We Don't Get Paid for Holidays? We Thought We Did! That's What You Told Us!

Originally posted by a teacher on the BKC Moscow Teacher's Forum

Money money money
November 30, 2009


This maybe only applies to contract teachers.

Did you work extra (catch up/cover) hours in the week Nov 2 to 7 in the expectation of being paid for them? We were led to believe we would be at the teachers meeting in October. (The assurance has been 're-interpreted' - as below.)

Did you find out on pay day that that the extra hours weren't paid? (as I did) The reason given when you enquired being that the extra hours merely replaced the hours 'lost' on the Nov 4 (paid?) holiday.

If that happened, let your Teacher Reps know as soon as possible at reps@bkc.ru

Meanwhile, I suggest that if you are asked to work extra hours in a week where there is a national holiday, you were ill or for any other reason missed a day or more, DON'T!!! Under current payment guidelines there's every chance you won't be paid for them unless the total hours worked that week - holidays etc don't count in salary calculations - exceed your contracted hours. If you are under hours it's a different situation - then you have to work up to your contracted load, but no more in that week.

The way to get paid is to do the extra hours in another pay week where you actually work your normal contracted/scheduled hours. Then it will be counted as overtime.

Tricky, isn't it!

Another way to tackle this in future, of course, is not to do catch-ups or cover classes at all if you have the weekly hours to refuse, no-one (ADoses and Senior Teachers excepted, I believe) is obliged to do overtime. Take note that there are more holidays around New Year and that Timetabling will be looking for cover lessons, as many of our teachers will be on leave. Only do the extra hours if you are guaranteed payment as overtime, in writing/by email, and it suits you.

Hello, Fresh Meat - We Mean, BKC Moscow Teachers of 2009/2010

We wish you'd stop skipping and jumping and acting like you're King of the World. It's giving us a headache.

Sorry, that's just our bitterness speaking.

Here's what we wanted to tell you: holiday is coming. Oh, you want to go home for the holiday? Too bad. Too late. BKC Moscow says so. Unless you requested holiday time the minute you arrived to Moscow, you get nothing.

From the BKC IH MOSCOW WEEKLY NEWS


Dear teachers,
1. Attention! Holidays!
We are not able to approve any more holiday requests for January. Sorry for the inconvenience.

We will appreciate if you discuss your holiday plans with your students in a more positive way (i.e. encourage them to continue classes even with a cover teacher,  etc.)

this means that if any of the students do not come to class while you are gone, you will be blamed for this. you, the new teacher, barely into your second month of teaching, are now in charge of making sure students stay in class when BKC Moscow tells them to.

Funny Stuff - WORK FOR FREE FOR BKC!

So, if you're counting your rubles and thinking wow oh wow I am just one rich mother fucker - well, consider doing volunteer work for your employer! The following bulletin comes courtesy of the BKC Weekly News:

LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS
We are looking for volunteers for one of our new projects. For those clients who can not attend language courses in our usual format several times a week we will be offering 1 day intensive training programmes on a variety of topics. Such courses will be held on Fridays and/or weekends in central locations mostly. If you have relevant experience and/or are interested in exploring a particular area, please let us know. The EMT has prepared a selection of supplementary materials and guidelines for teachers, however, your personal input and initiative is also much appreciated!There is also a possibility for two teachers to share the same course (morning-afternoon slots), so if you have a partner for tandem teaching, please let us know that, too.

Now, do you think that BKC Moscow GETS PAID from the clients that are taking these intensive training programs? Of course they do. But BKC Moscow is too fucking cheap to pass any of that money your way. That's right. BKC expects you to do it out of the kindness of your heart.

We are speechless.

The BKC Moscow Doctor

So you've been in Moscow for a few weeks or for a few months by now. There are a few things you probably already know about what will happen if you get sick.

• If you break your leg or require surgery, you will probably be terminated and sent home. BKC Moscow may or may not pay for your airline ticket for you to go home to your country.
• If you get sick, you will not be paid for any time off. You cannot use your holiday time for your sick days. You will receive a portion of your pay after the fourth day of illness.
• The Doctor BKC Moscow will send you is not a fluent English speaker. BKC Moscow will not provide you a translator.
• No matter what your symptoms are, the Doctor will almost always tell you that you have the flu and that you will recover in three days.

BKC Moscow teachers who have been around for awhile know that if they want an unpaid holiday, they just need to call BKC and say, "I'm sick." BKC may or may not send the doctor to your flat. No matter what you tell the Doctor, he will always say that you have the flu.

If you really are sick, then BKC will arrange for you to go to one of the state-run clinics in Russia. Field stories of the state-fun hospitals and clinics are horrific. We will be posting more first-hand accounts of these stories.

BKC Moscow, despite what they may want you to believe, does not offer you any type of insurance. The health care you receive is sub-standard, state-run facilities and treatment.

This is unfortunate, because there are actually several private hospitals, doctors and clinics that serve English speakers.

BKC Moscow will not pay for Western standard care for you, as a BKC teacher.

Stories from the field will be posted soon.