The following statements are made without further comment and are meant to offer
GUIDANCE to inbound and existing teachers in institutions in the People's Republic of China. Some of the information provided herein is anecdotal experiences of foreigners and
not intended to convey an official opinion. Please refer to Measures for the Administration of Employment for Foreign Experts working in the Cultural and Educational Fields and
Provisions on Arbitration of Disputes over Employment Contracts for Foreign Experts working in the Cultural and Educational Fields.
The Registrar
China TESOL Teacher Register
Beijing PRC
Why Contract:
The contract you sign securing your teaching position in China will define the parameters of your existence in
ways you never thought possible. However, as an expatriate - an alien - a foreigner your contract is not your
enemy, it is your opportunity; your chance to define all that you will enjoy. The Contract is the best way to eliminate misunderstandings and clearly set out what the year ahead will bring.
Hours Worked vs. Salary:
Full time teaching is defined by having from 12-20 hours a week. Your teaching in China will also include a few
hours outside of the face-to-face classroom, venues such as an "English Corner"; a free flowing discussion
designed to allow a more relaxed opportunity for students to practice their English; its nationally popular and an expected part of the Foreign Teacher's curriculum.
Vacations & Holidays
Duration of pay: Be clear about the number of months you'll receive your pay. If you'll be teaching for a year, is
that 12 months…or two semesters? What will your pay be during Chinese New Year, other holidays and school
vacation periods? When you put these in the contract, do not leave them as ambiguous worded expressions of
the salary. Put down a numerical figure, either handwritten next to the words or in the appendix.
Benefits:
Benefits are often the deciding factor in making a job choice. One of the best things about teaching English in
China is that you will be offered SO MANY benefits, and bonuses too. Relative to the rest of the population, and
the cost of living, you will find yourself earning a high wage. The benefits make that wage even higher. These all
need to be spelled out in your contract. What benefits are you likely to see? The primary one is free housing.
Yes, FREE housing. Its really a good deal. The Appendix will spell out clearly what benefits you will receive and define some other matters, such as salary payments etc.
Airfare:
Reimbursement of airfare is usually offered when you agree to take a job teaching English in China; round trip for
two semesters, one way for one semester. Chinese schools will not buy you the ticket in advance, only reimburse
you for the cost. If they have agreed to pay for your travel both ways, bring a receipt from your travel agent and have this included as part of your contract as Appendix B.
Compassionate Grounds:
What if I HAVE to go home? If something beyond your control requires you to stop teaching in China and return
home, most people are understanding of such problems and sympathetic; however, you will likely lose you airfare.
Breach of Contract:
Beyond the understandable, the contract should spell out the consequences of either you or the school failing to
live up to everything that was promised: the school not coming up with… any of a number of things, co-teachers,
transportation, health insurance; salary on time; you not teaching when and in the manner expected of you. Here
you will encounter the Breach Penalty, a RMB/US Dollar figure charged to the one who has violated the terms of the contract.
There is a distinction that needs to be made: unlike cancelling the contract for circumstances beyond your control
as outlined previously, when one party feels the other has failed to honour the terms of the contract and the
aggrieved stops providing service: you stop teaching or, they stop letting you teach, and asks the other to pay a "Breach Penalty"; eg they do not pay your salary on time.
Legal Representation:
As a foreigner teaching English in China, your access to the kind of legal representation you will likely require to
document and certify the transgressions you feel you have endured will be difficult, if not impossible to secure.
Not to mention the fact that you will be unemployed. If you feel you are not getting what you have been promised,
you should try to rectify the situation through directly dealing with the situation. Numerous books have been
written on the cultural significance of Giving Face and Losing Face. Attack the problem while giving respect. Do not unfurl your copy of the Bill of Rights.
Letter of Release
More significant than your being unemployed is your continued viability as a teacher, which brings us to the
"Letter of Release". If by mutual consent you are permitted to leave your school before your contract is completed
you will have to get your working documents transferred from the first school to your new school. If you leave
before the year is out, no matter if you've left in anger or amicably, the case is the same. The official view of the
government is you are employed by the school that originally provided your invitation and, in consequence, was
responsible for your residency certificate. Before you can engage in teaching at alternative institution, this school
or university must register you with the Foreign Affairs Office. Without a Letter of Release, they will not be able to do it.
In the sections dealing with reasons for terminating the contract many overseas recruiting organisations suggest adding a clause similar to the following and to the contract as Appendix C.
"2 (two) days after the cancellation requirements have been met, party A will write a suitable Letter of Release for
Party B, stating in both English and Chinese that he has met all his responsibilities and is no longer obligated to
work at _________ school. The letter will bare the date and all the official stamps of the school.
Both parties agree the teacher is to be allowed to personally go to the school to collect the Letter of Release and
that under no circumstances may the original Letter of Release be delivered by post."
Holding back the Letter of Release seriously complicates your life. You will not be able to secure another position
teaching English in China until you have the letter. The Regulations decree that you must leave China within 15 days if you are not gainfully and lawfully employed.
Obviously, this is even more reason not to get into an intractable argument with your school. Schools have been
known to vindictively withhold the Letter of Release for recalcitrant, bombastic and uncooperative teachers; being
able to work in China is a privilege, not a right, no matter from which country or hemisphere you originate.
Private Tutoring:
Private Tutoring: The icing on the cake. You basic salary will be a handsome income by local standards. Unlike
some other overseas teaching venues, China permits your employer to contractually allow you to teach other students. Please note the following Clause:
"Without Party A's consent, Party B shall not render service elsewhere or hold concurrently any post unrelated to the work agreed on with Party A."
If your institution agrees in Appendix A to you being able engage in tutoring activities outside of the institute, it is suggested that you have it defined in the contract.
"Conditionally upon Party B's work and attendance being deemed satisfactory and provided such activities do not
infringe nor conflict with Party B's employment, Party A will permit Party B to undertake other engagements and
opportunities for up to total of 10 hours per week. All such engagements will be approved in writing before commencement
A Contract is a Contract:
A contract is a contract, and once you have signed the contract you will be expected to honour it, just as you
would anywhere else in the world. If there are specific areas of your employment you would like clarified and
embedded in the contract, subject to mutual agreement, have them attached to the contract as an additional
Appendix and make them part of the contract. The objective is to have it there on paper."
