Enough is enough

Hello, I'm writing this whilst sitting in a suburb of London, I have just left Thailand after 10 years of teaching, my wife and two children are in the process of getting their passports and visas to follow me here in the next couple of months. Why? Enough is enough, I really do love Thailand, my life has been there, my kids were born there, but no more teaching for me.

To be honest I could of carried on, but teaching is not a realistic career if you have children in Thailand. Firstly there is no guarantee for the future, be it one year or five years. Secondly, Thai schools and teachers have an amazing ability to lie. I recently signed a contract with my school, where I had been teaching for the last few years, only to be told that I wasn't being paid for April and for the first half of May because the school was shut. I protested that I had already signed the contract, and that the contract was from April until April, one year, only to be told that this was only so the school could renew our work permits.

I was furious, I have two young mouths to feed, I wasn't going to get paid for six weeks, I had never had any previous problems with the school, in fact I was the only falang teacher at the school amongst 10 foreign teachers, I speak Thai fluently and had always got on with the Thai teachers and all my teachers assessments had been positive, but the school would not budge, I spoke to them nicely, I tried to appeal. The school then decided to pay all of the foreign teachers for May. This was good news, however they stuck by their decision not to pay us for April. Finally, with a heavy heart I decided that I just couldn't live like this any longer, my children are now the most important thing in my life and , without sounding corny, I just want what's best for them, and sadly Thailand isn't that.

Annoyed


Read more letters

Send your letter to Ajarn.com



Featured Jobs

Part-time NES English Language Teachers

฿700+ / hour

Rayong


Coaching English Teacher

฿47,000+ / month

Bangkok


NES Primary and Kindergarten Teachers

฿52,500+ / month

Bangkok


NES Kindergarten Teacher

฿48,000+ / month

Bangkok


NES Secondary Science Teacher

฿45,000+ / month

Bangkok


NES Primary and Secondary English Teachers

฿60,000+ / month

Rayong


Featured Teachers

  • Vincent


    French, 41 years old. Currently living in France

  • Wisal


    Pakistani, 40 years old. Currently living in Thailand

  • Cormac


    Irish, 35 years old. Currently living in United Kingdom

  • Artem


    Russian, 34 years old. Currently living in Thailand

  • Ssengendo


    Ugandan, 35 years old. Currently living in Thailand

  • Roque


    Filipino, 39 years old. Currently living in Philippines

The Hot Spot


The dreaded demo

The dreaded demo

Many schools ask for demo lessons before they hire. What should you the teacher be aware of?


Teacher mistakes

Teacher mistakes

What are the most common mistakes that teachers make when they are about to embark on a teaching career in Thailand? We've got them all covered.


Contributions welcome

Contributions welcome

If you like visiting ajarn.com and reading the content, why not get involved yourself and keep us up to date?


The cost of living

The cost of living

How much money does a teacher need to earn in order to survive in Thailand? We analyze the facts.


Air your views

Air your views

Got something to say on the topic of teaching, working or living in Thailand? The Ajarn Postbox is the place. Send us your letters!


Need Thailand insurance?

Need Thailand insurance?

Have a question about health or travel insurance in Thailand? Ricky Batten from Pacific Prime is Ajarn's resident expert.


Will I find work in Thailand?

Will I find work in Thailand?

It's one of the most common questions we get e-mailed to us. So find out exactly where you stand.


The Region Guides

The Region Guides

Fancy working in Thailand but not in Bangkok? Our region guides are written by teachers who actually live and work in the provinces.