Not a summary of Chinese labour law. 16 specific ways foreign teachers report being caught out, each one backed by real posts you can read yourself. Most of this does not sit in the contract text — it is in how the job actually plays out.
The advertised monthly salary applies to teaching months only. Winter and summer breaks are paid at a fraction — half, a flat low amount, or nothing. …
Your apostilled degree, police check and TEFL certificate are submitted for the work permit — and the contract states they become the school's propert…
Your real salary is paid in pieces: a low 'official' salary on the Chinese contract, plus a 'non-compete fee', plus an offshore service agreement. Onl…
The employer claims foreigners are exempt from mandatory social insurance. They are not. You often discover it only when asking for proof — by which p…
The contract names a large fine for leaving early — often equal to a month or more of salary, sometimes denominated in USD. Teachers are told they can…
Your work permit is tied to the employer. If they refuse to cancel it, you cannot legally move to a new job — and leaving the country becomes complica…
A recruiter or school claims you owe a 'placement' or 'agency fee' when you leave, and threatens to deduct it from your final pay. These fees are typi…
The most basic failure: you work, and no money arrives. Usually combined with taking your documents, leaving you with neither pay nor paperwork.
Contracts include deductions for lateness or performance scores. Individually small, they can compound — and the scoring is controlled entirely by the…
You accept a job, the school sponsors your work permit, your passport goes to the consulate for the Z visa — and partway through, they tell you the ro…
The contract you negotiated and signed from abroad is not the contract you are handed when you land. A new 'in person' version appears with worse pay,…
Even if you pull out before entering China, that employer may hold an approved work permit notification against your passport number. If they refuse t…
You are hired on a low probation rate that is supposed to run two months. It is extended, repeatedly, so the cheap rate becomes your actual salary for…
You are told to enter on a business or tourist visa and start teaching while the work permit is 'being sorted'. Working in a school on that visa is no…
Between the first offer and the actual contract, the salary quietly drops. Each round of negotiation shaves a little more, usually justified by a clai…
A 'free' online TEFL course is used to collect your details and sign you up to a job board. The certification may not be recognised where it matters, …