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Breaking an employment contract - NET Teacher

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  1. #31

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    Quote Originally Posted by merchantms:
    Agree with this. If they are going to use the contract to their advantage then so should she. Say "My contract says 25 hours, I am not going to to more than that, if you don't like it then let's renegotiate the terms. Let's start with the salary then the notice period."
    I doubt this would really work because it will say 25 teaching hours. Teachers will know you cannot walk into a classroom without any preparation and post-classroom hours. Even "legally" the teaching hours will just be the classroom hours and somewhere else in the contract it will probably mention "including time to prepare". Even if you put your foot down with the employer, how would you feel walking into a classroom full of kids/adults expecting to learn and you've got nothing for them because you were playing a game with your employer not to work more than 25 hours?
    elmaldito likes this.

  2. #32

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    Quote Originally Posted by merchantms:
    Agree with this. If they are going to use the contract to their advantage then so should she. Say "My contract says 25 hours, I am not going to to more than that, if you don't like it then let's renegotiate the terms. Let's start with the salary then the notice period."
    @merchantms I agree totally - the conversation has been had a few times with some success but the centre owner can't look past the dollar signs and is consistently expanding but refusing to hire new staff. Starting to tire of the constant back and forth, paired with general poor management and its starting to look like an early exit might be a better option.

    Also never underestimate the catch of the "caring" professions - common for teachers, nurses etc. to overwork because even if they know they are being exploited they feel a duty of care

  3. #33

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    I doubt this would really work because it will say 25 teaching hours. Teachers will know you cannot walk into a classroom without any preparation and post-classroom hours. Even "legally" the teaching hours will just be the classroom hours and somewhere else in the contract it will probably mention "including time to prepare". Even if you put your foot down with the employer, how would you feel walking into a classroom full of kids/adults expecting to learn and you've got nothing for them because you were playing a game with your employer not to work more than 25 hours?
    But she's being asked to prepare lessons for other classes beyond her own. So she wouldn't be walking into a class with nothing to offer - but others would be I guess. If she says no I won't do it, then worst case she gets fired (better than quitting and paying the employer), or they leave her alone and she can survive working the remainder of the contract.

  4. #34

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    @Fiona in HKG her employment visa has just begun so she has some time. We are more just investigating our options - hopefully a job will come up when the school year starts in August. In that case I think handling it directly and giving 3 months notice will probably be the way to go - the centre is not completely unreasonable and realistically gives them time to plan her replacement - would be surprised if they pursued it from there

    Thanks for your help so far everyone!

    Fiona in HKG likes this.

  5. #35

    some things to note: an employment visa is only valid for the company that sponsored it. It is not transferable to other jobs, you have to apply for a new visa for new employment.
    When you apply for the new visa they will ask you for a release letter from the current employer. If you don't stick to the terms of the company's contract they will probably not be forth coming with this letter.


  6. #36

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    Quote Originally Posted by MABinPengChau:
    I never suggest anyone to go to court, EVER. My own clients I tell them to move heaven and earth to settle. What I am saying is that previous cases, that you can rely upon for precedent, use this kind of rationale so you give your three months' notice, explain the contract is illegal, and let them chase you to the Labour Tribunal (not formal court, cheap resolution of labor disputes).

    The OP is looking for whether or not the employer can enforce this contract so is looking for whether it is a legal contract or not. My guess, based on reading cases for non-compete agreements is that the same Basic Law provision would be used in this case to say it is an illegal contract, hence unenforceable. People write unenforceable contracts all the time, even attorneys (with scare-tactic provisions like the one in this contract).
    Sometimes court is needed when someone doesn't want to follow whats written in the contract. There are plenty of times when employers do not want to pay out proper notice periods, severances, etc. Not everyone works for a large corporation that follows the rules exactly. Many MNC's and startups play games when it comes time to paying.

  7. #37

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    Should have clarified- my client are doing patents and in patent litigation no one wins except the lawyers (except in very rare, very famous cases). But, in general, it is better to settle, mediate, arbitrate, Labour Tribunal, anything but the cost of litigation...

    Fiona in HKG and MandM! like this.

  8. #38

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    Quote Originally Posted by merchantms:
    But she's being asked to prepare lessons for other classes beyond her own. So she wouldn't be walking into a class with nothing to offer - but others would be I guess. If she says no I won't do it, then worst case she gets fired (better than quitting and paying the employer), or they leave her alone and she can survive working the remainder of the contract.
    Yes, that isn't "right" (though not at all surprising). But still, even what I said, 25 teaching hours, plus 2-3x that for preparation for her own lessons = 50-75 hours of weekly work. It's a trap you cannot avoid in ELT and the OP's partner should start to become aware of this and be prepared for these conditions when negotiating the next job.

  9. #39

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    I just wanted to post something to dispute a point you made. You said it was 'a small amount' for professional teachers to teach for 25 hours a week. I couldn't disagree more. It also shows a lack of understanding of what a teacher does.

    Teachers providing high quality lessons can NOT teach in class for that many hours.

    NUT surveys in the UK show that teachers in primary schools work for 19 hours in the classroom and secondary teachers work for 19.6 hours in the classroom.
    https://www.bbc.com/news/education-27087942

    I think some people think teachers just walk into a classroom with no extra work and are home relaxing by 3.30pm. That couldn't be further from the truth. Lesson planning, marking, meetings and administration take a hell of a lot of time.

    Please don't run down this profession.


    That said...
    I hope you follow my advice and join the HKPTU. I know of colleagues who have gotten good legal advice when they have had legal disputes.
    Here's the flyer. It doesn't say the amount of time you get, but I think it's thirty minutes free and there's a big discount after this time.
    https://www2.hkptu.org/member/2018/intro-2018eng.pdf


  10. #40

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    Hey, for anyone interested or for new people who come across this thread and want to know the result - My partner has given her 3-month notice and will start a job in a proper school in August. The Learning centre management half-heartedly threatened the penalty clause but based on the advice here we thought it was a bluff, so she didn't give it any oxygen and they barely pursued it more than one passing mention.

    To be sure, she secured a release letter signed by centre management.

    Thanks again for all your help - hope this helps someone else if they end up in the same position!

    jgl, shri, MABinPengChau and 2 others like this.