amendments to be made starting in 2010

1) Housing Allowance: The current housing allowance of 600,000 won will increase to 900,000 won.

– teachers who are currently receiving housing allowance, and teachers who are in monthly leased apartments: à these changes will take affect on January 1, 2010.

– teachers who are in contract leased apartments: à these changes will take affect according to the end of the apartment contracts.

B). Contract amendments and agreement

1) Contract amendments: The amended section of the contract will be added to the current contract.

2) Agreement: Through an official letter, a copy of the signed amended contract will be sent by the school to the Gangnam District Office.

These changes have been decided by the Gangnam District Supervisors. The Gangnam District Office, have been going through drastic changes which not only affected our section but many other sectors of the District Office have been affected as well.

Each School has received the amended contracts and more details so please speak with your liaison teacher.

I know that these changes are drastic and many teachers are upset regarding this matter. We just wanted to let you know that {REDACTED} and I have no authority over this matter and we will be affected as well. {REDACTED} and I will be sending out an email with details on real estate agents who speak English, and any other information which may help.

Thank you.

As you can imagine the teachers reacted in many different ways. There’s a online board where teachers can post in confidence about the goings on in the classroom or at work. With such a huge change reactions covered the spectrum from elation, to outfight fear, to anger. In such a context can you blame people for venting as they try to figure out what to do next and gather more information? The board is supposed to be a place where discussion can take place in a safe environment.

However, in the latest development someone within the ranks of teachers has gone all Sarah Palin rogue on the others by contacting the Korea Times and damning all those who posted on the thread to the tender mercies of a reporter who, to say the least, is not so sympathetic to the plight of English teachers. This person has taken it upon himself or herself to speak for a group of people without their knowledge or consent. Wrong doesn’t even begin to cover it. At best this might kill any potential meetings or discussion with the powers that be and at worse lead to a witch hunt of anyone who posted anything on that thread.

The article is below:

Teachers Rebel in Gangnam

By Kang Shin-who, Bryan Kay

Staff Reporters

Native English teachers in Gangnam, southern Seoul, are up in arms over a change made to their contracts related to housing provision by the district office.

Some claim they are being forced to sign a unilaterally amended contract stripping them of housing.

But the Gangnam District Office said the complaint was unfounded because they will be given expenses.

The district office has recruited annually some 100 native English speakers for elementary and secondary schools in the affluent district, where housing costs are expensive.

Previously, the office offered housing to the foreign teachers along with a monthly salary of 2.5 million won ($2,130). But it told the teachers that from next year it will provide a housing allowance of 900,000 won per month, citing the burden of large housing deposits.

“Although we will still continue to offer housing fees, the foreign teachers are apparently having problems in adjusting to a new contract,” said an official from the district office.

However, one foreign teacher, who asked not to be identified, said the teachers are angry after being coerced into signing the new contract.

“A lot of people are really angry about this because it was forced on us very suddenly,” the insider said. “One day we got an e-mail and two days later the Korean liaison teacher came to us with the rewritten contract.

“It leaves us out of the housing that the district provided. It’s not that they’re not offering us anything ― there’s now a monthly stipend ― but none of us can afford to live in Gangnam and there’s also the huge expense of the key money.

“Everyone is now going to head for the Itaewon area because it’s all we can afford, and we’ll be competing against one another for the same places.”

According to one source, a group of teachers plan on taking the case to the labor board over what they feel is a grossly unfair amendment to their contracts, carried out without their knowledge.

Another said, “The point is that we are being forced to sign a rewritten contract. That’s why we are getting the labor board involved.

“From the teachers’ perspective, we are pretty angry, but we can’t speak out as we may lose our jobs because the school could see it as disrespecting them. Everyone has a different contract, but basically we’re all being evicted.”

kswho@koreatimes.co.kr

bk@koreatimes.co.kr