Is it safe to take a job of teaching English in Korea?

My friend is applying for a job to teach English in Korea for a year through an organization called EA and Partners. Does anyone know if this is legitimate, or is my friend asking for trouble? They offer round trip air fare to Korea, housing, salary, etc. It sounds like a great opportunity, but is it?

It is safe as long as they mail you a contract with their names and business license on the front page and names signed on the back. You also need to look for a red stamp where they sign their names, it's also licensed proof. Here's what should be provided benefitwise:

A salary of no less than 2.0 million won per month. (the pay date should be printed next to th amount)
A round trip airline ticket.
50/50 medical insurance
Pension
Furnished housing (always request pics of the housing, there are some schools that put teachers in dumps.)
The hours you are supposed to work should be stated in the contract, you should never work more than 30 hrs per week.
The contract will be a year long minimum.

It needs to have all these things on it before your friend sends his/her passport and documents to Korea to make the visa. In Korea, you can't just walk out of a job and find another one, immigration is tricky, so make sure you you make the right decisions, and you know you will be happy at this location.

Safish. Does your friend have the name of the school they'll be working at? I don't know how to search for complaints about recruiters, but there's a lot of info about specific schools.
This site might be a good start.
http://www.hagwonchecklist.com/

Also, just by searching the word 'hagwon' at this site, you can find some common complaints like hagwons withholding return travel, reducing contracted salaries, using employees' bank PINs, and on and on.
The only hagwon I'm familiar with seems wonderful, and I don't think they would do this to their employees, but there are some BAD eggs. At a minimum, your friend should travel with enough money for their return ticket in case the situation is untenable.

Edit: I guess I overestimated the 'hagwon' complaints in this section. Sometimes it gets spelled as 'hogwon' and the rest of the time people just talk about their 'schools.'

It seems the vast majority of EFL teachers in South Korea are treated well. The internet is full of complaints but keep in mind that we will go out of our way to post our complaints while rarely writing about the positive experiences we encounter in Korea. By and large, most language schools do the right thing but this is no guarantee that you will find everything to your liking. There are always bumps in the road. If you are adaptable, and enjoy being a fish out of water, give ESL/EFL a try. If you are treated poorly, go home, walk...

The hogwan blacklist listed above as well as the Geocities blacklist, are great resources:

http://www.geocities.com/hagwonblacklist...

Yes, it is safe. I'm not familiar with the recruiting agency that you mentioned, but the compensation package that you described sounds standard.
Whatever language school the recruiter offers a contract for your friend, I would recommend your friend speaking to another foreign teacher at that school to hear the truth about what it's like working there. Remember, the recruiter is going to be telling your freind everything he/she wants to hear.
It's possible to get out of a contract by having your employer sign a release letter. But, if your employer won't do that, you can't legally work anywhere else in Korea.