Q&A: For the EDMW forum people who have asked questions on the Jerard Lee case

Given the popularity of the last Q&A session, I am following up with another Q&A on the Jerard Lee case. Many people have asked questions on the various threads on EDMW but few of these questions have been properly answered. I realize a lot of these questions were asked by younger Singaporeans who are either students or in NS and have never worked before - so I hope to cast some light on these issues for you.

Q: What did Jerard do wrong? If he was genuinely bullied, did he not even have the right to talk about his case? Did he have to suffer in silence or risk getting sued?

A: It would have been a straight forward case if he didn't go blabbing to the press and all over the internet about his story - that is libel. This is an internal case for the company and he should have first addressed it internally via his company's HR department before public. Going public is a trump card, a last resort, to hold the company ransom: "if you don't settle with me, I will go public and destroy your reputation." He made a grave mistake in going public before the negotiations began, thus weakening his positioning. He has nothing to threaten them with now.

Furthermore, when you work for a company, you will sign a contract at the start of your employment which would usually cover certain terms of confidentiality - ie. you have to keep your mouth shut about confidential company internal matters. If you break confidentiality clause (which you have agreed to in signing that contract defining the terms and conditions of your employment), then the company has ever right to sue you for breach of contract. Every big company (including Timetric, of course) will have such a contract for all their employees and the confidentiality clause applies even after the employee leaves the company. This is very standard procedure - there is nothing unusual about it.

Jerard, you need to read your employment contract carefully. 

Q: What should Jerard have done instead?

A: Well the first step would have been to seek legal advice - sit down with a lawyer, show the lawyer all the details of your case and the lawyer will then evaluate how strong your case is and if you can win a case against the company. If you don't have a strong case, then the lawyer will warn you not to pick a fight you can't win. If you have a chance of winning, then the lawyer will advice you how to proceed - this must be done carefully and best handled by a lawyer. Jerard Lee was like a bull in a china shop, he didn't have a strategy! He wasted so much time talking rubbish, making empty threats on EDMW instead of focussing on his case and look where it landed him.

Q: Surely Timetric care about their reputation, right? Why don't they just settle to make this whole thing go away? Drag on and on like that very bad, right? 

A: Timetric do care about their reputation but how they respond to Jerard's actions (ie. the way he was spreading his stories all over the internet, contacting the press, getting his story into the Wanbao) has a far greater effect on their reputation. Think about it - so many people are already talking about this case. If they do give Jerard a large sum of money to keep quiet, what kind of message does that send to the public? It would tantamount to an admission of guilt - otherwise, if they did nothing wrong, why would they settle then?

This is not trial by social media. 

I would like to refer you to the case of Michael Jackson, in 1993 Michael Jackson was accused of sexually abusing 13 year old Jordan Chandler. Michael Jackson claimed that he was innocent - but he still settled privately, paying the grand sum of US$23 million. Michael Jackson claimed that he settled because he wanted to avoid a complex, stressful and lengthy trail that would affect his health and his career. Given how incredibly rich Michael Jackson was, $23 million was a very small price to pay to make these horrible allegations go away.

However, in settling privately, many people believed that Michael Jackson was indeed guilty and ever since that case, there had been others who brought similar allegations against Michael Jackson after that. So either Michael Jackson was indeed guilty and had sexually abused more than one child - or in settling for $23 million with the Chandlers, Michael Jackson told the world that he was a rich man who would cave in to blackmail, even if the allegations were totally false.

Is Michael Jackson innocent or guilty? We may never know now he's dead, but as a result of his private settlement, many people simply presumed that he was guilty. Now in the case of Timetric, Jerard Lee has already made many allegations against them in the media - if they settle now, everyone is just going to assume that Timetric is guilty - that would do far more damage to their reputation. In forcing Jerard into a libel trial, they are doing their best to preserve their reputation by proving Jerard wrong in the court of law. Watch this space - this is an on-going court case.

Do you believe Michael Jackson was guilty? 

Q:   "Jeard's portrayal of how the company treats its staff is damaging to their reputation it can result in severe business loss. Right?"

A: Not really, because regardless of what happened between Jerard and Amit, at the end of the day, none of that affected the product. Customers are selfish - they will kick up a big fuss if there is something wrong with the product. So for example, earlier this year, Findus - one of the UK's biggest producer of ready meals - suffered a major blow when it was revealed that many of their ready meals which were supposed to be made of beef were contaminated with horse meat. The consumers kicked up a huge fuss and got very upset when they realized that they had been eating horse when they were sold beef. It was a big story in the media internationally.

Now imagine this - would the Findus customers be as upset and angry if they found out that a worker at a Findus factory was teased and subjected to bullying at the Findus factory? No. Would they boycott Findus products if such a story was true? No. Would they still buy Findus products at the supermarket? Yes, especially if there is a sale. Welcome to the real world, customers are very selfish people.

Now Timetric sell market intelligence reports - their customers would only get upset if the quality of their market intelligence reports were compromised. This might happen if say the data used to compile the reports were out of date or inaccurate, or that the methodology used to analyse the data was incorrect thus leading to misleading information in their reports - hypothetically, if something like that did happen, then yes it would lead to a scandal and they would lose business. But something like that pertaining to HR? Nobody will give a shit.

Think of your daily routine - you use a mobile phone, you eat out and get food at a food court, you buy clothes, you go shopping, you go to the supermarket, you use public transport etc - do you stop for a moment and care if any of the people involved in providing those goods and services are bullied? No, you don't even think about that for a moment - you simply make sure you get good value for money and you think about yourself, not others. If that is the way you behave, what makes you think Timetric clients for market intelligence will behave any differently? When was the last time you spoke to a cashier or waiter and said, "how are you today? Are you being treated well here? Is your manager nice to you?"

"Oh waiter, do they treat you well in this restaurant?"

I am going to be very careful here as I am about to talk about a true story - there is a famous department store in London which is very famous for their luxury goods. If you know London well, then you probably can guess where I am talking about. Now they have a bad reputation for treating their staff really badly. I have heard some horror stories about quite a nasty culture of bullying by the managers there and this has been going on for years. Ooh, do you think the people who shop there actually give a shit that the staff who are serving them are being bullied? Hell no, people are way too selfish. They will go there and shop if they enjoy shopping there (especially during the sales) and gladly pretend that they are not aware of how badly the staff there are treated. Admit it, you're just as selfish as everyone else.

Q: Why does Jerard need a lawyer if lawyers are so expensive?

Most company will use law suit to tame the other party. In this case has the company doing it yet? 
To J, if u r reading this. 'if u r doing the right thing n hold the truth. Be firm of yourself.' 
you need not to engage a lawyer if is individual. Company will hv to be represented by lawyer.
When u in court. Shld this happen. Just tell the truth n focus n be not easily sway off your thought by the other lawyer or rep. They r many smart people in the court who know wat is right n what is wrong. You will not be alone if u hv the truth.
The company will hv to much to think of if they decided to take legal action against u.

Would you take legal advice from a 12 year old kid?

A: The above comment sounds like it was written by a 12 year old who thinks that going to court is no different from being dragged into the school principal's office and the principal saying, "who started this fight?" It is not so simple - when this goes to court, both parties will have to prove how the law was broken in the allegations of bullying in the work place and the counter allegations of libel. It will boil down exactly to what the laws in Singapore are on both issues and I can tell you that Timetric will have  lawyers who will be an expert on both employment law and libel. They will be able to build a very strong case to show that they have done absolutely no wrong on the allegations of bullying and that Jerard is guilty of libel.

Jerard is not the world's most articulate person (and that's putting it mildly) - but more to the point, he is not a lawyer, he has no idea what the laws are in Singapore with regards to bullying in the work place or libel/slander. He would be like a lamb to the slaughter house when he gets cross examined by the Timetric lawyers. The judge is a very busy man - he is not going to take the time to start advising Jerard along the way where he stands, no. He expects Jerard to show up at court ready to defend himself and demonstrate a strong case. And no, the judge is not going to take Jerard's side just because he is Singaporean - the judge will do his job and look at the case and pass a fair judgement.

Luckily, Jerard is not thaaat stupid - he realizes at least how difficult this challenge is and has engaged the services of a lawyer. And Timetric have already taken legal action against Jerard, they have started that process last week - so please keep up with the facts, this is an on-going case with loads of new developments all the time.

Q: Wait a minute, isn't this hugely unfair? What about poorer people who can't afford lawyers? Don't they have the right to justice? What if I can't afford to hire an expensive lawyer if I am poor?

A: If a poor person who wants to sue a company has concrete evidence and a strong case, then justice will prevail.  You can apply for legal aid or defend yourself - but I wouldn't recommend the latter if you're not a trained lawyer and if you're up against an excellent lawyer. Just use the legal aid option.

Q: But if the company is NOT doing those things Jerard had mentioned (aka treating their staff badly) and is not hiding it, then why don't they just release to the media saying that it is not true and give examples and reasons. And it is good PR as well. Suing someone shows that you have something to hide and you just want that someone to shut up.

A: You are looking at it the wrong way - this is not (and never has been) trial by media. You (and all the other people on EDMW) are not the judge, nor are you the jury. You are quite simply, not involved. Your opinion doesn't matter and you do not get a say in what happens even if you do want to take an interest in the outcome of this case. Therefore, by that token, Timetric is not obliged to release any kind of PR communiqué to you about the case because it is ultimately an internal matter between them and one of their former employees. It is not good PR to respond to allegations like that because it then becomes this trial by media 'he said, she said, they said' - no no no. You clearly don't understand how PR works.

Besides, they didn't want to sue Jerard in the first place - no, Jerard was the one who started everything! He single-handedly created a media frenzy around his allegations of bullying and forced Timetric to react to defend themselves against his allegations. Whilst he has the right to bring a case against his former employees, they have the right to defend themselves and countersue him for liber if they feel that he has lied about what actually happened. In any case, it is too late to get him to shut up at this stage - look, the very fact that you and I are discussing about this case means that this information is already common knowledge from Singapore to London. In case you haven't noticed, Jerard has been quiet since the 30th April. In any case, what else is there to hide? Jerard has been shouting from the rooftops and talking to anyone and everyone who showed any interest (including yours truly, Limpeh), giving us all the juicy details.

They are not suing Jerard to shut him up, they are suing him because he has been a big mouth. It is not about silencing him, it is about what he has done already. Did it occur to you that what Jerard did - in going to Wanbao for example - violated a contract of professional confidentiality that Jerard signed when he started working at Timetric about not divulging internal information? These companies know how to protect themselves against employees who decide to turn against them - it is standard practice to make all employees sign such a contract regarding confidentiality.

Q: Why did Amit and Jerard just not get along? Was this a clash of culture - with Amit being a Brit who is new to Singapore? Is this Amit not adjusting to our Singaporean culture? 

A: I don't think so - I am from Singapore and I have worked in the UK for years and have had no problems fitting in. I think it is ridiculous the way Singaporeans talk as if British people are like aliens from another planet - oh please, things are not that different here. But let me make one thing clear - Jerard chose to work for Timetric, that was his choice. It was up to him to fit in, get used to the way Timetric ran their sales team and be a part of the Timetric. Timetric was not going to bend over backward to welcome Jerard and change everything there just to make Jerard happy! As we would say in NS, "You think this is your grandfather's company izzit?"

So it is utter bullshit, it is just anti-FT xenophobia when those on EDMW accuse Amit of not being aware of Singaporean culture. You guys need to grow up and realize that a few hard truths about the working world. Unless your father or grandfather is the boss, unless it is literally "your grandfather's company", then get real - if they say jump, you say how high. You don't get to tell your boss how you want him to run things the Singapore way - he gets to call the shots because he is paying your salary and if you don't like it, if it is not Singaporean enough for you, then you can always leave and go work for a Singaporean if that is what you want.

Q: Why is there support for Jerard on EDMW?

A: I think this is because there are many Singaporeans who are very worried and afraid for their future - especially those who are still in school or NS, they see so many FTs around and they wonder, can I get a job in Singapore? What kind of future will I have in Singapore? They feel powerless as they are in no position to influence the government's policy on population growth. So when you give them a case like that, they jump right in because they already hate FTs - many of them don't even know the details of this case, they just know that there is an FT involved and out comes to xenophobic, racist rhetoric.

If these people really do support Jerard, then they would have passed the hat around and collected money for his expensive court case which is Jerard can ill-afford right now as an unemployed father with a one year old daughter. No, instead the case has dropped down the list of EDMW forum's hot topics and soon, the EDMW community will find something else to get angry about. These young kids on the forums are trying to convince themselves that they actually can influence the world around them. I can only laugh at just how delusional these kids are. Who gives a shit about what the kids on EDMW say? Timetric doesn't care and the government certainly doesn't give a shit.

They call themselves keyboard warriors - that means they talk big on the forums, make threats and big themselves up. So many of them made a big deal about a video that was on Amit Patel's youtube page featuring a friend of Amit's spitting out of a window in Singapore, where spitting is illegal. Did any one of them have the balls to refer that case to the police and make a report? No. Not one of them did. It is pathetic - they expect someone else to do it for them. And all this so called CSI - by pasting a link to Amit Patel's Linkedin profile. Duh, that information was already in the public domain already, so what?  Despite the utter futility of their efforts, they actually believe that all this bullshit on EDMW can actually change the attitude of FT bosses in Singapore? How naive are these kids on EDMW?

So far, I have been the only one who has been advocating that if they are really supporting Jerard, they should prove it by giving him money. I feel sorry for Jerard really, because he was foolish enough to believe that he actually had real support there but  the moment I challenge them to take out their wallets to give Jerard some money, look how quickly they have deserted Jerard. And if you want to say something about FTs in Singapore, you should have been protesting at Hong Lim Square on the 1st May.

I think there is also a lot of wishful thinking on the part of these kids on EDMW - they want to believe that if they do get into trouble, other Singaporeans will stand up for them and help fight for their rights. But they need to realize that if you want people to help you, it takes more than a misguided sense of patriotic duty - no, you would help friends whom you genuinely care about, not random strangers who happen to be born in the same country. It is easy to spout anti-foreigner statements online, but how many of these so called patriotic Singaporeans are willing to give Jerard $100 for his legal bills?

Q: What should Jerard do now?

A: He needs to listen to his lawyer and do exactly what his lawyer tells him to do.

Q: What if I am subjected to bullying in the workplace?

A: Have a read of my reply to Angela here.

Q: OK but what if it is worse than Angel's case? What if I get a really nasty boss? What can I do?

A: I can't give you advice on a hypothetical case that is worse than Angela's - at least in Angela's situation, I urged her to remain calm and work towards resolving the conflict whilst avoiding escalating the tension. Sometimes, there are things we can do to try to get along better with our bosses, sometimes there is little we can do and if things get really bad, there is always the option to leave and find another job.

Q: Why do you think Jerard reacted like that?

A: I can't read Jerard's mind and I don't want to guess - but I can say that in general Singaporeans are badly prepared for the working world because of the way there is such a ridiculous amount of emphasis on academic performance. I blame the education system and Singaporean parenting - we are told that it is so very important to study hard and get good grades at school, that we must go to university and get a good degree. However, there is virtually no emphasis on the issue of group work, nobody is teaching our students how to get along with each other in the work place when this is one of the most vital skills we need as working adults.

Some of us manage to figure this out for ourselves as we socialize with our friends - I am very lucky to have older siblings who were instrumental in imparting these precious skills to me as I was growing up in Singapore. I have observed many others who were undoubtedly very intelligent but simply lacked these basic social skills even as adults; and yes, they suffer as a result. I'd like to see Singaporeans students spend less time studying alone (ie. 'mugging') and more time doing group activities like playing basketball or going camping in order to develop these social skills.

Q: Are the people at Timetric reading EDMW now? 

No. They are not, they have better things to do. They followed it a bit when Jerard was active on it, but now that Jerard is silent, they have lost interest in EDMW. The case is being handled by their lawyers now anyway so their lawyers are only interested in what Jerard said, not what other people have discussed about the case. You people are not involved, you're not relevant; you can say what you want on EDMW because your opinions don't matter to Timetric.

Q: When will we know the outcome of the case?

A: Soon, please be patient.

Q: Can I ask you more questions? 

A: Yes, just leave a comment below.