Contract Teaching at a University
The working conditions of foreign teachers at Taiwan universities can vary enormously. One aspect of teaching at universities that I have not mentioned is contract teaching. Some universities hire teachers through agents or by contracting through bushibans. These jobs are quite different from the ones I have so far described.
Contract teachers do not teach for the school and do not receive the benefits of teachers employed by the school. For example, one teacher I recently met is working at Jin Wen Institute of Technology
http://www.edu.tw/bicer/english/jinwen.htm
Back in 2001, Jin Wen was involved in a controversial scandal involving prominent politicians and alleged gangsters.
http://users2.ev1.net/~turton/college01.html
http://taipeitimes.com/News/local/archives/2001/04/11/81224
All of this has been cleared up by the MOE, and the school is back in operation under legitimate leadership. Nevertheless, at least some of the teaching is being done by teachers contracted from other employers. The teacher I spoke to was employed by an agent who seemed to be operating without a company name. It was not clear to me whether or not this person was working legally. He reported that he was being paid nt$750/hr for 20 hours a week, but this had no benefits, no sick days, and no paid holidays attached.
The teacher pointed out that the students in his class are less than ideal. The classes are very large and the school does not provide strong support in terms of facilities, equipment, and books. He claimed that he was assigned an English picture dictionary as the textbook. Discipline is quite a problem. He reported that previous teachers had quit this position because students were too rough to teach. He is very tall and told me that at times, he has had to use corporeal punishment to control the students.
Not all contract teaching would be under such conditions. I have been told about contract positions at other schools with stronger reputations, better students, and higher pay. Nevertheless, this job highlights the conditions of all jobs like this; they are temporary and subject to the whims of the many parties involved. They can be useful as stable, but temporary sources of work while teachers are looking for more long-term employment.
10:33:58 PM 
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