300,000 Baht Backhander To Secure A Job Teaching

[otherstuff1957]

I asked my wife about this and her first question was "Is this for a government school?". Once I told her that is was, she said that she thought that it sounded too high. For most government schools teachers only have to pay 100,000 to 150,000 to get a job.

[engrin]

only passing the kids who take after hours tutoring etc. will be how the money is recouped.

[Mario2008]

Never heard of people paying money to get a teaching job, but did hear of money being paid to change schools. Normally 100,000 baht or more.

Changing schools is often the problem, as one needs to have a good job. I also heard that some people very close to retirement offer to change schools with someone who want to teach at their school for money.

[Berkshire]

News to me. Have never seen or heard of anyone having to pay to secure a job in Thailand. Very odd.

Is this post intentionally designed to bait or are you truly unaware of what happens around you.

Any job on offer were it is possible to make money over and above the salary carries a price tag.

I know two Thai men here who had to pay 20k Baht each just to get a job on Garbage Collection.

I'm around working professionals all day long, every day. Never heard of paying to get a job. I've heard of certain police paying to get certain choice assignments, but even then, I've just "heard." Perhaps it's going on, but the logic defies me. So who gets the money, exactly? Just one person, or is there a consortium? What happens if you leave the job? Partial refund? Does every single govt' employee have to pay? If so, I'd imagine someone is making a sh*tload of money...if it's 300K per person as the OP suggested. Anyways, it's comical to me that the farangs here will believe anything that another farang suggests about a Thai without one shred of evidence.

[otherstuff1957]

^ Take a look at the houses and cars owned by senior civil servants (including school directors). That should tell you where the money is going.

My wife's father was s civil servant (malaria control officer with the MOH) who prided himself on his honesty. He was proud to say that he never took a bribe in his life. Needless to say that none of his children could afford to go to university and he died a poor man.

[wolf5370]

Give her 15,000 a month out of your pocket, you will be way in front

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God gave man a penis and a brain, unfortunately, did not give sufficient blood supply to run both at the same time.

One has to consider the fringe benefits too - pension, free schooling in the school for offspring (if private), micical, and potential earnings from private tuition. Also some schools, even int he state system, are considered better than others - for career development it's possibly a good investment to get a good school on your CV (start half way up the hill instead of the bottom).

[Thaddeus]

News to me. Have never seen or heard of anyone having to pay to secure a job in Thailand. Very odd.

Is this post intentionally designed to bait or are you truly unaware of what happens around you.

Any job on offer were it is possible to make money over and above the salary carries a price tag.

I know two Thai men here who had to pay 20k Baht each just to get a job on Garbage Collection.

I'm around working professionals all day long, every day. Never heard of paying to get a job. I've heard of certain police paying to get certain choice assignments, but even then, I've just "heard." Perhaps it's going on, but the logic defies me. So who gets the money, exactly? Just one person, or is there a consortium? What happens if you leave the job? Partial refund? Does every single govt' employee have to pay? If so, I'd imagine someone is making a sh*tload of money...if it's 300K per person as the OP suggested. Anyways, it's comical to me that the farangs here will believe anything that another farang suggests about a Thai without one shred of evidence.

That information came to me from a Thai, and I know of others, all info from Thais.

[SlyAnimal]

Yes it's normal practice, but she shouldn't need to do it, unless she's going for a position which she wouldn't have a chance in hell of getting otherwise.

There are plenty of jobs which are available, without the need for paying money, particularly if she knows someone inside the school already. e.g. my gf was offered a job teaching at my school, without even asking, likewise her friends have been offered jobs there simply because their parents are teachers. Unfortunately, all of them used to attend the school prior to university, so feel weird teaching together with their ex teachers etc, so turned down the jobs though lol.

If she's well qualified and a good teacher, she can get a job easily anyway, although admittedly it might be more difficult to choose the exact school without bribery since they might not have a position available at present (Or might need to fill a spot for someone else who wants to bribe them).

Edited February 24, 2012 by SlyAnimal

[culicine]

The statistics don't add up. How many years will she have to work to recover that kind of money? It only makes sense when paying for a position that will ultimately pay you back a lot and fast...most politicians pay for heir positions for example, as they will then have access to unlimited finds.

[Berkshire]

I'm around working professionals all day long, every day. Never heard of paying to get a job. I've heard of certain police paying to get certain choice assignments, but even then, I've just "heard." Perhaps it's going on, but the logic defies me. So who gets the money, exactly? Just one person, or is there a consortium? What happens if you leave the job? Partial refund? Does every single govt' employee have to pay? If so, I'd imagine someone is making a sh*tload of money...if it's 300K per person as the OP suggested. Anyways, it's comical to me that the farangs here will believe anything that another farang suggests about a Thai without one shred of evidence.

That information came to me from a Thai, and I know of others, all info from Thais.

The logic still perplexes me. Perhaps the OP's wife did come to him for 300K, insisting that it's to secure a job. But what's more believable?

1. Having to pay the equivalent of nearly two years salary to secure a mediocre teaching job where she can be laid-off or fired at any time.

or

2. Supposing, just supposing, the OP's wife needed money for her family but knew the OP wouldn't give it up. This scheme is perfect. If he agreed to pay, she knows that he wouldn't be able to talk to the nameless/faceless guy that she allegedly paid. No receipts. No messy audit trail. And on top of that, her family wouldn't owe him any favors, i.e., no having to "worship the ground he walks on." All you need is a gullible farang to buy the story. And many here are perfect candidates.

Just supposing.

Edited February 24, 2012 by Berkshire

[Berkshire]

The statistics don't add up. How many years will she have to work to recover that kind of money? It only makes sense when paying for a position that will ultimately pay you back a lot and fast...most politicians pay for heir positions for example, as they will then have access to unlimited finds.

Regarding politicians, that I would believe.

[farangme]

Yes this type of activity is commonplace. A Thai relative a mine regularly asks about common Thai business practices and is genuinely surprised that they are illegal in the west....from paying off cops to buying an employment position. Their typical response..."Wow, not easy same Thailand."

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[Thaddeus]

I'm around working professionals all day long, every day. Never heard of paying to get a job. I've heard of certain police paying to get certain choice assignments, but even then, I've just "heard." Perhaps it's going on, but the logic defies me. So who gets the money, exactly? Just one person, or is there a consortium? What happens if you leave the job? Partial refund? Does every single govt' employee have to pay? If so, I'd imagine someone is making a sh*tload of money...if it's 300K per person as the OP suggested. Anyways, it's comical to me that the farangs here will believe anything that another farang suggests about a Thai without one shred of evidence.

That information came to me from a Thai, and I know of others, all info from Thais.

The logic still perplexes me. Perhaps the OP's wife did come to him for 300K, insisting that it's to secure a job. But what's more believable?

1. Having to pay the equivalent of nearly two years salary to secure a mediocre teaching job where she can be laid-off or fired at any time.

or

2. Supposing, just supposing, the OP's wife needed money for her family but knew the OP wouldn't give it up. This scheme is perfect. If he agreed to pay, she knows that he wouldn't be able to talk to the nameless/faceless guy that she allegedly paid. No receipts. No messy audit trail. And on top of that, her family wouldn't owe him any favors, i.e., no having to "worship the ground he walks on." All you need is a gullible farang to buy the story. And many here are perfect candidates.

Just supposing.

Well, just supposing it isn't a mediocre teaching job. A good teaching position here is a job for life, with benefits and a full pension at the end of it, that would make your second option a pile of bigoted nonsense.

[otherstuff1957]

^ seconded. A teacher at a government school will never be laid off or fired. Once she's in the system she's got benefits, yearly raises and job security for life, with a pension at the end of it. She can also get raises for finishing advanced degrees (which the government will pay for) and for papers published, etc.. She can also get paid generously for after hour or weekend classes.

While I would never condone this sort of thing, it is understandable why she would pay. The only question in my mind is why did she need so much? Is she trying to get a job at a "famous" school, like Triam Udom or Bodin Decha?

[padeakin]

^ seconded. A teacher at a government school will never be laid off or fired. Once she's in the system she's got benefits, yearly raises and job security for life, with a pension at the end of it. She can also get raises for finishing advanced degrees (which the government will pay for) and for papers published, etc.. She can also get paid generously for after hour or weekend classes.

While I would never condone this sort of thing, it is understandable why she would pay. The only question in my mind is why did she need so much? Is she trying to get a job at a "famous" school, like Triam Udom or Bodin Decha?

I can understand that it is normal practise adn that she will get other benefits, but I don't know why it was so much, it is only a small government school, it is convenient because it is close to where we live, she is qualified but not experienced. It is possible that she is 'exaggerating' the cost, but I don't think she is because I am not paying it anyway. I agree with with response that said the statistics don't add up, even when I take into account the other benefits, she will be working for next to nothing for 5 years while paying back the loan.

[balo]

Maybe the Big Boss knew she was married to a farang so could ask for 300k.

If this was a privat school with salaries up to 30-40k it would make more sense but paying 300k for 15k income is just robbery.

[somchaismith]

This is very strange. Especially when there's a teacher shortage, upcountry. It's akin to hearing those bizzare amounts paid for sin sod, by foreigners, which are never returned to the bride and groom after the wedding ceremony.

[colinneil]

its normal for teacher to pay big money to big boss for a job ,my wife is a teacher wanted school principals job, 5 hundred thousand noway i say she has got a principals job in mae hong son more than 1000 kilometers from home, no money for the big boss shes happy no corruption ,only problem can only go home twice a yesr

[GarryP]

I can't say for teachers, but a lot of the lower echelon people you see working in government offices are not technically civil servants or government workers. They are hired as day or contract workers, some of them working for years under contract. They do not have the same benefits but probably all of them slog away in the hope that one day they will be formally taken on as a genuine government worker. Would these people pay to become official? Hell yes, because simply passing civil service exams is not enough.

[Scott]

An inflammatory post has been deleted. Please be civil.

[culicine]

My wife just got the position of College Director - cost: 0 baht....but that's with a western PhD and 25 years of experience....so I think people can genuinely get positions (might need a bit of string pulling along the way), but not have to pay, if you have credentials that can't be ignored. However, others have had to pay in the past.

There's a story I know of someone who obtained a high position by pulling strings, only to have someone turn up on their doorstep one day asking for a baht of gold. She didn't even know them, but they were along the chain of command that helped her get the job. What a nasty surprise!

[Thaddeus]

My wife just got the position of College Director - cost: 0 baht....but that's with a western PhD and 25 years of experience....so I think people can genuinely get positions (might need a bit of string pulling along the way), but not have to pay, if you have credentials that can't be ignored. However, others have had to pay in the past.

There's a story I know of someone who obtained a high position by pulling strings, only to have someone turn up on their doorstep one day asking for a baht of gold. She didn't even know them, but they were along the chain of command that helped her get the job. What a nasty surprise!

So, from your personal experience, your wife is the exception then, yes?

[althemighty]

My fiance is a teacher on a contract. She needs to pay 500k baht to get off contract. Her parents want to pay that to lock her into their lives so that she does not move overseas with me. The parents have spent their entire life getting her to become a teacher so they can get the medical benifits and have someone looking after them in their village until they die. Long story short she is not going to accept her parents buying the position as she does not want to be a teacher and would like a normal life and family. When I worked at the school most of the female teachers were single and looking after their mother and that was their life not to much different to being a nun really.

[Berkshire]

The parents have spent their entire life getting her to become a teacher so they can get the medical benifits and have someone looking after them in their village until they die.

So who's going to look after the parents after she leaves? Hmmm, most Thais would see this as a rather selfish gesture on her part.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

I think the price is higher because the boss knew she was mia farang.

I think she thinks it's worth it because it's a school where the teachers get backhanders.

The local school around the corner from me has every kid giving teacher 10 baht every day, 2000 per kid per month * 35+ kids per classroom. She probably needs to also kick some upstairs, but seems like a good investment to me.

[otherstuff1957]

^ Does she teach New Math? I think that would be about 200 per kid per month. x35 would be about 7,000 baht.

[tolstoy]

To the poster whose fiance has to pay to get out of contract. That is probably because they (school or government grant) paid for her to study a course, exchange abroad, or some other thing and she would have to pay it back plus fine.

I have a friend that would need to pay 3 million baht if he quit working for the University. He got a grant to study his PhD and would be fined double if he doesn't work 25 years. Lucky for him he can transfer to any other government university though.

[aussiebebe]

I just wanted to write that I've lived in Thailand for five years now and never heard of Thais having to pay to get a job. Thailand never to ceases to amaze me, but what really amazes me is how little I know about the country I've been living in. Of all the friends I've made, of all the discussions and chats we've ever had, even just the times we've discussed education in Thailand and I've still never heard of backhanders for jobs. I know about tea money for kids to get into schools, directors skimming off the top, I've seen that 'Final Score' movie about a million Thai kids going after 200 uni places, I've heard of the pitiful salaries teachers are on with 40+ kids per class - and now this - it just adds insult to injury. Bless them.

Edited February 26, 2012 by aussiebebe

[althemighty]

No she has a university loan and is paying it back with the assistance of her parents right now. The school seems over staffed so I assume that is why the cost is so high. The teachers have it easy over there hard days are 4 hours of teaching and easy days are 2 hours of teaching. From what i worked out she completed university she worked in marketing then was getting married to a guy in bangkok but he cheated on her so she left him. At this point family bring her back to the village her uncle and aunt work at the school so i assume they secured her the job with the director. Now the uncle and aunt are preasuring the parents to pay for the position and don't want my fiance to move over here with me. Her parents want us to marry but are worried their sons can't look after them as well as their daughter when their old. They have agreed to her moving overseas with me but the aunt and uncle are constantly saying bad things about us and spreading rumors to try and get her mother to change her mind.

[tolstoy]

Aussiebebe: I have lived here for a long time too and I don't know a single Thai person that has had to pay to get a job especially teachers. It isn't as "common" as others are making it seem. I imagine it would be less than 10%. It just isn't unheard of and it isn't a big deal if someone asks for it. Many parents will kick some tea money to get their kid fresh out of college that crucial first job. Having a good family name or connections will come before kick back money.

Althemighty

Sounds worse than asking for a crazy "sin sod" and keeping it. Depends on your relationship but I would walk away. Family baggage is bad. Good luck though. It sounds like you will have reoccurring problems with her family.

Edited February 26, 2012 by tolstoy