Victory in the Classroom: Tabitha’s Triumph Over Contractual Injustice

 

 

I was contacted by an educator, whom I will refer to as Tabitha to protect her privacy. Employed at a school in Wenzhou, Tabitha faced challenges, including not being paid her full salary or receiving payments punctually. She wished to resign, but her contract imposed a punitive fee of 20,000 RMB should she choose to do so.

Understandably, we were keen to avoid paying any penalty to the school, and Tabitha was concerned that her departure would be obstructed by her employer, particularly as she was the sole foreign teacher on the premises.

Tabitha’s goals were to recover her unpaid wages and ensure her residence permit remained valid while she sought new employment. Following my counsel and after confirming that her social insurance contributions had been neglected, we opted to terminate the contract invoking Article 38 of the Labor Contract Law. Given the employer’s two significant infractions – the failure to pay salary during a lockdown and the non-payment of social insurance – I was confident we had strong grounds to negotiate with the employer.

My team drafted a notice of contract termination on Tabitha’s behalf, and we proceeded to file for labor arbitration. During the hearing, after presenting our case against the school, it became apparent to their legal counsel that they were likely to be defeated in the dispute. Consequently, they opted to reach a settlement with us.

Tabitha received the full amount of unpaid salary she was entitled to and was exempted from the 20,000 RMB penalty. Additionally, she promptly obtained her cancellation and release letters. We also successfully secured a well-composed letter of recommendation for Tabitha.

Cancellation Letter

 

Release Letter

Recommendation Letter