Contract Types for English Teachers in Thailand
The contract that is offered to the native speaking teachers for ESL jobs by the schools usually cover details like
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Employment date
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Employment termination date
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Location of employment
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Designation of the teacher
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Duties of the teacher
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Remuneration, accommodation and facilities
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Normal working hours
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Terms and conditions related to holiday entitlement and services
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Disciplinary measures
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Probation period and confirmation process and change in the rate of remuneration for service after probation
But these contracts are not legal documents and in Thailand both the teachers and the school authorities are often found to violate the mentioned terms and conditions due to sudden policy changes or some unrealistic expectations from the schools. It is advised to go for a translation version of Thai contract into English before a native English teacher signs that.
Before you sign a formal contract you can even go for a negotiation of the terms and conditions if you do not agree with some. You can have a fair deal with discussion. Get to know about usual features of teaching agreements in Thailand from Thai community before you put your signature. The local Thai teachers can assist you on this issue. They can provide you details on
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The usual teaching duration in a week and the rate of pay for that
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School assistance regarding visa and work permit
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School assistance regarding flight stipend or air fare going back home
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Housing allowance by the school (In Thailand you can expect to get any one of the two, either financial assistance or other kind of assistance like helping you to find a decent house at a fair rate.)
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Usual teaching hour in a day
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Whether Saturdays are holiday or not
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How can you manage your time to take out time for private students?
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The class you are expected to teach
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Whether teaching materials are provided or not (some do not provide teaching materials as they are more concerned about money making rather than education)
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Whether private tuitions are allowed in the hours when you are not working for the school (many teachers opt for one- on- one tutoring as the rate of teaching is pretty high in Thailand to manage the cost of living)
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Whether vacation time is allowed or not and if it is allowed, then, what is the scheduled time for that?
