ESL TEACHERS: There is a westerner who works for the Jeollanamdo Office of Education(JOE). His name is Chris and I believe he is Canadian. Anyhow, Chris provides information to ESL teachers in Jeollanamdo. I'm not directly on his email list but a fellow teacher has forwarded some of his recent emails. His email address is below. If you're not on his radar send him an email and let him know you'd like to be on his list.
Below is the email Chris sent on June 29th. I've included here as an example of the kind of information Chris sends to ESL teachers. Also, some of the contact information at the bottom is good to keep on file.
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From: Chris < chrisofficeofeducation AT yahoo DOT com>
Subject: updates
To:
Date: Tuesday, June 29, 2010, 10:28 AM
Hi Everyone,
Hope all is well! Things are hot and humid and summer vacation is quickly approaching. I have a few things I want to update you on today. This is a long one so get comfy and please be sure to read everything carefully.
Blocked Sites
Some of the blocked sites are now open and more will be opening up. The local offices have all been contacted and they are working on them now. Please don't email back yet to tell me so and so site is still blocked, they are working on unblocking them now. Please give it a week or so, things move slow and it's out of my control right now. I'll send something out in the near future asking for anybody who still has problems with blocked sites. It easier to organize this way. Thanks for your patience.
Vacation Plans
Many of you are getting ready for your vacation. Please make sure you go over your schedule with your school. The schools should be giving some thought to summer camp / extra classes if they haven't done so already. Every school should have some sort of camp and the number of weeks will be decided by the principal. You will be expected to do these. Please discuss your vacation plans with your school and make arrangements with them so both you and the school will be happy.
Renewing Teachers
Those of you who are renewing will be given the renewal allowance. This is 2,000,000 and this will be given to you after your renewal date which for most of you is August 21st. You can expect to receive the renewal allowance within one month from this date. It may be safe to expect this on the September 25th pay. Also, your severance should be given to you within 14 days of the renewal date.
Some of the schools may be asking for flight information but they don't need it. They are a little confused and are still thinking back to the old way of renewals. You now get a renewal allowance. This is a set amount of 2,000,000 and has nothing to do with a flight. You can use this money for anything you want and if you want a flight home, that's your choice. If your schools are confused, they can call the office or you can call me and I'll put them on the phone with some one who can explain this to them. It's best to reach me in the mornings as I have appointments almost every afternoon.
If you are renewing you will also need to renew your visa. The visa renewal process is simple. You need to go to the nearest immigration office and they will put a nice new stamp in your passport and update your ARC. To do this, you will need:
passport,
ARC,
business registration certificate / 학교사업자등록증 (this can be obtained from your school's administration office)
30,000 W visa form. reference form
application form
The final two can be found in English and Korean at www.hikorea.go.kr under the quick menu on the upper right hand side of the page. You can apply up to 2 months in advance. There's also a foreigner immigration number you can call for assistance and its 1345.
You may also want to think about getting your re-entry visa at this time if you plan on doing some traveling. It’s an additional 50,000W.
Also, your current visa is going to expire before your contract does. This means, you need an extension. You can do both your renewal for next year and your current visa's extension at the same time. To do this, you will need:
Passport ARC Extension form which you will get at the Immigration office. The new contracts should be at your school late this week or early next week.
Teachers Finishing Contracts
When you buy your ticket for home you can give a copy of your e-ticket or a receipt to your school for reimbursement. Try to keep the flights at a reasonable price. They recommend 1.3 million but we all know that is impossible. A one-way ticket to the West will be more around the 2 million mark. Your school will honor this amount as long as it's a economy class, direct flight home to where you first flew over from.
You should receive your reimbursement on your final day of work along with your final pay, severance and damage deposit. You need to apply for your pension at the nearest NPS and this will be sent to your home bank account.
You have been paying into pension working here and you are entitled to get this, depending on your country, when you leave Korea. Canadians, Americans and Australians get a lump sum return and UK folks will get only their contributions back. Sorry to folks from New Zealand and South Africa, Korea does not have an agreement made with these countries for pension returns so you can't get it.
It's imperative that you leave the country to get it. You can’t get it if you stay here. You can apply for a lump sum return at the nearest National Pension Services (NPS) office and they are found in most cities. Here is a link to the NPS website providing contact info for the closest office to you.
http://www.nps4u.or.kr/apppage/english/contact/contact_01.jsp
When you visit the NPS you must fill out a Korean Lump Sums Benefit form. You must have:
a copy of your ticket home (E- ticket will suffice)
passport,
ARC,
social insurance
home bank info.
The NPS will arrange to have your pension transferred to you home account after your visa expires. It can take up to two months to process.
Your current visa is going to expire before your contract does because your visa was started in your home country by the Korean consulate before you came to Korea. This is normal. This means, you need an extension or your visa will expire before you leave and you will have a surprise (fine) waiting for you at the airport when you leave Korea.
To do this, you will need:
Passport ARC Extension form at office 10,000 W
Safety Concerns
I have some unfortunate news about an incident that happened last week in Suncheon to one of your colleagues who wishes to remain anonymous. She was at the bus terminal in Suncheon when a man came up to her and tried to forcefully pull her into an alley where he then proceeded to assault her. Luckily two other Korean men came to her rescue and helped her to safety in a taxi. Obviously the teacher was shaken up by this assault. She believes this to be an isolated incident but would like other teachers to be aware of it so they can take the necessary precaution to prevent a similar thing from happening to themselves.
This is not the first time I 've heard of an incident of this nature happening in Korea to one of our teachers and it's not the first time it has happened in a bus terminal or public place. You are a foreigner, and a as a foreigner you can be a target to criminals. I know not every incident is avoidable, as was the case here, but please take some extra steps necessary for your own safety. Don't travel alone, especially late at night and try to avoid any situations where you think there may be trouble. Unfortunate incidents can happen to anyone as I found out when I was assaulted and unfortunately this teacher just found out.
I'm not trying to alarm you, by no means has there been an increasing amount of acts of violence or sexual assaults against foreigners in Jeollanmdo. I want you to take some time to think abut your own safety and things you may be able to do to improve it so a similar event doesn't happen to you. I know this is also the wish of the lady who was assaulted.
If you find yourself in a bind try to find somewhere safe and keep my number handy. If you call me, I'll get you help. Some other places you might find assistance are:
24 Hour BBB Interpretation Services 1588-5644
Foreigner Travel Help Line and Interpretation 1330
School Violence and Violence Against Women Hot-line 117
Victims of Violence, Women and Schools Support Center 062-225-3117
Women's Emergency Hot-line 1366, 1577-1366
Canadian Consulate Busan - www.korea.gc.ca 051-204-5581
American Consulate - www.americanconsulate.com 02-397-4114
I think I speak for everyone when we say that we hope that teacher gets the justice she deserves and has only the best of luck in the duration of her stay in Korea.
If you have any questions or concerns don't hesitate to contact me.
Be safe,
Chris
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Program Coordinator, Foreign Language Department
Jeollanamdo Office of Education, Muan Gun, Samhyang Myeon, Namak Ri, 1457 Beon-Ji, 534-821 www.jne.go.kr
Office: 061-260-0538 FAX: 061-260-0535 Cell: 010-4526-1060 Home: 061-285-0804
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