sueanne

Thank you Charleygirl appreciate your comments

coastieexpat

Does anybody know what became of Honeymommy and her family? I read the story expecting a resolution..but it just stopped

I was really getting into it.

ian-mstm

She hasn't posted since November 30, 2007.

Ian

Hubcaps

She did a "we're all fine" post here

Englishtart

I guess it just goes to show that with the right attitude (even if it's not your chouce) you can make things work for you, wherever you are. Good for HM, I'm glad she was able to make things work for her family, sounds like it's not all gone to the dogs back home. Nice to hear a positive side of England for a change!

coastieexpat

Ta very much

sueanne

Yes nice to know she settled and hubby is happy in his job....

Bob

but she last visited back in Feb...was doing well eventually, in the Surrey area.

Bob

Lawyer costs they can get you to pay for, that and one of the other fee's, premium processing I think? Can't remember.

But any employer that asks you to pay those fees can't afford to repatriate you so you should know you're going to get bent over at some stage.

Best advice is find another employer and get them to transfer the visa, or as Manc said, scarper.

retzie

Repatriate? They have never paid a cent more than my salary (no ticket, no moving expenses, no visa fees.) For what it's worth, the salary is rubbish also. Yay, academia!

There is clearly a lot of bending over happening already - I only ask about the fee thing because I have heard rumblings about employees not being allowed to pay employer-side legal expenses (as in, not just jeopardise your application, but it actually be unlawful.) I would gladly try to stick it to them if it were true, but I haven't been able to verify this one way or another.

Oh, how I wish for one of them. Unfortunately, without abandoning my research career, the pickings are lean, nigh on skeletal. What was that about turning the clock back?

sueanne

Lawyer costs they can get you to pay for, that and one of the other fee's, premium processing I think? .[/QUOTE]


Yes Bob, if WE want Premium Processing then we have to pay...but thats ok and up to us. So far my hubby has had 3 wages slips and they 'havent' yet deducted money for his visa costs....maybe they have got
wind of it be illegal or just forgotten....so keeping my fingers crossed no money will be taken off of his salary.

sueanne

[QUOTE=retzie;8738132]Repatriate? They have never paid a cent more than my salary (no ticket, no moving expenses, no visa fees.) For what it's worth, the salary is rubbish also. Yay, academia! QUOTE]


Thats real bad retzie....at least in 2004 when we came over the company did pay us $2,000 towards our shipping costs. So you have been paying for your own visa ?

Bob

Part of the agreement of the visa is that they cover repatriation costs if you get sacked. All that means is they have to pay for airfare to send you home, not your contents.

Lawfully, they can't make you pay visa fee's.

Find another job and transfer the visa and sue the current place is the best bet.

retzie

Interesting. I didn't know that about the obligation to repatriate - I thought you would just be screwed (well, moreso.) Luckily, it would take some breathtaking dereliction of duty and/or criminal activity for me to get fired - there is no WAY they would open themselves up to having to find someone to cover my teaching unless they could not possibly avoid doing so. Mind you, they more than have job instability covered with the fact they have only ever given me 9 month appointments...

Oh, don't worry, I have tried. And tried again. And will continue to try. Unfortunately, the field is so competitive that if you don't want to put up with it, there were 600 other people who applied for your job who would happily do so.

Ugh, I hate it when I talk to normal people about academia - I realise what an incredible abusive relationship it is

dbj1000

I guess it goes without saying that you're being totally screwed by your employer?

I just read one of your previous posts about going unpaid for 3 months every summer, and that sounds a lot like "benching" - a practice that is regularly used by exploitative employers against their H1B visa employees, and one which is strictly illegal.