ARC expiration dates, cancellation of work, and school

[gurdenc]

Hello everyone,

I have an issue with my school. Some months ago they told me I would not have a new contract for the next year. So, I assumed that since the expiration on my ARC is august 31st, that I would have until then to take the necessary steps to procure another work permit/job. However, recently the school has said something along the lines of this

"It is illegal for us to keep the ARC until August if the teacher is not teaching in our school or on our pay roll. Unfortunately that means that we must cancel your ARC at the end of June. We will send a termination letter to the government on July 2nd. You will then have 15 days to apply for a new WPL, apply for your APRC or leave the country."

My question is, are they completely required to send that termination letter to the government by then? As I understand it, I should still be on their payroll until at least July 15th (for the June hours) so shouldn't the termination be after this? Also, could they just wait and inform the government in August or do they put themselves at risk by doing so? The school I work for tends to do things by the book, but for the last few months, they gave me the impression that I would have my ARC until August 31st and it is only with 2 weeks left in the year that I am being informed of this new information.

Is there anything I can do in the meantime to keep my ARC renewed while I pursue another work permit through another school or can my current school just postpone?

Any advice would be highly appreciated or information on what the school is legally required (or not) to do in these kinds of situations.

[Homey]

I highly doubt that legality has anything to do with it.

The date on your ARC should have been based on your contract/work permit. Not hiring you for another year is one thing, but it sounds to me like they are breaking your present contract. I don't understand how your ARC can expire on August 31, yet the cancellation of your work permit is going to be sent out on July 2. By cancelling your work permit while your still working there they are employing someone illegally without a work permit.

The "warm hearted" Taiwanese do all kinds of nasty evil things when it comes to ARC's, work permits and contracts. Illegal or not has nothing to do with it. The laws don't matter when they don't want them to matter. If they want to screw you, they are going to screw you. Even if it's clear beyond any doubt that a school has done something illegal, very little happens to them as a result. Meanwhile, your kicked out of the country and jobless.

I wish you the best of luck in dealing with this issue.

[gurdenc]

Well, the last day of the school year (for elementary students) is june 29th. After this they start summer classes. It seems like they are saying that because I do not have any official work through the school at that point, that they are required by law to cancel the ARC.

So you're saying that if my contract stipulates that I work until August (though I do not if there are no summer hours) that they can just leave the ARC be until then? I hope to get a response from the teacher who sent me the initial email so I can get more clarity. They want me to sign another "termination of contact" letter which I will hold off on until I can get some clearer answers from them.

Thanks for the info!

[CraigTPE]

At the end of the day, it's up to the employer. There is nothing to prevent them from either leaving you on their books until the expiration of your contract, or filing paperwork to terminate the contract.

My impression, though, is most employers (and maybe even the government officials they work with) are clear on the rules, or have different interpretations.

However, in my own discussions with my employer about my upcoming move to Cambodia, there seems to be some issue of the number of foreign teachers can have on their books, a quota perhaps that has some relationship with the amount of revenue the school earns. If that's true, maybe your school is at it's quota, needs to hire a new teacher to replace you, and therefore needs to get you off their books.

[cfimages]

Did you start working before you had your ARC in hand? I could easily see how a teacher could sign a contract and start work, and only after that the school begin the process to obtain your work permit and ARC. Then, there'd be a gap between the finishing of your contract and the expiry of your ARC.

[housecat]

Your ARC is based on your work permit. If the school cancles your work permit, then you ARC isn't valid. You usually have about two weeks between work permit cancelation and when you're told to leave--but there's no way to know exactly about this as it just depends on how fast someone is stamping paperwork. If you can get hired again within that time, you'll be okay.

You're school isn't required to cancel your permit at any given date. If you don't have work beyond the end of June, they want you gone because they are likely only authorized to hire a fixed number of foreigners, and they'd like to hire someone else. Also, if they're very by the book, they will be liable for any taxes you should have earned between July and the end of your ARC validation, so they may also want you off the financial books for this reason.

And as others have said, it really wouldn't matter if it were fair or not. But your bosses sound like they're trying to be honest with you, at least from what you've written here.

There're other jobs out there, but you need to hustle a bit. Good luck.