ATEK President
Tom Rainey-Smith |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter
The Association for Teachers of English in Korea (ATEK) was officially launched Wednesday to promote the interests of 25,000 English instructors here.
``We need information that helps us understand, protects our rights and gives us better access to services, improves our teaching, and makes living and working in Korea more convenient,’’ its President Tom Rainey-Smith, 27, said at a press conference at the Seoul Global Center.
ATEK is the only organization of its kind in Korea and all three founding board members are working teachers, including Vice President Jason Thomas. They have worked about one year for ATEK, which legally is not a union but a volunteer-based professional association that will soon start recruiting members. Membership is open and it plans to open chapters across the country in the coming months. ``We will be accepting membership from any legally employed foreign English teacher,’’ said Jason Thomas, an ATEK membership director. ``We look forward to hearing from the full spectrum of the community.’’
Teachers can join by visiting the ATEK Web site where they can either contact their local chapter or leave information so the chapter contacts them.
Membership benefits include temporary accommodation assistance for teachers summarily terminated, and access to a Korean labor attorney. Its web site offers software that allows teachers who don't speak Korean to send letters to students’ parents, written in Korean, to serve as progress reports. The site also has an employer rater.
``We are not a union, we are a volunteer-based, non-profit organization,’’ said ATEK spokesman Tony Hellmann, 33. ``But we hope that with a unified voice, we will also be able to counter some of the negative public perceptions surrounding the profession in Korea.’’
The association is promoting an ``Equal Checks for All’’ campaign saying it is discriminatory for E-2 visa holders to go through drug and HIV tests. ``The government mandates that Korean public school teachers undergo a criminal background check and academic degree verification,’’ said Hellmann. ``We believe all teachers should have the same standard that Korean teachers have: no drug tests and no HIV check.’’
The organization has urged teachers to file discrimination complaint to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea.
It plans various projects such as partnership with the Seoul Global Center, raising funds for English teachers in need, and youth protection workshops.
ATEK will conduct a series of surveys at its web site (www.atek.or.kr) to raise awareness of the conditions of expatriate English teachers in Korea, such as about salaries and welfare.
``There are some misunderstandings and conflicts caused by cultural differences. We hope this association helps foreign teachers communicate well with the authorities and have a good experience in Korea,’’ an official of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
meeyoo@koreatimes.co.kr
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