No movement or even decrease in salaries in last 10+ years

[ESLTeacher1989]

After COVID.......... It seems more and more common for government schools to offer even LOWER salaries now to NES 30,000-35,000 baht .........Maybe 40k if you're lucky and only in Bangkok..........

 

Even Government Schools  in Phuket/ (Universities who have the contracts) have decreased their salaries for the teachers from like 40-45k > to around 35k-38k.................

 

Yet most things including food and utilities have doubled in price over the last 10 years ,  Food, Petrol , Most 7 eleven items etc etc

 

I wish there were unions or some sort of legislation giving NES Teachers a minimum - lowest starting salary (40k baht, should be the bare minimum in today financial conditions)

 

Thailand teachers pay sucks so bad compared to Vietnam, china , south korea etc

[Lemsta69]

I think the universe is trying to tell you something...

[HuskerDo2]

Time to find a new career maybe. You could transition to another career easily from a teaching career with just a small amount of training or schooling. It's worth checking out.

[atpeace]

I wondered about this myself.  I have friends in the industry and the wages seem to be flat.  Have prices doubled?  IMO, not even close.  Most things I buy are roughly the same price they were 10 years ago.  This goes for homes, rents or a box of cereal.  Thailand hasn't experience the inflation that is rampant in developed nations.

[ESLTeacher1989]

25 minutes ago, atpeace said:

I wondered about this myself.  I have friends in the industry and the wages seem to be flat.  Have prices doubled?  IMO, not even close.  Most things I buy are roughly the same price they were 10 years ago.  This goes for homes, rents or a box of cereal.  Thailand hasn't experience the inflation that is rampant in developed nations.

Not true........Some things that I buy regularly have nearly doubled in price 

 

-Pepsi max big bottle used to big 20 baht 5 years ago, now 45 baht

 

-Price of 15 eggs  - 5 years ago around 50 baht..............now its 80 baht?

 

-Gasoline in thailand has doubled in price from 5 years ago

 

-Return Airfares home are probably now a whole months salary (40k baht, before 20k baht return was doable to UK)

 

-Salmon used to be 400 baht kg/ Now its 800 baht/kg

 

----Nearly every has increased at least 10% in priced id say.............but some things up to 50%.........Wages have not increased atoll and actually decreased mostly

[JeffersLos]

18 minutes ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

Wages have not increased atoll

I think I can see why you're only worth 40k a month. 

[ChaiyaTH]

This is the same anywhere in the world, the money supply is basically double of what it was, wages the same. But if your argument is to have such little raise, it is kind of pointless. It has more to do with yourself actually.

I met so many teachers, some are lazy and expect it to be given. Others are clever and have some kids to teach after school for 500-1000 baht 1-2 hours ( X 2 kids). Or by also having a few hours remote teaching work. Endless options right.

If they wanted to have proper education here, they could have done that 10 years ago already. It is not by accident but by design.

 

Not sure about your age or if you are stuck here because of reasons, but if I was a teacher, I'd be long gone doing so in Vietnam. You could build a network and perhaps over time still get back here, teaching, while having remote vietnam clients for some hours. Or by going to China. But more chance i would change career gradually.

[ESLTeacher1989]

1 minute ago, JeffersLos said:

I think I can see why you're only worth 40k a month. 

Oh look Suprise Suprise, Cue the know - it - all English Teacher who wants perfect grammar for every sentence written in haste on an internet forum - give it rest!, and by the way - I am a science teacher .......not an English teacher

[ChaiyaTH]

2 minutes ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

Oh look Suprise Suprise, Cue the know - it - all English Teacher who wants perfect grammar for every sentence written in haste on an internet forum - give it rest!, and by the way - I am a science teacher .......not an English teacher

Just ignore that comment, these are usually native English speakers who forget how bad language is doing in their own country (while speaking only english lol).

 

Many asian countries score really high on grammar and all that too, but they can't hold a normal conversation. My grammar sucks but I speak fluent, as a third language.

[ESLTeacher1989]

4 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

This is the same anywhere in the world, the money supply is basically double of what it was, wages the same. But if your argument is to have such little raise, it is kind of pointless. It has more to do with yourself actually.

I met so many teachers, some are lazy and expect it to be given. Others are clever and have some kids to teach after school for 500-1000 baht 1-2 hours ( X 2 kids). Or by also having a few hours remote teaching work. Endless options right.

If they wanted to have proper education here, they could have done that 10 years ago already. It is not by accident but by design.

true but UK minimum wage has increased from £5 an hour to £10 an hour for over 25's over the last 5-10 years

[ChaiyaTH]

BTW, before I forget, you now talk about teaching but actually everyone is in the same boat. Even I earn near 3x your quoted figures, we can all feel that we do way less with the same budget than before.

[ChaiyaTH]

2 minutes ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

true but UK minimum wage has increased from £5 an hour to £10 an hour for over 25's over the last 5-10 years

What are you even trying to say, the 5 figure was backdated, aside of that, the cost of living was high in the west 10 years ago too.  They also increased minimum wage here, before the 30-40K was normal, plenty would do it for as little as 20K. Many still do it for 25K without a work permit. But they have hustles on the side too.

[ChaiyaTH]

 

[ESLTeacher1989]

10 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

 

I guess the question people ponder is how can poorer countries and much less developed countires of Myanmar and Vietnam (Which are also more military/communist/strict countries) offer 2 x twice the salary than thailand.

 

 

[problemfarang]

the thing is you are not a gold. thats the first thing you need to understand.

what i mean is if you leave the job for some reason there are 1million other farangs waiting for your job. 

so, you like or not what they pay you, they dont care. quality is not important for thai education. your face, you are handsome or not, students like you.. these things are important. Education in thailand is a big money business. 

 

now think like this... if i can replace you with other 1 million hungry for job farangs, why i pay you big money? especially you are not even trained to be a teacher. just come to thailand and want to teach english because your mother language is english but it doesnt makes you qualified teacher. so... thia mentality says: why i pay more money then i have to, to this guy. if he accepts ok if not.. i have another 1 million in queue.. one of them will accept for sure. this is your answer.

 

i think all farang teachers in thailand already know that you are a d o g but nothing more. youa re at the bottom. you are nothing and have no importance. and actually they hate you. many thai teachers think you get more salary then them and its not fair for them. even a thai english teacher who cannot say good morning thinks its not fair. 

 

what can change this. only one thing. all.. and yes i mean all farang teachers must stop working at the same time. ALL OF THEM IN THAILAND. and say we dont accept this anymore. make our salaries as thais or this is it. im so serious. ALL must do this. this can be done? NO because no have balls. farangs cannot do that. 

 

PS: i just remembered something i want to add. I have a british friend who is a teacher. he is teaching at this school for 5 years and he still gets the same salary. 35K. a new graduated teacher started as the same time with him (thai) and now shes getting almost same salary as him. i think 2000 less then him. 

 

 

[alex8912]

7 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

I guess the question people ponder is how can poorer countries and much less developed countires of Myanmar and Vietnam (Which are also more military/communist/strict countries) offer 2 x twice the salary than thailand.

 

 

Because they have students who want to excel in the world. That is the reason. 

[youreavinalaff]

7 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

I guess the question people ponder is how can poorer countries and much less developed countires of Myanmar and Vietnam (Which are also more military/communist/strict countries) offer 2 x twice the salary than thailand.

 

 

Simple economics.

 

Supply and demand.

[kingstonkid]

9 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

Not true........Some things that I buy regularly have nearly doubled in price 

 

-Pepsi max big bottle used to big 20 baht 5 years ago, now 45 baht

 

-Price of 15 eggs  - 5 years ago around 50 baht..............now its 80 baht?

 

-Gasoline in thailand has doubled in price from 5 years ago

 

-Return Airfares home are probably now a whole months salary (40k baht, before 20k baht return was doable to UK)

 

-Salmon used to be 400 baht kg/ Now its 800 baht/kg

 

----Nearly every has increased at least 10% in priced id say.............but some things up to 50%.........Wages have not increased atoll and actually decreased mostly

First if you think you have it bad talk to the Thai teachers.  As to NES teachers it is supply and demand.

 

Just as you stated costs have gone up for everything including for the schools

 

Most schools have a pay scale once you hit the top that is it.

 

Not that long ago people were getting 25 a month in some school's 

[recom273]

Actually, I have been surprised how wages have risen recently.

 

My friends tell me that they are working agency jobs for around 40K, some are non-degree holders and have been avoiding the teachers permit waiver. I still don't think it's enough to compete with inflation, and the added complications from kurusapa. I don't think its enough to encourage me to return. 

 

I see a rise in NNES positions available on fb at still horrendously low figures, and university gigs have always been low paid but with free accommodation and a very light work schedule.

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

7 hours ago, problemfarang said:

i just remembered something i want to add. I have a british friend who is a teacher. he is teaching at this school for 5 years and he still gets the same salary. 35K.

You'll rarely get a raise, if any a small one, by staying at the same school. The way to move up is by always looking for new opportunies, making connections, leveraging the experience you've gained, to negotiate a higher salary at new schools.

 

The Thais like most Asians are negotiators. Quite often, especially for extra things like English camps, if you ask them "how much will you pay?", they'll come back at you with "how much do you want?" It's then up to you to leverage yourself, not asking for too much, nor too little.

 

My salary journey:

1. Nearly 10 years ago, a small thesaban, or municipal school. The lowest level, basically a daycare center - 26, then 28k.

2. A larger, more regular school - 30k

3. Biggest school in a provincial capital - 34k

4. Private school in BKK. Horrible place, only did a year. They were awfully interested in STEM and Elon Musk. Best thing for him to do with them would be blasting them out into space. - 60k

5. Now I've been back out in Issan at a public school for 40k. Took a salary cut, but it was worth regaining my sanity, and no longer dealing with the the daily BKK grind. I've also been teaching online to maintain my previous 60k income.

[BangkokReady]

14 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

Even Government Schools  in Phuket/ (Universities who have the contracts) have decreased their salaries for the teachers from like 40-45k > to around 35k-38k.................

 

Yet most things including food and utilities have doubled in price over the last 10 years ,  Food, Petrol , Most 7 eleven items etc etc

Prices have gone up so the real value of the money siphoned from teachers' salaries has gone down.  So they reduce the wage to increase the cut they get. ????‍♂️

[BangkokReady]

11 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

I met so many teachers, some are lazy and expect it to be given. Others are clever and have some kids to teach after school for 500-1000 baht 1-2 hours ( X 2 kids). Or by also having a few hours remote teaching work. Endless options right.

I don't think it is lazy to expect a living wage from a full time job.  It's great if some teachers want to make some extra money working during the evening and weekends, but a normal wage is a reasonable expectation from a full time job, and who wants to be doing that their whole life?

[BangkokReady]

11 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

I guess the question people ponder is how can poorer countries and much less developed countires of Myanmar and Vietnam (Which are also more military/communist/strict countries) offer 2 x twice the salary than thailand.

They're a lot more interested in creating a global workforce.  They see English, and education in general, as being the key to their populations future success.  I believe, perhaps assume, that the schools and agencies possibly don't syphon off as much of the teacher's pay either. 

 

Thailand doesn't appear to take education anywhere near as seriously.  It's a lot more about corruption and indoctrination.  They also don't have anywhere near as much of a global outlook.

[zyphodb]

11 hours ago, ESLTeacher1989 said:

I guess the question people ponder is how can poorer countries and much less developed countires of Myanmar and Vietnam (Which are also more military/communist/strict countries) offer 2 x twice the salary than thailand.

 

 

It's simple really, the other countries want their kids to learn English, Thailands Gov. doesn't want them to, an educated populace are far more likely to rise up, as they see how they're being treated by their rulers...

[sandyf]

12 hours ago, atpeace said:

I wondered about this myself.  I have friends in the industry and the wages seem to be flat.  Have prices doubled?  IMO, not even close.  Most things I buy are roughly the same price they were 10 years ago.  This goes for homes, rents or a box of cereal.  Thailand hasn't experience the inflation that is rampant in developed nations.

Every chance you will get some stick for the last sentence but I wouldn't disagree. Some things have gone up in price as a result of legislation, like the minimum wage, rather than inflation.

Here in Thailand, unlike some other countries, when prices are forced up they often come back down again. During the 2011 floods the distribution chain broke down and many prices went up significantly but returned to normal later.  My wife often refers to the price of eggs being like the US dollar.

[BangkokReady]

3 hours ago, kingstonkid said:

As to NES teachers it is supply and demand.

The problem with the "supply and demand" argument is when you get a good teacher who would like more money but supply and demand Thai style says: "Why would I pay a good teacher more money when I can pay a bad teacher the same?  All we care about is having a foreign person in front of the class and keeping a larger cut of the money."

 

So the good teacher goes elsewhere and the bad teacher comes.  Even if the bad teacher becomes a good teacher, they will then also want to move on. 

 

So either way the class is likely to have a bad teacher based on the level of salary, but the supply and demand argument still says this is fine and no one has any room to complain.

[matchar]

https://aseannow.com/topic/1279439-before-i-complain/?do=findComment&comment=17761609

 

The OP teaches science and believes the moon landings were faked, and he thinks it's okay to teach students that the Earth is flat.

 

I think I can see the correlation here between teachers' salaries and the quality of some teachers.

 

Unfortunately most schools here prioritise costs over quality of education.

[ESLTeacher1989]

1 hour ago, matchar said:

https://aseannow.com/topic/1279439-before-i-complain/?do=findComment&comment=17761609

 

The OP teaches science and believes the moon landings were faked, and he thinks it's okay to teach students that the Earth is flat.

 

I think I can see the correlation here between teachers' salaries and the quality of some teachers.

 

Unfortunately most schools here prioritise costs over quality of education.

Read my posts again, I NEVEr said I believed the Earth was flat,

 

What I said was- No one here can be 100% sure the Earth is round ........unless you've actually been up into outer orbit seen it with your very own eyes.

 

I or You can be 99% sure its round - with using scientific methodology that is round but never 100% sure. 

 

And as a science teacher I would obviously never teach my students the Earth is flat. 

 

But its always good to question reality. 

 

1) Do Governments Lie so suit their own agendas? Yes all the time.....About the Iraq War, etc 

 

2) Is Science Always The Right Or Correct Answer, No. Just look at the evidence coming out casting a negative light on the vaccines. Search Dr John Campbell on youtube who was an adamant supporter of vaccines no he seems extremely worried

 

3) Do I believe it was possible for NASA to land a huge rover on the Moon in 1969, beam back LIVE footage of the first steps on moon, have a launch vehicle able to rendezvous with the lunar module orbiting at 18,000mph...........

 

In the year 1969, when there's more computing power in your iphone than all the spacecraft of that era...........No........Simple impossible in my view.   Have you even seen the Artemis footage.......they can't even get a continuous live feed...........just low resolution 240p with a few seconds of blurred footage here and there 

[ESLTeacher1989]

1 hour ago, matchar said:

https://aseannow.com/topic/1279439-before-i-complain/?do=findComment&comment=17761609

 

The OP teaches science and believes the moon landings were faked, and he thinks it's okay to teach students that the Earth is flat.

 

I think I can see the correlation here between teachers' salaries and the quality of some teachers.

 

Unfortunately most schools here prioritise costs over quality of education.

Its true I think The Moon landings were faked in my opinion and millions of people around the world do also

 

Would I ever teach that the Moon landings were fake to my students, No.............because its just my opinion and I have no factual evidence to back up my claim. 

[d4dang]

14 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

This is the same anywhere in the world, the money supply is basically double of what it was, wages the same. But if your argument is to have such little raise, it is kind of pointless. It has more to do with yourself actually.

I met so many teachers, some are lazy and expect it to be given. Others are clever and have some kids to teach after school for 500-1000 baht 1-2 hours ( X 2 kids). Or by also having a few hours remote teaching work. Endless options right.

If they wanted to have proper education here, they could have done that 10 years ago already. It is not by accident but by design.

 

Not sure about your age or if you are stuck here because of reasons, but if I was a teacher, I'd be long gone doing so in Vietnam. You could build a network and perhaps over time still get back here, teaching, while having remote vietnam clients for some hours. Or by going to China. But more chance i would change career gradually.

Not China. Not during covid.