“With that said… The hurdles that I (and most people??) went through were not that much of a pain. The medical check was done in Korea, and it took all of 20 minutes at the local hospital. My father was able to get my criminal background check for me quite effortlessly at the local police office back in my home country. ”

And here is where the problem lies. ATEK (and others including the Korean Government) think that just because something is true in one country, it must be true for all.

In the UK, I can order my criminal record check. A family member can not. It has to be paid for in sterling.

The Korean government are trying their hardest to make Canadians get a vulnerable sector search. Some Canadians are managing, even though the VSS Is supposed to be for employers in country. The ones who are not able to get it are given some leeway at the moment, but that could change and Immi are insisting that soon enough all Canadians will get one.

The UK also have a VSS. It can only be applied for by certain UK employers, and NOT the general public. I can not apply for it. It is intended as the ultimate security for schools, babysitting services, supply teacher agencies, hospitals, etc. If Immigration pick up on this and request it, I would be forced to break a promise I made to my wife in that I would never force her to leave Korea.

Honestly, if Immi start requesting that, UK teachers are screwed. I do not want to be put into that situation because of some shortsighted planning on the part of an organisation with no mandate.

I can’t speak for Joe (he’s the one who is burdened with having to find advertisers – which is no easy feat) but as a merciless capitalist I’m happy for anyone to advertise on the show.

The ad for ATEK was added in post so I didn’t hear it until I listened to the show well after we recorded it, but at the end of the show you would have heard me “raise an eyebrow” as we went down the list of advertisers / sponsors.

I like to think we are fairly balanced (politically anyway, not necessarily psychologically!) We’ve had on people from the right of the political spectrum and people from the left, and likewise we have heard from Pro-ATEK people as well as their dissenters – and I might be marginally considered one of those.

With that said… The hurdles that I (and most people??) went through were not that much of a pain. The medical check was done in Korea, and it took all of 20 minutes at the local hospital. My father was able to get my criminal background check for me quite effortlessly at the local police office back in my home country. I got it sent by mail in just a few days. That was all… Nothing else… There was no need for me to fly home. If there had been, then I probably wouldn’t have come back to Korea (well… That’s a lie.. My fiance would have been a little upset )

From what I see being posted in various blogs/forums about ATEK, I get the feeling that a great deal of the backlash comes from people on non-E2 visas who are worried about having to do extra steps in order to work/stay in the country. The issue of plagiarism (and I totally agree with you) only seems to be a recent occurrence that “anti-ATEK” bloggers/posters have used to further support their opinion. I feel that it wouldn’t have been as much of an issue if the group of “non-E2 Anti-ATEK haters” hadn’t formed in the first place.

- I have an F-Visa
- I work 1 job, 3-9pm, for not much more than the starter E-2 salary.
- I get more because I do not get flights. Simple mathematics.
- I do not WANT more jobs.
- Most of my friends have E-2 visa’s. I feel their pain.
- When I came to Korea, I got a health check.
- I was AIDS tested (PS job at the time) 2 months before I got my F visa.
- I submitted criminal checks as part of my PS job application. Immi waived them as part of the F visa app for this reason alone.

The Equal checks for all campaign was amateur, and ill-conceived. F-Visa holders already go through the same hoops as E-2 visa holders AND MORE. The outcome of the campaign could have only been one of the following:

1. FAILURE: ATEK do not want failure!
2. SUCCESS: F visa holders need to jump through even more hoops, which would cost them money (flights home for checks, etc), OR checks are dropped for E-2 visas.

Consider that it is unlikely that the Korean government will drop checks (and ask yourself, should they?) then the other ‘success’ is that F-Visa holders get screwed for no reason. Costing me money impacts my ability to support my wife and child. Can you see why I have an issue with equal checks? Can you see why countless other F-Visa holders would also have an issue with that?

ATEK were offered this advice before their campaign launched, and they chose to ignore it. They prefer to gain media exposure on a non-issue, potentially impacting families here, than admit they were wrong. This has caused some serious damage to their reputation that, whilst not going away, they have opted to ignore.

The plagiarism issue is, in my mind, another instance where they rushed headlong into something without giving any consideration to how this could impact them long-term. As long as they are ignoring it (or posting about it on personal blogs rather than the ATEK homepage), they are again trying to sweep it under the carpet.

Myself? I agree that all teachers should be checked for criminal background and diseases. I am not keen on the drug test as I do not agree that Korea should be enforcing (or in some cases setting) the laws of other countries. The tests are happening now (except in the possible case of Kyopo’s)! I agree that E-2 visas should have greater freedom in Korea. Politically, I consider myself a socialist. I am a fan of unions, and of organisations that protect the vulnerable in society. I feel that ATEK are not protecting anybody. At best, they are providing information, and tainted information at that.

As it stands now, I would consider joining an organisation that exists to make the lives of migrant workers easier. That organisation is not ATEK. They are a risk to stability, and one that I feel needs to change, or disappear!

This is getting to be longer than I hoped, but I have strong feelings on this issue. ATEK refuse to accept criticism, censoring and dodging questions in their communications and only vowing to speak if you sign up to become a member. I refuse to become a member of their organisation, so I have to try and spread the word in public forums such as this. Say what you like about Dave’s, there is a lot of experience trying to speak sense under all of the bullshit there, and the ATEK issue is one that made me return there after an absence of 7 months.

Did I really die a little inside when I head the ATEK mention on the podcast. Nope… it’s a figure of speech. I was, however, disappointed to hear the podcast become a forum to advertise what is essentially (however they dress it up) a political organisation as the first thing people hear on the podcast. There was no dissenting voice. The Seoul Podcast is a very popular source of information for teachers in Korea, and believe it or not, quite an influential one.

I’m done. Sorry about the length.

I’m sorry Mike… I was in a crabby mood this morning and was a bit of a dick in my response. I known that ATEK’s membership isn’t as large as some seem to think (I’m not a member), but I feel that a lot of the backlash against the group comes from non-E2 visa holders whose only beef with the group is on the issue of “equal checks”. ATEK seems (from what I have read/heard/seen on their site) to be about much more than just that one issue. The group appears to want to greatly improve things (and offer services) for foreigners working in Korea. I just can’t understand why a lot of people (not saying that you are one of them) are complaining against ATEK simply because of the “equal checks” issue.

That said, it is obvious that the podcast does not want any further input from the ‘psychotic’ members of the teaching community who do not want an amateur organisation to gather the press they have by claiming to be a voice for all teachers in Korea. They speak for 400, which is a lot less than the 25,000 they claim to speak for.

I’m done. I will not make the mistake of offering opinion about ATEK to the SeoulPodcast again.