If you are currently one of the oppressed teachers at the evil organization, BKC-International House Moscow, you know what happened last week is a grotesque violation of your contract and also law, not to mention plain common sense and dignity.
If you are not (yet) an oppressed teacher of the fascist regime, BKC-IH Moscow, then you may not know:
On February 23, there is a Russian National Holiday that goes by several names. Some call it Defender of the Fatherland Day, Men's Day, and Defender of the Motherland's Day.
No BKC classes were held that day, but in a cunning move, BKC ordered teachers to work the following Saturday to make up for it.
Thus, BKC Moscow didn't give anyone a holiday at all, did it?
Current teachers coined it "Monterday," which happens your Saturday suddenly becomes Monday instead because you haven't got any holiday at all.
We call bullshit on this. We call this filthy fucking cocksucking sickening revolting bullshit on this bogus BKC-IH Moscow practice. Bastard fuckers!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
BKC Teacher SUES BKC International House Moscow
We have confirmed that the lady we spoke of in our last post, Horror Story: the Truth About BKC Moscow is, without a doubt, SUING BKC IH MOSCOW.
An advocate retained by this teacher filed a motion for the lawsuit at the Basmanniy district court of Moscow last Thursday, February 18, 2010.
The lawsuit is for illegal dismissal.
Many of us grumble about suing BKC Moscow. Some of us threaten on occasion to sue Lingua.ru, BKC's umbrella company. But to our knowledge, this is the first time that a teacher put her money where her mouth is and got herself a lawyer and took them to court.
BKC Moscow breaks many laws - we all know this. They dodge taxes, tear up contracts, take hours away from hourly teachers who need them, and give hours instead to teachers who are already working more than 30 hours a week. They might be breaking the law by not giving us free flats - it only appears that they give us free flats, when, in fact, our payslips show that this is deducted out of our real salaries.
We are not mentioning the name of the teacher because it is our policy to not name any teachers at all, even ones who have put themselves out there in terms of being disgruntled.
We wish this lady the best of luck with her lawsuit against BKC Moscow.
An advocate retained by this teacher filed a motion for the lawsuit at the Basmanniy district court of Moscow last Thursday, February 18, 2010.
The lawsuit is for illegal dismissal.
Many of us grumble about suing BKC Moscow. Some of us threaten on occasion to sue Lingua.ru, BKC's umbrella company. But to our knowledge, this is the first time that a teacher put her money where her mouth is and got herself a lawyer and took them to court.
BKC Moscow breaks many laws - we all know this. They dodge taxes, tear up contracts, take hours away from hourly teachers who need them, and give hours instead to teachers who are already working more than 30 hours a week. They might be breaking the law by not giving us free flats - it only appears that they give us free flats, when, in fact, our payslips show that this is deducted out of our real salaries.
We are not mentioning the name of the teacher because it is our policy to not name any teachers at all, even ones who have put themselves out there in terms of being disgruntled.
We wish this lady the best of luck with her lawsuit against BKC Moscow.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Horror Story - The Truth About BKC Moscow
There was a lady who began a contract with BKC Moscow in September 2009. She is no longer with the company, since BKC Moscow (apparently) fired her illegally. According to the blogosphere, she is taking her case to Russian court.
Read the incredible story here, on ESLCafe.com.
The Truth About BKC Moscow
The Russian Government is Now Throwing Teachers Out (it wasn't the government after all - BKC Moscow threw her out).
As promised, here is a true-to-life field story about the type of health care BKC Moscow offers you. This is from the teacher's personal blog:
A Teacher's Story of What Happened When She Got Sick and What BKC Moscow Did About It (close to nothing, it seems)
Take a moment to look at your payslip to see the money that is going into your "insurance" fund. It is, as you may have already guessed, a joke.
We also regret to inform you that part of our crew of contributors to this blog no longer work for BKC Moscow. This happens every year. In January or February of every year, there is a mass exodus of teachers. Half-way through the contract, many teachers finally decide that enough is enough and they take leave.
As the author of this particular blog post, I wish to congratulate you on finding this blog. If you are planning to come to Russia to teach English - please do not choose BKC Moscow. They promise the moon and they hand you a pile of rocks. Then they take the rocks back and throw them at you.
If you insist on coming to Moscow, and BKC Moscow is the only job you can find -- take the visa. .Get into the country. And then run to another school. Run and do it quickly.
Bad things happen to teachers who come to work with BKC Moscow. That is why you will almost never find a teacher who has been here long-term.
Teachers are harassed, threatened, and intimidated by BKC Moscow. They quite literally do not care if you live or die.
If you would like to become a contributor to this blog, we will withhold your name. Just leave a comment and we will do the rest.
Teachers get kidnapped here. (This did happen to three new teachers last year, and BKC Moscow treated it as a joke although it was quite scary to the teachers involved, though they later developed a sense of humor about the situation -- we will post that story in an upcoming post). Teachers get sick here. They develop alcoholism and drug addiction. In some unfortunate cases, BKC Moscow teachers quite literally go crazy. It has happened.All of it. This is what they do not tell you when you are first hired. This is what they do not tell you when you are in Orientation.
Good luck to us all.
Read the incredible story here, on ESLCafe.com.
The Truth About BKC Moscow
The Russian Government is Now Throwing Teachers Out (it wasn't the government after all - BKC Moscow threw her out).
As promised, here is a true-to-life field story about the type of health care BKC Moscow offers you. This is from the teacher's personal blog:
A Teacher's Story of What Happened When She Got Sick and What BKC Moscow Did About It (close to nothing, it seems)
Take a moment to look at your payslip to see the money that is going into your "insurance" fund. It is, as you may have already guessed, a joke.
We also regret to inform you that part of our crew of contributors to this blog no longer work for BKC Moscow. This happens every year. In January or February of every year, there is a mass exodus of teachers. Half-way through the contract, many teachers finally decide that enough is enough and they take leave.
As the author of this particular blog post, I wish to congratulate you on finding this blog. If you are planning to come to Russia to teach English - please do not choose BKC Moscow. They promise the moon and they hand you a pile of rocks. Then they take the rocks back and throw them at you.
If you insist on coming to Moscow, and BKC Moscow is the only job you can find -- take the visa. .Get into the country. And then run to another school. Run and do it quickly.
Bad things happen to teachers who come to work with BKC Moscow. That is why you will almost never find a teacher who has been here long-term.
Teachers are harassed, threatened, and intimidated by BKC Moscow. They quite literally do not care if you live or die.
If you would like to become a contributor to this blog, we will withhold your name. Just leave a comment and we will do the rest.
Teachers get kidnapped here. (This did happen to three new teachers last year, and BKC Moscow treated it as a joke although it was quite scary to the teachers involved, though they later developed a sense of humor about the situation -- we will post that story in an upcoming post). Teachers get sick here. They develop alcoholism and drug addiction. In some unfortunate cases, BKC Moscow teachers quite literally go crazy. It has happened.All of it. This is what they do not tell you when you are first hired. This is what they do not tell you when you are in Orientation.
Good luck to us all.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
BKC Moscow Lies
We cannot keep tally of how many lies we have been told since we have been here. This is an attempt.
The Lies That We Have Been Told by BKC Moscow Boro Ladies
Lie #1 - "We can't sign that. You have to wait for Nastia to sign it."
And so we wait for Nastia to return. When she does not return, and one of us was still standing in the 3rd office, finally, one of the Nastias decided to sign it. "It" was a piece of paper in a folder stapled to the wall, accessible to everyone.
Lie #2: "You have to get your bank card from the bank. We do not posses any teacher bank cards."
One of us went to get our bank card and was told quite rudely the above statement. After the rest of us explained to her that Boro had ALL of our bank cards, she phoned them and asked why she needed to go to a Russian bank where no one speaks English to retrieve her bank card when other teachers have picked theirs up at Boro. She was told she must pick up her bank card at the bank. No exceptions.
(She was on the BKC Moscow Hit List)
Lie #3: "You will be paid for holidays."
No. We will not. Our contract is extended.
Lie #4: "I don't have the phone number of your internet company. You will have to wait for Anna."
Our brave contributor continued to demand the phone number, and eventually, with a long sigh and complaints from the Boro lady, the phone number of the internet company was retrieved from Anna's desk.
Lie #5: "We are here to help you."
As we have explained for months, BKC Moscow is there to help themselves and no one else. The Boro ladies are liars and very lazy. There is a way to get them to do what you ask. You will continue to be lied to, but you may receive what you need.
We will discuss the bribes that are accepted by the Evil Queen and the Lazy Lying Boro Ladies of BKC Moscow in a future post.
The Lies That We Have Been Told by BKC Moscow Boro Ladies
Lie #1 - "We can't sign that. You have to wait for Nastia to sign it."
And so we wait for Nastia to return. When she does not return, and one of us was still standing in the 3rd office, finally, one of the Nastias decided to sign it. "It" was a piece of paper in a folder stapled to the wall, accessible to everyone.
Lie #2: "You have to get your bank card from the bank. We do not posses any teacher bank cards."
One of us went to get our bank card and was told quite rudely the above statement. After the rest of us explained to her that Boro had ALL of our bank cards, she phoned them and asked why she needed to go to a Russian bank where no one speaks English to retrieve her bank card when other teachers have picked theirs up at Boro. She was told she must pick up her bank card at the bank. No exceptions.
(She was on the BKC Moscow Hit List)
Lie #3: "You will be paid for holidays."
No. We will not. Our contract is extended.
Lie #4: "I don't have the phone number of your internet company. You will have to wait for Anna."
Our brave contributor continued to demand the phone number, and eventually, with a long sigh and complaints from the Boro lady, the phone number of the internet company was retrieved from Anna's desk.
Lie #5: "We are here to help you."
As we have explained for months, BKC Moscow is there to help themselves and no one else. The Boro ladies are liars and very lazy. There is a way to get them to do what you ask. You will continue to be lied to, but you may receive what you need.
We will discuss the bribes that are accepted by the Evil Queen and the Lazy Lying Boro Ladies of BKC Moscow in a future post.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
BKC Moscow Accommodation Strikes Again
One of our anonymous contributors writes on BKC Moscow flats. One of many teachers on the "BKC Moscow Hit List"
After arriving in Moscow, I was taken to my apartment by a member of the BKC Moscow staff. It was located at the end of the metro line, and in an area I was later told by veteran teachers was one of the worst parts of the city. The staff member kindly walked me around the area. She informed me that she lived nearby. She then told me to be very careful because there is not a lot of foot traffic around and that it is not safe. She told me to NEVER walk by myself when it is dark outside. I told her that I would have to do that as my teaching schedule had me working into the evening hours, and she reiterated that I should be very, very careful.
Even as we were walking in broad daylight, we were followed by several men and she told me not to speak to them and to BE CAREFUL. The nights I did walk home by myself, I felt very unsettled. There were no sidewalk lights and I could barely see two feet in front of me. In the wooded areas surrounding the sidewalks, I could hear drunk men shouting and bottles clanking. I felt extremely vulnerable and unsafe. I knew that I could not live like this for a long period of time.
The apartment itself was (apparently) a typical Soviet-style flat that left much to be desired. It was also filthy. The staff member even washed her hands after touching something and made a remark about the lack of cleanliness. Only two lights functioned when I moved in and I was left living in darkness for several days until the repairman could come.
My first week was spent feeling scared, disgusted and isolated.
I called the BKC accommodation manager and begged to be moved to a new apartment. She gave me one option, which I gladly took. I was moved to a more central location and much nicer, cleaner apartment.
BUT, I was sent to live with an older woman that BKC had never been able to successfully place a flatmate with. This woman had lived in that apartment for years, harassing anyone placed with her until that person asked to be moved. She successfully did this for over three years and was successful time and time again without BKC Moscow accommodation managers stepping in.
Immediately upon meeting me, I was given a lecture. I was told we would not be friends. I was shown what I could use and not use in the apartment. I was given many rules which she expected to be followed. I did not want to move back to the first apartment, so I decided to try to live in peace with her and keep to myself.
This did not work.
- She banged on my bedroom door almost nightly to yell at me about anything she could think of.
- She monitored my actions in the apartment and posted a cleaning schedule that she wanted me to sign and date.
- She removed my food items from the refrigerator because she did not want to share it with me and told me to "be creative" as to how to keep my food cold.
- She told me if I had a problem with that, to contact accommodation. I did.
Finally, we were both requested to meet with the accommodation managers to try to work out our problems. I showed up, but my flatmate did not. We received an email the next day saying that we needed to make a compromise or else we would both be moved. We decided to give it another chance. Our compromise lasted about three weeks before I was locked out of the apartment at night. She had imposed a curfew on me, and I broke it.
The next day, I contacted BKC accommodation again and said that it was not working out and that something had to change.
My punishment for not getting along with this woman was to be moved to another apartment which required a 90-minute commute to work, which goes against BKC Moscow's "guarantee" that no commute would be longer than 1 hour. After months of struggling with accommodation issues, I decided to terminate my contract.
After arriving in Moscow, I was taken to my apartment by a member of the BKC Moscow staff. It was located at the end of the metro line, and in an area I was later told by veteran teachers was one of the worst parts of the city. The staff member kindly walked me around the area. She informed me that she lived nearby. She then told me to be very careful because there is not a lot of foot traffic around and that it is not safe. She told me to NEVER walk by myself when it is dark outside. I told her that I would have to do that as my teaching schedule had me working into the evening hours, and she reiterated that I should be very, very careful.
Even as we were walking in broad daylight, we were followed by several men and she told me not to speak to them and to BE CAREFUL. The nights I did walk home by myself, I felt very unsettled. There were no sidewalk lights and I could barely see two feet in front of me. In the wooded areas surrounding the sidewalks, I could hear drunk men shouting and bottles clanking. I felt extremely vulnerable and unsafe. I knew that I could not live like this for a long period of time.
The apartment itself was (apparently) a typical Soviet-style flat that left much to be desired. It was also filthy. The staff member even washed her hands after touching something and made a remark about the lack of cleanliness. Only two lights functioned when I moved in and I was left living in darkness for several days until the repairman could come.
My first week was spent feeling scared, disgusted and isolated.
I called the BKC accommodation manager and begged to be moved to a new apartment. She gave me one option, which I gladly took. I was moved to a more central location and much nicer, cleaner apartment.
BUT, I was sent to live with an older woman that BKC had never been able to successfully place a flatmate with. This woman had lived in that apartment for years, harassing anyone placed with her until that person asked to be moved. She successfully did this for over three years and was successful time and time again without BKC Moscow accommodation managers stepping in.
Immediately upon meeting me, I was given a lecture. I was told we would not be friends. I was shown what I could use and not use in the apartment. I was given many rules which she expected to be followed. I did not want to move back to the first apartment, so I decided to try to live in peace with her and keep to myself.
This did not work.
- She banged on my bedroom door almost nightly to yell at me about anything she could think of.
- She monitored my actions in the apartment and posted a cleaning schedule that she wanted me to sign and date.
- She removed my food items from the refrigerator because she did not want to share it with me and told me to "be creative" as to how to keep my food cold.
- She told me if I had a problem with that, to contact accommodation. I did.
Finally, we were both requested to meet with the accommodation managers to try to work out our problems. I showed up, but my flatmate did not. We received an email the next day saying that we needed to make a compromise or else we would both be moved. We decided to give it another chance. Our compromise lasted about three weeks before I was locked out of the apartment at night. She had imposed a curfew on me, and I broke it.
The next day, I contacted BKC accommodation again and said that it was not working out and that something had to change.
My punishment for not getting along with this woman was to be moved to another apartment which required a 90-minute commute to work, which goes against BKC Moscow's "guarantee" that no commute would be longer than 1 hour. After months of struggling with accommodation issues, I decided to terminate my contract.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Beauties from BKC Moscow Timetabling
One of our contributors just dug up some old emails from BKC Moscow. We will call this teacher "John Smith".
Email From John Smith Re: BKC Moscow
Here's some fun emails from May 2008.
Look at these beauties:
At the time, THERE WERE NO HOURS AVAILABLE. I had what I could get. I pleaded for weekend hours (which I KNEW there were) and they stalled. Of course I wanted hours.
Dear John Smith!
The Recruitment Department is concerned about your attitude to work. We would like to talk about it. Please, come to the central office (Boro) on Monday or Tuesday (May, 12-13) at any convenient time.
Please, let us know what time you will be here.
Best regards,
"Hog-Ola"
Timetable Coordinator
Explanation From the BKC Moscow Teacher
They were dragging their feet to keep me from getting a weekend class. I said this: I would LOVE to teach any class in the morning, day, evening, or weekend, but please, please, please, just not Monday/Wednesday evening. There are weekends and day classes available, please let me take these.
NO, you MUST take the Monday/Wednesday evening class. This created friction.
Next Email From BKC Moscow - How Dare You Question Us? We'll Call The Authorities!
Dear John Smith,
I just want to infrom you that I've started examination of how many hours hourly-paid teachers with BKC visas have. I was told by timetabling department that after one of your classes finishes on the 14th of May you will have only 14 hours per week. Please let me know if you want to take some new classes to have 20 teaching hours.
In case you refuse to take classes offered by timetabling I will need to
shorten your visa and send official letter to the Federal Security Service and to the Passport and Visa department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to inform them about stopping your contract with BKC. This letter will conduce to automatic cancellation of your visa.
Hope to hear from you soon, or you may just contact timetabling to find out
whether they have some classes for you.
Have a good day!
What John Smith Wrote Us
By the way, contacting the Federal Security Service regarding a work contract.... impossible. The FSB doesn't deal with this. Empty threats. And a visa can't be revoked unless it is stamped and taken away/out of the passport.
Warning to all BKC Moscow teachers: Don't give them your passport after they give you your visa. Your visa cannot be revoked unless it is physically presented to the migration officials.
Email From John Smith Re: BKC Moscow
Here's some fun emails from May 2008.
Look at these beauties:
At the time, THERE WERE NO HOURS AVAILABLE. I had what I could get. I pleaded for weekend hours (which I KNEW there were) and they stalled. Of course I wanted hours.
Dear John Smith!
The Recruitment Department is concerned about your attitude to work. We would like to talk about it. Please, come to the central office (Boro) on Monday or Tuesday (May, 12-13) at any convenient time.
Please, let us know what time you will be here.
Best regards,
"Hog-Ola"
Timetable Coordinator
Explanation From the BKC Moscow Teacher
They were dragging their feet to keep me from getting a weekend class. I said this: I would LOVE to teach any class in the morning, day, evening, or weekend, but please, please, please, just not Monday/Wednesday evening. There are weekends and day classes available, please let me take these.
NO, you MUST take the Monday/Wednesday evening class. This created friction.
Next Email From BKC Moscow - How Dare You Question Us? We'll Call The Authorities!
Dear John Smith,
I just want to infrom you that I've started examination of how many hours hourly-paid teachers with BKC visas have. I was told by timetabling department that after one of your classes finishes on the 14th of May you will have only 14 hours per week. Please let me know if you want to take some new classes to have 20 teaching hours.
In case you refuse to take classes offered by timetabling I will need to
shorten your visa and send official letter to the Federal Security Service and to the Passport and Visa department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to inform them about stopping your contract with BKC. This letter will conduce to automatic cancellation of your visa.
Hope to hear from you soon, or you may just contact timetabling to find out
whether they have some classes for you.
Have a good day!
What John Smith Wrote Us
By the way, contacting the Federal Security Service regarding a work contract.... impossible. The FSB doesn't deal with this. Empty threats. And a visa can't be revoked unless it is stamped and taken away/out of the passport.
Warning to all BKC Moscow teachers: Don't give them your passport after they give you your visa. Your visa cannot be revoked unless it is physically presented to the migration officials.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Sprain, Broken Leg, Who Cares? BKC Moscow Strikes Again!
Exciting news. We just got word from a BKC Moscow teacher. In her words:
Dr Emin? I've had him and thought he was kind of vague... He diagnosed my friend with a sprain when in fact she'd broken her ankle!
We are not surprised. We like this doctor only because we can get unpaid holiday whenever we want!
We don't like this doctor because he doesn't know what he's doing.
Dr Emin? I've had him and thought he was kind of vague... He diagnosed my friend with a sprain when in fact she'd broken her ankle!
We are not surprised. We like this doctor only because we can get unpaid holiday whenever we want!
We don't like this doctor because he doesn't know what he's doing.
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