You know the phrase, the song, the many parables around the idea of "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."? The last 5 months have put so much in perspective. In the first two weeks I was here I emailed my boss back home and basically said that to her and told her if I ever complain about my job when I'm back just look at me and say "Korea!" and I will walk out of her office with that gentle reminder that I have nothing to complain about. There are challenges with every job, but perspective is always nice.
My experience work wise has already been documented on this blog, plus I've mentioned other details here and there. But let me be clear, the Korean's I work with have it SO MUCH HARDER. And, I don't think that's just segregated to schools, the work ethic here is fierce. My day is from 9:50-6:00. Their day is from 9:00-7:20. Luckily it's only 5 days a week, but many Koreans work 6-7 days. Last week I had a parent ask if once a month they can pull their child from class to spend time with her because they are so busy, but both parents have one day at the end of he month off, so can they take her? I just said YES! She's 4! Spend time with your child!
Are there Canadian's that work 6-7 days a week? Yes. But it's not the standard. We are lucky to live in a country with less population density so the competition for jobs is not as fierce. Koreans have to be so competitive because there are so many of them and such a limited amount of jobs. There is a student at our school who goes to Chinese school before coming to our English school and then goes home to do further activities like taekwondo. We give our students 5 pages of homework/week. THEY ARE 4 and already attend school from 9:50-2:30 5 days a week.
Being with Kenneth has opened my eyes to what he's dealing with here. Many Africans here are undocumented. (Don't worry, Kenneth is not. He is on the up and up.) But as a foreigner, unless you have a work contract like me in teaching, you can only have a 6 month travel visa that you can use to work. Many just stay and continue working being paid under the table. The problem that leaves is poor working conditions and being treated differently. Most Africans here are working in labour intensive jobs. Kenneth said his first job here was with 500 other Africans lifting heavy crates off of shipping containers onto machines to take them away. One day they were lifting something extremely heavy. A crate fell and busted open and a car engine was inside. Each of these men was lifting a car engine on his own. multiple times. The guy who dropped it ran immediately and called the police. They came and shut the operation down for the day. Each employee was paid for the day, but the man never returned. (I'm going to be honest, I didn't know if lifting a car engine on your own was bad because I don't know anything about cars but judging from K's face, it's bad.)
In Kenneth's words: We are blacks so we are treated differently. Legally, they should be paying us 2,000,000 won a month (equivalent to about $2000) but they pay us 1,500,000 because they know many of us are undocumented and just have to accept that money. The Koreans and whites doing the same jobs get 2,500,000 because the minimum for them is 2,200,000.
Being Canadian allows me the luxury of the law. When I think about the many times I've stood up and fought for my right to the equivalent of $1000 for that plane ticket, there are people here who can't speak at all because they will just be let go and replaced with another worker who will keep his mouth shut.
What's worse is Kenneth makes more money here than back home at his University admissions job back home. (Yes, we both had similar jobs back home.) In one month here he makes the same amount as 8 months home. EIGHT MONTHS! That's why he came here, to make money no matter what the job. Just to have a better life. All of this perpetuates the cycle. A guy here lifting a car engine making more money than working in a professional office will continue to work like that, without complaint and may I also mention without proper safety gear, etc.
Are there worse stories of disparity in the world? Obviously.
These are my experiences with people I know and why I am so thankful to be Canadian. I have labour laws to protect me in my country and when I travel to work.
So, happy Canada day. We have a long way to go to make things fair for those in Canada, especially our Indigenous brothers and sisters who have lived in Canada longer than 150 years.
Three Canadian teachers with the mittens!
A proud Canadian with her future Canadian
Love,
Alli
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