Okay, the drugs story has totally gotten out of hand. They lost 8 teachers not 25. Lol.

The problem with the Bangkok fair, when I went in 2011 was that it heavily favoured teaching couples and they weren't even interested in interviewing primary teachers a lot of the time. A lot of schools even had notices up saying that primary positions had to be filled as part of a couple.
It was the same with Middle School positions too, I got knocked back a number of times because I was not part of a couple. I will also add that I am no newbie either.
I met some amazingly experienced primary people at that fair and they were having no luck at all.
I'd do London or Cambridge instead. If you do London you can make a holiday of it and also attend the CIS fair.

It's the definition of 'local hire' that makes this more complicated. If you are interviewed overseas at one of the fairs then you would normally (from my understanding) be considered an international hire and therefore not be put on a local hire contract. Last year at the Search fair in Bangkok I heard about some dodgy treatment of a woman on a local hire contract with one of the big guys in Bangkok, she was looking elsewhere because of it.

At my school you did (now changed) become a 'local hire' after being at the school for 7 years. New people coming from schools in Bangkok would get 50% of the moving allowance and set up allowance, but that was the only difference, they still got the housing allowance and health insurance.

My last school in China pulled the local hire game when the new Head came in, but he applied it in a very inconsistent manner which led to a lot of resentment. It ended with a good friend and excellent teacher being fired.... the last straw was a ruthless review on ISR too.

My school already does drug tests on students, students who are caught are suspended. So for teachers to think that it will not happen to them was silly and risky behaviour. But as I said before many of these teachers had been at the school for a long time, so they didn't expect what was coming, none of us did.

From the looks of things there could be a few more schools who got hit too because a bunch of positions have been advertised at other schools here and recruiting at this time of year is normally just filling up those last few gaps....

I think it is important that teachers realise there is always the possibility of being tested, especially in countries where there is the death penalty for importation and exportation of drugs of any kind.

I've worked with people before who like to use occasionally and they think nothing of it, but there is always the risk of being caught and they need to keep this in mind. Anybody who is surprised at people doing this has obviously not met many Canadians! A British colleague told me, when we were lined up for our test that there are statistics that say 20% of Brits have used pot, it would be the same for many western nations. We've all worked with these people who do it, it is just that they are discreet, well discretion doesn't mean you're not going to get caught out.

My sympathy for my colleagues is somewhat limited because this is Thailand and you just never know when the government is going to go on one of its clean up the schools crusades. Thai government school teachers were tested and failure meant that they were fired.

So just keep it in mind next time somebody offers you a joint at a .!

[quote="tgrear2008"]Is drug testing common? I'm a newbie, and have nothing to fear, but I am curious. I'm headed to egypt. Maybe schools test on an individual basis. I know the Korea ESL'ers get piss tested, cause I just did one unannounced a couple months ago.

Drop some knowledge on us veterans. Regardless, I'm not taking any chances. However, what if someone goes on vacation to Amsterdam, where it is legal (tolerated)? It brings up some issues as we seem to be a global bunch.[/quote]

I was never tested in China, my friends in Egypt haven't been tested either.
In China and here in Thailand I had a blood test when i first arrived for my work permit/teaching license, but that seemed to focus on STDs rather than drugs.

[quote="interteach"]Great. Just what we need in international schools. Edu-drug tourists, the teaching equivalent of proprietary schools.

Surely there is a more lucrative profession to sully.[/quote]


Not in Bangkok, we are a 1st/2nd tier school, reasonable size. Another international school close by was also tested. We are real international schools not some pokey backwater schools, really don't want to give too many details, never know who is watching!

All of these teachers had been here for a while and were not 'druggie tourist teachers'.

It was the Thai authorities who insisted that the tests happened. Obviously this is not happening in other parts of Thailand, which is all I really wanted to know, but people should be aware that it might happen.

[quote="buffalofan"]Knowing Thailand, this is nothing that can't be fixed by an unmarked envelope exchanging hands between a well connected Thai at your school and one of Bangkok's finest. And this latest 'crackdown' will all be forgotten as soon as the police find something more lucrative to do with their time. I would not be too concerned.

Wonder if they will take into account a false positive result? This is not uncommon in drug tests.[/quote]

lol you would think that would be the case, but our owner IS one of Bangkok's finest. It has all been quiet strange and our director is very upset about the whole thing, but really was given no wriggle room when it came to giving out warnings or firing people.
People who tested positive were given the option of having a hair strand test. Basically the samples were tested at school then sent off to the hospital if they were positive to have it confirmed.
One person was called in and told they had an initial positive then further testing revealed it was false. Admin kind of insinuated to them they were lucky to get off, the colleague then expressed various expletives at the admin team for even suggesting it.
Like I said just wondering if other schools have been subjected to it.

Hi all,
at my international school here in Thailand we were recently hit with a drug test, one of the nearby IS got ambushed at 7:30 in the morning by the Thai government.
As a consequence we have now lost several staff members because they failed and the Thai education board has apparently dictated that people who fail must be gotten rid of.
Has this happened at other schools too? I knew they were testing teachers in Thai government schools.

So that's also a heads up for anybody coming here next school year, no more pot after June!

I used Seven Seas when I sent stuff from Teda/Tianjin back to Australia. They were really good, delivered all the boxes and other packaging stuff that I needed. Also collected promptly. No hassles getting it out of China back to Australia.
Friends of mine have used them to ship stuff from Boston to Beijing, filling out the Customs paperwork in Beijing was a pain and she speaks fluent Mandarin. There was a bit of back and forth before they got their stuff, but it is China and you just have to accept the fact that red tape can take a bit of work. I always like to tell myself that if they didn't have all the red tape and rubber stamps there would be a hell of a lot of more unemployed in China.

So yes I can tell you they are really really good and worth using.

If you want to move furniture and have the cash Asian Tigers are great, but they are pricy.