Employment & Prof. Development

Hello Dr. Greg:

The university I'm working for has had a few teachers with master's degrees teaching "foreign expert" classes, but without any additional compensation either for the classes or the MA. I have one of these classes, though it's just an oral English class for non-English majors and I don't mind it at all, however there was talk about me taking on another non English class in another department, which I expressed a disinclination to do.

I'm wondering if we are entitled to more money for teaching such classes, or having the MA. For me it's not really a money issue, but rather a "free time" issue, and I'm not anxious to have to create new materials for additional classes, especially if I'm not really qualified to teach the class in the first place (one teacher got saddled with a political philosophy class, about which he knew absolutely nothing). I was originally hired to teach only oral English and only to English majors, and I'm hoping I don't get some surprises when I finally get my schedule, a couple days before classes start (i.e., I don't want to have to read and research Shakespeare keeping a week ahead of the students).

Any suggestions should they give me such a class? Could I mention being entitled to extra pay as a disincentive to them to spread my energies a little thin?

Hi Gabriel,

Whether or not you have options here all boils down to the specific wording in your SAFEA contract addendum. If it specifically indicates that you will only be teaching oral English classes, then you have some room for negotiation. On the other hand, if that addendum is silent on both the issue of class type and prep time and simply lists maximum number of face-to-face teaching hours, they are going to resist giving you extra pay just as long as the total number of hours is within contractual limits.

As for the master's degree, yes, you should be typically receiving at least 300 to 500 yuan more per month than a foreign teacher with a bachelor's degree.

If your contract addendum is silent on the issue of prep time (and in most cases it deliberately is), they will basically justify to themselves giving you any or all classes that require an English-speaking teacher regardless of prep time. It is terribly disingenuous on the part of the university because they know quite well that preparing for a class in Western Literature or Shakespeare requires far more prep time than does a class in oral English. For this reason, Chinese professors receive a workload reduction for teaching master's and doctoral level courses, although this workload adjustment is rarely afforded to Western teachers and professors.

I am guessing that you are not going to find any justification for arguing against these extra responsibilities in your contract addendum. In that case, what I would suggest is that you sit down with your department head and very nicely explain your concerns, ever so subtly hinting that it is unlikely you will be renewing your contract if this excessive workload situation persists. If they are interested in retaining you, they will take what you have to say to heart. If not, they will smile, thank you for expressing your concerns, and then extract as much work from you as humanly possible before you leave.

Let us know what happens.

Thanks Dr. Greg:

I definitely get the same salary as someone with just a bachelor's. I teach in a small city, so the pay is just 4,000 for 16 hours (originally 14, but the contract says 16 is the maximum and, at the last minute, an extra surprise class was added to each foreign teacher's schedule).

I'm wondering if I could or should broach the subject of the extra pay for an MA degree. It appears now that the university has been recently trying to hire teachers with MA's, regardless of whether they have a teaching certificate or not, with the probable intent of giving them less desirable schedules, including non-oral English classes in other departments. Because there will be 4 teachers with MA's, if I bring up the topic it will mean a lot more money for teachers and I could be perceived as a threat.

I know they want to retain me as a teacher, but teaching may not be as critical--assuming anyone will do a passable job--as are opportunities to personally benefit off of their foreign teachers. I do know of one specific plot to use disinformation to short teachers of pay due to them, after which certain people in the department were going to divide up the teachers' salaries for their own personal use. Thus, suspicion is warranted.

It may be wise to finish out my next term and then switch to another university, asking for the extra money for the advanced degree up front.

Thanks again for your help, which I think is indispensable for people like me living in China.

Gabriel

If your hours are within the maximum number specified in the addendum and there is no mention of class type, then I agree with you: It is best just to count your loses, leave on good terms, and look for better employment next fall. As you pointed out, they have a history of playing games with the employees' salaries, so these are not the kind of people who are going to do the right thing by their foreign teachers.

For next semester, do keep in mind that you are entitled to more pay for possessing a master's degree.

Best of luck with that and thanks for the kind words.

Hello Dr. Greg:

Before I try to tackle the issue of an extra 300-500 yuan a month for having an MA degree, is this a government policy for all government universities in China? They will probably tell me something along the lines that "at this university we don't do that," or "this city is too small and we don't have enough money." If I can tell them I know it's the same for all govt. universities in China, it will help my case.

On another topic, I learned yesterday that there will be speech contests next term, apparently for all levels of students, because the private school teachers have already been recruited to appear on television in relation to the contests. I've read on this site about speech contests and will do so again, but I don't recall whether a teacher who is asked (forced) to participate in such contests and preparation is guaranteed payment for doing so. For example, if my maximum hours are 16 per week, can they ask for several more hours of work without any compensation?

Related, currently I've dodged the weekend English Corners, though I have participated in some extracurricular events and been photographed too much for my tastes and also had to give impromptu short speeches. There's definitely something in the contract about participating in school activities, but how much can they ask without paying for the work?

Thanks again for your help. I haven't found any other source on the Internet where I can get straight answers, especially in a timely and professional manner.

Hi Gabriel,

SAFEA guidelines are strictly advisory and, to further complicate matters, beginning in the late 1990s, the Chinese government has been increasingly moving towards decentralization: For example, what is true today in Anhui for foreigners may very well not be true in Henan Province. Unlike any Western country, the People's Republic of China is organized far more along unitary (harmonious) lines than federal principles and while, constitutionally speaking, America's fifty states have far more individual rights than do China's 33 provincial level units, in practice, local CCP leaders have far more personal discretion than do any of their Western elected officials at the same comparable level of government. In China, might makes right.

In regard to the three to 500-yuan increase you should be earning with a master's degree, all you can really do is politely cite common practice and SAFEA advisory guidelines. However, the Chinese avoid creating new precedence because, as they see it, doing so opens the floodgates for having to yield to even more concessions at a later time and, once that precedence is set, they know they will be stuck honoring it for others. If your university does not already have a history of paying foreign teachers with master's degrees more than those with bachelor's degrees, it is unlikely they will start doing so now.

Theoretically, yes, you should (will) be paid something extra for participating in these insipid departmental, university, provincial, and national English contests (typically four per year at the university and provincial levels) but administrators never seem to know in advance exactly what that amount will be because, behind the scenes, a lot of money is changing hands whenever CCTV is involved. How those monies get disbursed in the end varies greatly between events for a variety of reasons. You could receive anywhere from 50 to 150 (or more) yuan per hour. However, the chances are great that if you ask exactly how much you will be paid, you will be told "we're not sure yet" (and that happens to be true).

Universities take these painfully boring English contests very seriously and a great deal is at stake politically for everyone involved. Consequently, foreign teachers don't really have any choice but to participate in them as their involvement gives the school a great deal of face.

I think you need to start looking for a more rewarding position come next fall, hopefully one where the university administrators value the role of their foreign teachers a great deal more than yours seemingly do.