No boundaries - and a $ 100 charge seen on a contract "4 the Police"

If that room (office) is given by your boss, then he can enter any time without a prior notice 
Anyway it's polite to knock before enter. If you are in Vietnam, then just forget the 'polite' thing.
I don't think yours is a valid contract. Better you should ask for clarification or consult someone before sign any documents if it is in Vietnamese language.
Don't even dream about a litigation if you want to save your time, money and moreover peace!
Of course there is labor laws and courts 

hs0zfe wrote:

So I've got this small roon at the workplace. The boss doesn't respect my privacy and just walks in whenever he feels like it. Is this customary?.

I wouldn't label that as customary, but it is well within the norm.  A lot of the managers are megalomaniacs that will do as they please, especially if they think their actions will get under your skin.

hs0zfe wrote:

Yesterday, I was given a 3 page contract in Vietnamese to sign. It bore a pasage about $ 100 printed in bold letters. I made inquiries and was told this is just for the Police and  n o t  the real contract I will be getting. Mmm. It would have been nice to state little things like the rent for the room up front.

Did they provide a copy that was translated?  I wouldn't sign it without one that has the "official", round stamp on it.

hs0zfe wrote:

The Police is handling Immigration as well? Just wondering!

Ir's been over 20 years since I lived/was stationed in/occupied Germany, so I'm not sure of who it is that handles immigration there.  I only had minor dealings with them anyway, since I was there with my uncle (Sam). 

In America, immigration is handled by the police as well. we just call them ICE/the Department of Homeland Security/the goon squad, etc.  There's a far better chance that a person's door will be kicked in at zero-dark-thirty by the cops, or by criminals in the US, than there is here.

hs0zfe wrote:

Another school made me pay 1.6 M D for the repair of some Yamaha Nuovo. They didn't have the hours needed and the whole thing was a set up AFAIK. One is born every minute, rigth?!  .

There's not much you can do, other than demand the money be paid, then make yourself a nuisance if they don't.  I have managed to successfully collect by parking my rear-end in an accountants office and running through all of the ringtones on my phone non-stop.  They caved after 10 minutes..

At another I employed Mr. Slim Whitman, who yielded quicker results (5 minutes).  These people are pretty tough...

hs0zfe wrote:

In a worst case scenario, is there a place which is regulating language schools? Is there a Labour Court? Just wondering - am not planning on playing the let's-sue-each-other game.

There is, but you'd probably lose...even if you did win.

The Cong An, dressed in their baggy green uniforms, are used for almost everything. The thing is you have to be able to read their insignia to understand what type of the Peoples Police you are dealing with.

If this is 'not  the real contract' just have someone like your wife to sign - then you can deny it.

Remember, if you are unhappy with your terms of employment, you can always move to another country. Invoking the terms of the Labour Law will make the authorities question why are you here.

There are few quality controls of language schools and the VN governments (it's a provincial thing) are too busy keeping the State school system in line.

The attitude is that if Foreigners want to pay for education, it is up to them to pick a reliable school. This lack of supervision is how 'carpetbaggers' can just set up a school, grab student's money, then disappear.

Just read the  T & C's of one. Note all the 'outs' and how they can keep the students money.

I always sign VN documents, including police statements, with a poorly written 'I don't understand'. It was held in court to be an invalid signature.

Jaitch wrote:

The Cong An, dressed in their baggy green uniforms, are used for almost everything. The thing is you have to be able to read their insignia to understand what type of the Peoples Police you are dealing with.

If this is 'not  the real contract' just have someone like your wife to sign - then you can deny it.

Remember, if you are unhappy with your terms of employment, you can always move to another country. Invoking the terms of the Labour Law will make the authorities question why are you here.

There are few quality controls of language schools and the VN governments (it's a provincial thing) are too busy keeping the State school system in line.

The attitude is that if Foreigners want to pay for education, it is up to them to pick a reliable school. This lack of supervision is how 'carpetbaggers' can just set up a school, grab student's money, then disappear.

Just read the  T & C's of one. Note all the 'outs' and how they can keep the students money.

I always sign VN documents, including police statements, with a poorly written 'I don't understand'. It was held in court to be an invalid signature.

Whoa! Thanks for taking the time to shed some light on this...

HI!

1. Many companies try to avoid paying tax. They'll have 2 contracts, one for Tax Department, one for the labor. Make you if you don't have offer letter, you must have English contract. In English contract, make sure the salary written in VND (and it's equivalent to USD or "based on present exchange rate issued by National bank) or they will be illegal. In fact, you need only offer letter to sue them in case anything happen (it should be written in English with the real salary in VND & equivalent USD). It should be signed before the date of the Vietnamese contract. On the other hand, it's always good to ask them the English translation notarized with the schools' stamp of Vietnamese contract.
Anyway, they won't risk their business to cheat you with a little money comparing to the money they have to give to Economic Police in case their institute being investigated.

2. We normally don't even have a private working place, only senior managers. Just politely ask your boss to knock the door next time. Remember to keep a nice smile on your face! Be patient & nice, you will get used to some things here while making people get used to your way. Sometimes they may forget but don't worry! They are Vietnamese, and they know you are foreigners.

3. My advise is always making with some good local friends who can tell you exactly what to do & where to go, for example to get your Yamaha Nouvo done. Btw, it's not a high price if they get it done in real Yamaha's service store.
Please remember that not all Vietnamese always try to cheat foreigners! We are not cheaters. They might want to get your bike to Yamaha's service stores (higher price for authentic spare parts, not stolen or Chinese stuffs).
And, again, please help yourself by helping them to remind them that "They need to tell you how long in advance to do something".

4. We have an organization called Education Department to control everything regarding to education. Unfortunately they're too busy to do their jobs. That's why many foreigners think they can be teacher because they can speak English, not mentioning about native or not speakers.
Just say that you will give all evidences to Police, they will tell you to sit down to negotiate. In worst case, come to mass media, reporters're always hungry for interesting stories. They'll blow everything up and Police will come. Don't mind to play "let's-sue-each-other-game"! It won't work! This department will say they're not authorized to do that and point you to another. Then the other will say they're not responsible & point you to the other one, until you see you are standing at the first place you come.

I don't think Jaitch's handwriting is a good idea cause there're many cases in which they use that invalid signature to fight against you.

Scarletvn wrote:

I don't think Jaitch's handwriting is a good idea cause there're many cases in which they use that invalid signature to fight against you.

Used it for years and it even ended up in People's Court once. The judge said that if a contract or statement is in a language that is not understood by the person signing it - it has no validity!

Remember - it's not a signature rather than a statement that you don't understand it.

ScarletVNL VN is full of bureaucracy, totally unnecessary procedures but they have a hole, a box, on a form and it must be filled.

Yesterday I went to an Agribank to put a whole bunch of cash in to my account after being paid for a contract. The woman (teller) got all wound up when I said I never carry ID or a passport (as demanded by the deposit slip) or the passport number of my company (as demanded by the deposit slip)! Foreigners are not required to carry ID by the VN government. And companies don't have passports, either.

Then she said I must only fill the slip in using a blue pen. I told her to go to hell (she spoke good English). Then, after a minute, she said I must sign the damn form - so I did my unreadable squiggle and she said she couldn't read it. For technical reasons red is the best colour to use for FAX or photocopiers.

At this point I called my friendly bank manager in BMT and asked him to sort the stupidity out. He called the branch I was in and a minute later all the woman's imaginary problems disappeared.

Your signature is your personal property and no one can tell you what to do with it. And the fact someone can't recognise the characters in my signature has absolutely no affect up in the validity of it. Even an X can be a valid signature. And only stupid people sign things they don't understand.

Jaitch wrote:

The Cong An, dressed in their baggy green uniforms, are used for almost everything. The thing is you have to be able to read their insignia to understand what type of the Peoples Police you are dealing with.

Here's a nice collection of police and armed forces insignia: http://www.uniforminsignia.org/index.ph … rch_id=top

charmavietnam wrote:

If that room (office) is given by your boss, then he can enter any time without a prior notice  It's a small room with a bed and one chair. I'm being charged $ 100 for it. That's why I felt like a young soldier having the Drill Sargeant come in for an inspection. (Must be hereditary - my grandfather got into trouble for affixing a button with a match in WW I. But then he was a musician and hadn't fired a single shot.
Anyway it's polite to knock before enter. If you are in Vietnam, then just forget the 'polite' thing.
I don't think yours is a valid contract. Better you should ask for clarification or consult someone before sign any documents if it is in Vietnamese language. Got that - but a friend says the English and Vietnamese parts don't match. Besides, some very self-centered child appears to be the author of the "contract".    Okay, they can fire me at any time. But there is not a word about a day off, notice period, health insurance, taxes or any rights an employee might have. Except $ 12 overtime when there is >30 hours of work a week. ** The part where it says "no pay until 45 days were worked" needs to be amended or I'll be voting with my feet.

Am not getting it, TBH. They are profitable and bills might as well get paid asap. Delaying the inevitable won't bring huge benefits. Or am I missing something?
Don't even dream about a litigation if you want to save your time, money and moreover peace!
Of course there is labor laws and courts 

I hear you. ** What's the law, theoretically? A friend quit after not getting paid for months

[color=#D0382E]Is there some kind of a rule when a salary needs to be paid? Or can employers do as they please? (My friend quit and now hopes that she will get paid in full one day. Her company is needing cash for some business project.

As a former manager, I would expect to get into hot water when I'm not taking care of the payroll.  [/color]

@hs0zfe
You sounds like working in a frustrating environment.
- Door knocking. It's not entirely a taught behaviour from kindergarten to Uni. I only do it because I was taught well, but that make me notice the behaviour is not widely used. While the boss looks like a prick for not knocking, be prepared that he will keep on forgetting that
- Money. Read your posts in other threads. If the place is really profitable, and they missed your pay... it's likely the boss has another business and they funnel the money over there. Banking money to get interest, only chum would do it. In the north, I would expect that business avoid that sort of shenanigans because it provide opportunities for police or officials to shake them down due to that fault. I dont know about the south, though.
- Bike repair. The number doesnt sound too inflated if the bike was in need of serious repair and new parts. On the other hand, I always repair in official dealership to avoid haggling so I might had to overpay...
- About polices. There are many kinds of polices that you might have encountered working in VN. Notably: the local police work out of a local station (phuong). A person work outside of their registered home is expected to deal with them to register that you temporarily live there.... money. The local police of higher rung (quan/district or thanh pho/tinh/province) will deal mostly with business and not you personally at all in normal day life. Business may pay them, not you. Sometimes the CA phuong of your employer may try to shake you down through your company. A good staff will know ways to deal with it smoothly and less costly.
  + From your complaints, I doubt your employer has staff of that caliber.

- The thing is, you dont use the court to scare people in Vietnam. Court is only for serious business with time and money to throw out the windows. No no, you need to scare people with the opportunities that police and government agencies will shake THEM down for THEIR fault toward you. "If you dont pay me I will post on tax people's facebook so they will know to shake you down for this error!" is my 2 cent in this matter.

Much appreciated - I'm a babe in the woods as far as certain things are concerned. Like paying to get a job (this applies to Vietnamese teachers). One is desperate to get her 5 M back    I wouldn't hold my breath. But then, today some 8 guys in suits showed up. They appeared to interrogate the boss and videotape it.

There has been some success as I managed to reduce the unpaid amount for bus tickets by 40,000 Dong 

Oh, and the officers clearly objected to the stench and for the first time in weeks, the pigsty was cleaned and the smell is much less offensive 

What an idea, to keep a pig in a place of business. Save $ 50 on porc chops, lose thousands in goodwill.

One thing I'm realizing is that small language centers operate in certain ways and that the next center might be worse. Am working on acceptance - hope to reach that state some time soon. Life's too short to sweat every thing...

Thing is, and I hesitate to say the following, this state of wild and wooly educational business may only work in the south where things are loosened much. There simply are not enough checks and balances in the far frontier.

The north and centre is much tighter, due to closer to the bureaucratic capital that is hanoi. While I never heard of a  language center as bad as you work for. exist in the north or center, I also can not imagine a center employed foreigners would get to that level. Seriously.

In Hanoi, a foreign teacher like you never get to that level of frustration. i think the problem in on our side, that is how to keep the teachers, and prevent them from jumping onto better wagons.

laclongquan_travel wrote:

Thing is, and I hesitate to say the following, this state of wild and wooly educational business may only work in the south where things are loosened much. There simply are not enough checks and balances in the far frontier.

The north and centre is much tighter, due to closer to the bureaucratic capital that is hanoi. While I never heard of a  language center as bad as you work for. exist in the north or center, I also can not imagine a center employed foreigners would get to that level. Seriously.

In Hanoi, a foreign teacher like you never get to that level of frustration. i think the problem in on our side, that is how to keep the teachers, and prevent them from jumping onto better wagons.

And I always thought Hanoi was the "overall" problem. Joking aside, it has been a long time since I heard this kind and amount of nonsense, last time probably was when I was in Hanoi. Oh yeah, in Hanoi there is no problem, no corruption, nothings wrong etc, etc, (you exported all down south, to the FAR FRONTIER, right?).

Does that strike your nerves, that you have to hyperbole everything else?

Does that make your shoulder stiff, your neck bare, you want to butt your forehead forward?

Never fear that I dont know what's the problem of Hanoi is. The market, generally, is cautious. New, doesnt necessarily mean it will be good in long term. Being new doesnt bring with it any special advantage in customer's minds. Its hard to try anything new here, and it's better to do it down south.

The problem of being bureaucratic capital or near here, is that you have a bundle of documents to hand to various governmental offices anytime you want to try anything. Every tiny thing, really. And of course, lots of red tapes. Even with bribery, red tapes mean things simply cant go fast. Luckily for foreigners, lots of those headaches can be handled by your employers

The problem of HCMC people is that you are too self-conscious. Being the far frontier doesnt mean its' bad the way you think it. Ever heard of the phrase "the far frontier of space/science/etc..."? I suppose you not ever heard of it, considering the number of HCMC people behaved the ways you did.