Contract Renewal Reminders

Dear Colleagues,

Those who work outside of education often do not understand the rhythms of the school year and how weeks of intense activity are punctuated by only very short respites before we begin all over again. We are now in our eighth week of classes, with all-school testing largely behind us, Learning 2.0 next week, and parent conferences on the horizon the week after that. Fall break is practically upon us.

As the month of September draws to a close, we are already making plans for this year’s recruitment season. We have registered for search fairs and are writing letters of recommendation for those of you who have requested them. I would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone of some important dates associated with the process.

What follows, though, only applies to individuals in their second year at SSIS and beyond. If you are in your first year at SSIS, you can ignore what follows.

1. Tuesday, 04 October 2016 (The contractual date is 01 October, but this falls on a Saturday this year.) – If you have made up your mind that you are ready for a change and are not intending to return to SSIS next year, and if you wish to receive a gratuity payment of USD $500 from the school, you have until this date (on or before) to inform your principal and the Head of School, in writing via an email, of your decision to resign. This money is a token of our appreciation for informing us early in the hiring season of your intentions and for allowing us to get a jump on recruiting an equally qualified replacement. The letter constitutes a resignation at the end of your contract. Anyone who communicates their decision to leave after this date is not eligible for this payment.
2. Tuesday, 15 November 2016 – This is the date by which you need to inform us, again via email, if you are interested in a new contract for the 2017-2018 school year. If, after 04 October 2016 but before 15 November 2016, you inform us that you are not intending to return for one more year, although you are not eligible for the gratuity payment mentioned above, you may still be eligible to take recruitment leave as defined in our terms and conditions:

For All Full-Time Contracts: In the teacher’s final year (second year and thereafter) of employment at SSIS, the teacher may use one or both of that year’s two personal leave days (NB: these are used first), plus up to three additional “recruitment leave” days, in order to attend job interviews outside of Ho Chi Minh City.  This is a one-time benefit available only after the teacher has declared by 15 November that he or she will not continue employment at SSIS beyond that school year. Use of this leave depends upon approval by the appropriate Principal and the Head of School. The teacher should apply for this leave by submitting a written request to the appropriate Principal that details the specific days of absence which are needed to travel to and attend interviews. The school and the teacher recognize that: (a) this as an important and necessary activity for persons seeking international school teaching positions, (b) less than five workdays may be required and (c) only necessary days will be requested or approved. As a one-time leave, recruitment leave does not accumulate from year to year. There is no payment for unused recruitment leave.

1. Thursday, 01 December 2016 – On this day we will distribute the contract renewal offers from the school. You must sign and return them by Monday, 05 December 2016 after which time offers are no longer valid unless a new offer is issued by the Head of School.

Every year we field questions of the “what if” variety, so this next section is meant to answer some of those questions that may be on your mind.

Q: Can I tell the school I am looking before Tuesday, 04 October 2016, without resigning, and, if I later take another job, get the USD $500 gratuity bonus.

A: No. The gratuity bonus is for resignations on, or before, 04 October 2016.

Q: What if I am hired through a Skype interview? Can I use my recruitment leave for other things involved in transition to a new school?

A: No, there would be no recruitment leave. You also cannot split recruitment leave to use some for interviewing and later take school time for packing or shipping.

Q: What if I’m still not sure on 15 November? What happens to my job, since the recruitment fairs are often after Christmas?

A: We understand this. If you cannot commit on 15 November, we will immediately list your job as open and begin interviewing candidates. If we identify a great match for the school, though, we’ll try to contact you to get your immediate decision to stay or leave. We will do our best, of course, but we cannot make a promise that we will be able to speak with you before making an offer to another candidate. Since most people are at school during this period of time, though, this has not been a problem in the past.

Q: What about after 16 December 2016?

A: This is more difficult. The search process and fairs run at a frenetic pace. If we identify a great candidate for an open position, after 16 December 2016 there may be no time to contact you before we make an offer. Once an offer is on the table, it cannot be rescinded. Search fair offers are generally good for 2-7 days.

Q: Does the school have leave days for business associated with changing jobs (moving, visas, etc.)?

A:  No. Other than the recruitment leave offered for those who declare by 15 November that they are not returning (which must be used for the recruiting process), there is no relief time granted to take care of visas for your next locale, moving, or other things associated with your departure. That time, if you need to be away from school, will be counted as unpaid leave.

If you have any questions about this process, or the details within this letter, please feel free to discuss these with your principal or drop by my office.

Sincerely,

Mark Iver Sylte

Head of School

hos@ssis.edu.vn