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Q: Recruiting Agency Says They're Hired 120 Foreign Teacher Interns For 3,500rmb a Month?
Today a recruiting agent for public schools in China tells me that they've recently hired 120 foreign teacher "interns" at their schools for 3,500rmb a month.
They tell me they have 3 vacant positions for full time foreign teachers at their schools at around 6,500rmb a month. Then he told me if he can't find full time foreign teachers for these positions that they will just replace them with interns.
He also showed pictures of some of the other teachers at their schools. All of them look like the weirdo types who watched anime all day and had no friends in school.
How can I possibly compete with this shit? Are this many people really stupid enough to work for $500 dollars a month? That's less than minimum wage back home!! I send $500 dollars back home every month to pay in college loans alone.
If I ever open up an ESL school in China I am going to take so much advantage of these losers.
8 years 16 weeks ago in Business & Jobs - China
There's one born every minute. If you pay peanuts then you get monkeys. Which is what they want - dancing monkeys.
How you could subsist on 3,500 in a major city is beyond me. I've seen more spent on a round of drinks in Shanghai.
morget:
But, if the "dancing monkeys" are smart they will band together and demand higher salaries.
Just because your job doesn't require much talent doesn't necessarily mean you have to be paid less.
Alas, you'd probably still have idiots willing to pay money to work in China for the "experience" or whatever. Sickens me.
morget:
Actually, I told the recruiter they are idiots to work here for such little money and he said they were rich so they don't care how much money they make.
Shining_brow:
"Just because your job doesn't require much talent doesn't necessarily mean you have to be paid less."
Ah - yes, it usually does! Untrained unskilled factory workers vs mechanics and electricians and doctors and engineers... which that list gets paid the lowest, because of the lack of 'talent'??
So, yes please, let's keep the gradation of salary based on knowledge and skill, if you don't mind! (or danger money, etc)
I do not think work visa allows intern to work legally in China. But 6000 RMB per month at public school seems legit.
morget:
In smaller cities, 6,000 to 8,000rmb a month is normal However, in bigger cities, such as Beijing, Guangzhou, or Shanghai, you can get more than 13,000rmb a month working for a public school.
Shining_brow:
Depends entirely on where you are.
There is simly NO comparison between the bigger east coast cities, as well as down south, to the rest of the country (with some notable exceptions).
that's why the locals keep migrating!!
3500 in one city might be perfectly normal. Also remember, WE get paid SIGNIFICANTLY more than the locals (in some ways...). IN those smaller cities, they don't 'have the income to justify those higher wages.
Since the OP didn't bother to mention which city this was for....!!!!
I'm guessing, recruiter is from Shenzhen and they advertised similar '120 FTs for some 10k salary' in 2012.
I applied and had several interviews, and nothing. Last email I received was about ''I'm Non, so I don't qualify for the position''.
It was like I just became Non, despite all that was visible from my CV.
Interns can get hired for work in Chinese school, but not with 1-year Contract. I think, intern's job can't be longer than 3-6 months, and most likely they 'work' with F visa.
What's the bet about half of them are creepy missionary types here on some agenda other than teaching English.
Can't comment on the 120 number but I have met "teachers" before getting paid stupidly low salaries on "internships".
Zhongshan, abotu two years ago, met two British "teachers" who were getting paid 2500RMB/month plus free accomodation for doing an "internship". Bloody slave labour in my view. Cheapskate schools in my view finding ways around the rules....
icnif77:
I met few Scottish lads in Fuk. in 2012. Similar pay, and lousy living conditions.
They told me, they were send to China out of UK Uni by an (UK) Agency.
morget:
What I don't understand is that it takes less than an hour to do a little research on teaching salaries before you come China to realize what is a competitive salary for your qualifications.
Ignorance is what keeps salaries so low for foreign teachers in China. Anyone with a half a brain realizes pretty quickly after arriving in China how much money these people are charging students to attend English classes with a foreign teacher, or how much money the government is giving schools to hire foreign teachers.
icnif77:
Interns don't care about salary. They don't teach much either, but they come to party, and they're happy when they can 'glow' with 'I was in China' after their home return.
Hotwater:
Plus these "interns" probably can't get Z-visas yet so it's an easier way to come here, probably on a student visa.
There's one born every minute. If you pay peanuts then you get monkeys. Which is what they want - dancing monkeys.
How you could subsist on 3,500 in a major city is beyond me. I've seen more spent on a round of drinks in Shanghai.
morget:
But, if the "dancing monkeys" are smart they will band together and demand higher salaries.
Just because your job doesn't require much talent doesn't necessarily mean you have to be paid less.
Alas, you'd probably still have idiots willing to pay money to work in China for the "experience" or whatever. Sickens me.
morget:
Actually, I told the recruiter they are idiots to work here for such little money and he said they were rich so they don't care how much money they make.
Shining_brow:
"Just because your job doesn't require much talent doesn't necessarily mean you have to be paid less."
Ah - yes, it usually does! Untrained unskilled factory workers vs mechanics and electricians and doctors and engineers... which that list gets paid the lowest, because of the lack of 'talent'??
So, yes please, let's keep the gradation of salary based on knowledge and skill, if you don't mind! (or danger money, etc)
LOL classic, the schools certainly have a budget of around 20k per foreign teacher but the headmaster and the recruiter have agreed to split the two thirds of that for themselves.
I was previously offered similar agreements, of course I turned them down but some of the local recruiters don't have such high morals.
I know of the Chinese ways and I am not a big fan of it, karma being a biitch.
morget:
It's all about supply and demand. If they can still find teachers willing to teach for a little money then they'll continue to do it.
There's nothing I can do about it because most Chinese recruiters do not know how to evaluate talent. I've had several interviews will the interviewer didn't ask me one questions about my background, education, or anything job -task related.
RandomGuy:
morget: Because you assume that Chinese recruiters care about your talent or finding the best teachers for their partner schools, you are wrong, all that they care about is their fee, once they have collected the fee from the school you will never hear from them again.
icnif77:
My recruiters always stay behind me during the length of the Contract and I usually hit them with problem, before I go after the School's rep.
many people never plan ahead and do nothing in regard to research, this usually bites them in the ass, i'm amazed how old some people are before they learn this hard lesson of life. i have a foreign teacher at my school recruited by an agent that did not realize school was not over at the end of may or her salary was paid after the end of the month, in this case an older ft in their fifties.
I smell a rat with this post, why would they tell you all that info? Do you really feel like you are competing with them?
Now let's see if someone comes by and posts a link to a CFTU website.
morget:
In fact, I do feel like I need to compete with them, at least in the short term. Regardless of my work ethic or character I am not better than them until I have advanced degrees in the eyes of Chinese recruiters.
You see, back home people cared more about your drive, character, and experiences and less about what your degree was.
Englteachted:
In the eyes of Chinese recruiters? Why are you going through recruiters? Contact schools directly.
icnif77:
I agree with 'tits'! Why they would tell you that or any other business inside?
No foreigner in China can compete with Chinese! None!
It doesn't matter your degree, talent or any other good things you see, when you look in the mirror.
Chinese will negotiate 'cup of cold water.....', and they will hire cheaper hand, because for them the most important is 'cost' not 'content' as we assume.
They'll stuff Native English intern into the classroom for low salary and shared, unfurnished room. 10 points!
'add-it': I use recruiters often. I have three recruiters, who are reliable. They connect me with Schools, and 'negotiating terms of work' is my part. Recruiters make 'looking for job' easier.
research "international volunteering". talk about scamming folks due to them being naive and good hearted people. Many are real crooked, anddemand you pay them an introductory fee (usually in the thousands of dollars)...to come work *cough* I mean volunteer your time.
here we go again
haven't we been down this road before?
history never repeats (split ends )
