While I was in the Philippines I received a message from a Filipina I know that used to work in a bar I sometimes frequented. I Don’t Know the name (ahem). Anyway, she quit at the end of September and got engaged to some lucky guy. Apparently, the bar owner was not happy with her leaving and decided to punish her by not giving her the salary she had earned. Was there anything I could do?
I suggested she contact the ROK Ministry of Employment and Labor whom I would surmise take a dim view of a business owner treating an employee like a slave. She told me she couldn’t do that because she was working without a visa. But of course.
Well, that kind of exploitation really pisses me off. I promised her I’d see what I could do when I returned. What we have is a bar that hires undocumented workers knowing they have no recourse for whatever abuse they may dish out. But not paying someone for work performed is completely over the top. So, USFK has strict rules regarding prostitution and human trafficking. Bars that violate those rules are subject to being placed off limits to USFK personnel (soldiers, civilians, and contractors). That’s the kiss of death for any bar that is placed off limits because that’s the entire customer base in Anjeong-ri.
I know of no prostitution in the bar I Don’t Know the name of. But as I reviewed USFK’s definition of what constitutes human trafficking, one example was refusing to pay an employee for time worked. I thought I could make the case to the Provost Marshal should I be compelled to file a formal complaint.
I didn’t want to do that if I didn’t have to. It’s the nuclear option and I figured it would make me persona non grata with the local bar association. So I reached out to a couple of friends that know this bar owner and asked them to intercede and try to convince said owner to do the right thing. I also asked them to convey to her that if she failed to pay what was rightly due to the former employee I was prepared to raise the issue with USFK. I said I was moving forward if she wasn’t paid by Monday.
Apparently that created a bit of a shit storm, but today my Filipina acquaintance advised the bar owner said she would pay her tomorrow. Mission accomplished! She also told me the bar owner wants me to come to the bar and apologize to her! What the fuck? Obviously that ain’t happening and I have no intention of ever patronizing that bar again. I Don’t Know why I would. Except for the darts. Oh well, I’ll take the game up again after my move to the PI.
Well, it’s Sunday so I reckon y’all are expecting to see some photos of my glorious weekend. Here you go:
That was me living life on the edge in the Philippines.
That’s me drunk.
That’s me sober.
That’s what an autumn day looks like here in the countryside…
That plant is known as “the answer” or so I surmised when I observed it blowing in the wind. Ahem.
That’s one big ass spider!
That’s my Sunday dinner…
And that’s me at 25 and totally clueless. Now that I think about it, not much has changed.
And there you have it. How about some Hunter S. Thompson for dessert?
What he said.
If only Koreans listened to the wisdom of ol’ Uncle Hunter. This is a country in which people live in fear of what others may think of them… then they turn around and act like utter assholes, as if they don’t give a shit what anyone thinks of them. So confusing.
I’m glad your friend will (likely) be getting her pay. And you’re right not to apologize to that bitch of an owner. Fuck her. (No, not literally.)
What is strange is the girl who quit was well liked by everyone. And the only argument the owner had was she quit without notice. Yeah, not cool. Give her a bad reference. But you can’t withhold money that has been earned. That’s stealing. I just don’t get the mentality. But I have no doubt the bar owners would never pull that shit on a Korean employee. It’s racism, pure and simple. Sickening.