An employee’s employment package depends on, among many factors, years of experience and if one is employed as an expatriate locally or abroad. Individuals employed abroad are paid a salary according to US-standards or Western Union in addition to a full variety of benefits. Furthermore, salary depends on the position of an employee as well as the industry in which they are employed. Salaries in China range from 25,000 to 100,000 dollars per year. The following is a more detailed guide.

Teaching English

Teaching English happens to be the most well paid for the job, by Chinese standards. Salaries range from 15,000 to 30,000 US dollars per year. The exact payment, however, varies depending on one’s experience and teaching position. The key to productive employment as a teacher here is to secure employment from a reputable company or school and be in a position to negotiate for good terms before leaving your home country. Prospective teachers are advised to review carefully their contract terms, especially terms concerning living and working conditions. The following are various types of English as a Second Language (ESL) positions with their salary ranges.

Kindergartens

Teaching English in Kindergartens in the major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing or Guangzhou attracts a minimum salary of RMB 150/hr, which amounts to approximately 18 US dollars, per hour. The figure rises slightly if little preparation or outside work is involved. While this may be the highest paying teaching post available, it does not include a plane ticket or rent. Besides, such a teacher may have to do as many as 20 teaching hours every week, or even more.

1. Boarding Schools

The pay for teaching in a boarding school ranges from RMB 49,000 to 9,000 (which translate to approximately 480 to 1,090 US dollars) per month. The pay is in addition to an apartment as well as reimbursement for any international flight after the expiry of the contract. Boarding schools often permit travel, and one month holiday for the spring holiday, two months during the summer and two week’s fully paid vacation. The ages of children in such schools vary widely.

2. Private Language Institutions

Teachers in private language institutes typically teach both writing and conversation oriented classes. Since children range from as low as grade school pupils to business people, student skill level differs a great deal. The schools, however, tend to have a high rate of student turnover. Pay rates exclusively depend on hours worked and the individual institution where the teacher is working.

3. Career Teaching

Career teachers make as much as 40,000 US dollars per year, usually paid in foreign currency. Options for career instructors are many, and include private college elementary programs meant for Chinese students, international schools teaching expatriate’s children, and universities that teach high-level students. Career teaching jobs are, nonetheless, in most cases highly competitive.

4. Business English Teaching

Teaching English for Business English teaching program needs a TEFL certification. Prior experience teaching English to adults, a degree in ESL and/or previous business experience may also be necessary. Such a job, however, involves a huge workload of more than 20 hours per week in addition to weekend and evening tuition. The students in Business English Teaching programs tend to be enthusiastic to learn and hence work very hard. In most cases, the centers provide tools of work such ad lesson plans as well as a housing allowance on top of the base salary averaging 970 UD dollars( about RMB 8,000)

Foreign Mechanical Engineers

A foreign mechanical engineer takes home an average salary of 151,372 Chinese Yuan Per year (Approximately 22705 USD). Interestingly, for the first five to ten years in this field, wages increases steadily. Any additional experience beyond ten years, however, does not attract a huge effect on salary. For this reason, most mechanical engineers shift to other jobs after exceeding 20 years of experience in this engineering field.

Marketing Manager

A marketing manager is entitled to a salary averaging 29, 532 US Dollars (about 19,887 Chinese Yuen) per year. Just like in many other fields, experience plays a pivotal role in influencing salary for the job. Additionally, some specific skills increase salary for a marketing manager. These skills include Strategic management and Marketing management. With the realization by progressive companies that marketing plays a crucial role in the expansion of businesses and hence must be an ongoing strategy, demand for marketing managers is high.

Design Architect

Design Architecture, being the most trending career in the Twenty-First Century, happens to be one of the well-paying jobs in China considering task involved in the profession. Provided an employee has the skills, they can earn as much as 223, 962 Chinese Yuan (about 32095 US dollars) per year. Because of new inventions and innovations, this job’s pay rises rapidly with experience, but past 20 years of experience, it goes down drastically especially if the employee does not enhance his or her skills. The most valuable skills that are associated with Design Architecture are Microsoft Office and Microsoft Word.

Other Employment Benefits in China

Apart from the salary itself, there are several other extra benefits that foreign employees are entitled to. The most common to all is housing, though some companies may opt to provide an allowance of as high as 1500 USD per month. Locally hired expat jobs rarely provide employees with an apartment. The following are standard employment benefits that you wish to find out beforehand if your employer offers or not.

Healthcare -foreign healthcare package in addition to an evacuation service is paramount. When this is included in the contract, it adds a further 200 US Dollars every month to the total benefits

Bonuses – standard bonuses are equivalent to a month’s salary or even less. These bonuses are in addition to 5% to 15% yearly increase in pay.

Vacations -Standard vacations recommended for locally hired expats vary from 3 to 4 weeks of fully paid vacation every year. Lucky expatriates are given a vacation package that includes yearly return flights to their home countries.

Conclusion

China is currently the world’s fastest growing economy. With the limelight firmly shone on it, it is no surprise that there has been a massive influx of multinational companies, not to mention many other businesses that have moved their headquarters here from other countries. The Chinese employment market, therefore, becomes buoyant by day. Sectors such as accounting, education, Engineering, Banking and Design keep on expanding increasing the demand for foreign talent a great deal.

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