Yanbu, Saudi Arabia from ESL Employment

This job review analyses the posting from ESL Employment. 

Let’s keep this short and sweet. This posting is best served to mid-level teachers with 2-3 years experience and a CELTA/ TEFL/ TESOL.

You might think the 6 month contract is an advantage. This way, you can get in, work, save some money, and get out of there in time before you lose your sanity.

No. A 6 month contract is not a good thing. 

You’ll be working – technically – illegally on a business visa. It is not the same as working on a resident visa. Why would Virtual Vision Solutions do that? Because it saves them money from paying and processing your resident visa and Iqama (Alien Resident Card.) And because it allows them to take further advantage of you, the employee.

 Because you’re working illegally, you have no recourse if they bring you to a labor camp and force you to stay there with 10 Bengalis and no kitchen or shower, claiming that is the furnished housing they claimed in the job advert. 

As well, they could force you to work extra hours and perform duties outside of the scope of teaching. Getting an exit/ re-entry visa won’t be possible – you’re stuck inside Saudi for the entire 6 months. As well, at the end of the 6 months, you will NOT get a severance pay, again because of working on a business visa.

Flights? Not mentioned. Employers are supposed to pay for your flights in KSA. If they expect you to pay, and claim to reimburse you, you’ll never get reimbursed.

What institute/ university/ company are you going to work for? ELC, but what does that stand for? Minor background about the company posted with the job would be helpful.

Not to mention you’ll be working in Yanbu, which makes Riyadh seem like Paris. The air quality is terrible up there, more conservative, and even less to do. But of course, you can always drink goat’s milk, eat figs and pray a thousand times per day.

The 13 – 14,000 SAR / month on offer here is the same as other job posts. Look for another job in Saudi with equal pay, furnished housing, transportation provided (or allowance) and a 12 month contract with severance...if you are so desperate for money you're eating your shoe.

But most definitely, not ICEAT at the Preparatory Year Programme at King Saud University.

Good luck to you.