How Much Do Recruitment Agencies Take Out Your Wage?

[Martin54]

Hi I would just like to know how much recuitment agencies earn from organizing your placement?

[Thongkorn]

Hi I would just like to know how much recuitment agencies earn from organizing your placement?

Depends on Who you are what you do ,And where. Some take 30p an Hour, some take pounds depending on whay your trade is , ether way they are pimps , they only want to earn money off your skills ,I know because i have worked for one for 8/9 years yes i know,"why" , because it suits me i can have time off to go to Thailand .The European courts are trying to give Agencies the same rights as full time Employment people. I have been tempary permanate for 8/9 years. work that out ,and there is no end in site for me unless i die or get another job.

[Martin54]

I was thinking about TEFL (english teaching agencies) Do you think it would be around 5% 10%?

[Norrad]

In Thailand it is closer to 30% they take from your salary. Most agencies will not sign a contract with a school for less than 45000 per month, from that they pay their teachers 30000 per month. At least that's how they start off. The teachers salary may increase over time to about 35000 per month.

[PeaceBlondie]

TEFL Agencies are businesses which perform services for schools and teachers, each of whom pay a commission.

[Loaded]

In Thailand it is closer to 30% they take from your salary. Most agencies will not sign a contract with a school for less than 45000 per month, from that they pay their teachers 30000 per month. At least that's how they start off. The teachers salary may increase over time to about 35000 per month.

Can you give a source for these 'statistics'?

[Martin54]

Thats dam_n high if right

[Norrad]

Can you give a source for these 'statistics'?

My brother in law runs a teacher agency, so I have some insider info.

Also there is a very interesting thread over on Ajarn Forum where someone who runs a teacher recruitment agency reveals his take.

ajarnforum.net/vb/the-staffroom/41028-slagging-your-employers-2.html#post1207145"]http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/the-staffroom...tml#post1207145[/url

[jaiyenyen]

I get paid 38,000 baht a month by my agency. The school pays them 54,000 baht a month.

[otherstuff1957]

Most agencies are not set up like recruiters, who place people in jobs for a fee or for a percentage of their salary for a fixed period of time. Most agencies here are more like Temp agencies back in the US. In other words, they hire you directly and then resell your services to a third party (usually a school). A 20-30% difference between your pay and the school's fee in not unusual. Remember, that this 20-30% is income, not profit, until an agency has more than 20 teachers working for them, their operating costs eat up most of their income.

So, why don't the schools hire teachers directly? Some do, but the ones that don't have reasons that make sense, at least to them.

First of all, Thais have a lot of trouble telling a 'good Farang' from a 'bad Farang'. If the school hired a teacher and he was unreliable or couldn't teach, the person hiring him would lose face (plus the school would lose time & money!). If an agency teacher is no good, they will just tell the agency to send another.

Then there are kickbacks. An agency will give gifts & often money to the teacher at the school who is responsible for hiring Farang teachers. Obviously, the Farang teacher that is hired directly isn't going to give anything to the Thai Dept. Head!

So, as long as new teachers need help finding a job and as long as schools find it easier to just call an agency, they will still exist.

Edited October 7, 2009 by otherstuff1957

[Martian]

It shouldn't be looked at as "taking from your salary" as it is more of a premium that schools pay. As long as your salary is commensurate with other teachers in like schools in your area, then it isn't coming out of your salary. You normally would never be offered a salary equal to what a school pays an agency for teacher placement....it's a whole different scenario.

[way2muchcoffee]

I worked for an agency several years ago. At the time my net salary was 37k. The agency received only 5k per month. Of course the only service they performed was to come pick up my salary on payday, take it back to their office, take their cut, then wait for me to arrive to pick up my share. Oh, also they made the initial introduction. After 1 year I was able to leave the agency and become a direct hire for the school, whereupon my salary increased about 8k per month. I remained another 2 years. By they end I as earning 54k per month. Fair or not fair is irrelevant. I signed with the agency. They got their 60k. I got a job. There were no illusions or pretenses on either side.

I have used another agency for tutoring gigs. They state flatly 60% to the tutor, 40% to the company. Take it or leave it. They also make no claims or pretenses. They will assess the wealth of each potential customer an quote them the highest rate they can get away with. Depending on the subject and the level the teachers get between 500 and 1000 bt per hour. Not bad, at least on the top end.

I like the way these companies did/do business. They state everything up front then give you a choice. Period. They provide a service and can expect compensation. There is overhead, clerical salaries, rents, taxes etc, that they are liable for.

There is huge variation between agencies, however, and many are less than scrupulous. These ones should be avoided.

[Ijustwannateach]

I've never worked full-time for an agency, though I have known some who did and were semi-satisfied. It's a good place to start if you haven't been doing TEFL before, but I would hope that most people would eventually branch out and find their own way once they've had some experience and built up their confidence.