On the Jack Neo sex scandal and sexual harassment in the workplace

Much has been said about Singapore filmmaker Jack Neo’s infidelity recently. But little has been raised in regard to how his behaviour likely constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace, and in particular, the lack of specific laws in Singapore that protect employees from sexual harassment and give employees an avenue for seeking redress.

What is sexual harassment? One definition is that sexual harassment is the “intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favours”. It includes a range of behaviours from seemingly mild transgressions and annoyances to actual sexual abuse or sexual assault.

In the recent Jack Neo scandal, a number of women alleged that he made unwelcome sexual advances on them while they were in his employ or acting in his movies. Such behaviour certainly constitutes sexual harassment.

In this author’s view, every employee (whether female or male) should be protected by law from sexual harassment at the workplace. Furthermore, any employee who is sexually harassed at the workplace deserves an avenue of redress against the harasser. This is especially so if the harasser is in a position of authority over the victim. An employee who has been sexually harassed at the workplace should not be helpless without legal protection to defend herself or himself, and should not have to make the wretched choice of either losing the job or giving in to the unwelcome sexual demands of the harasser. If at all, the harasser is the one who should be penalised.

Now, sexual harassment is illegal in many countries, but unfortunately for Singapore employees, sexual harassment is not specifically illegal in Singapore.

In other countries, employers and harassers are legally responsible (under criminal and civil laws) for sexual harassment against their employees and liable to them for damages (i.e. monetary compensation for loss or injury). Examples of such countries include the United States, United Kingdom, the member states of the European Union, Australia, China, Philippines, India and Israel.

Why are there no specific laws enacted against sexual harassment in Singapore? It seems to this author that there are no good reasons why not, and it is time this lacuna is addressed by the Singapore government. In fact, sexual harassment is a prevalent problem in Singapore. In a 2008 study conducted by AWARE, 54% of the 500 participants surveyed reported having been sexually harassed at work. This includes both men and women.

Victimised employees need protection. And in this author’s personal opinion, it would not do to condone, or to rally around and support a harasser. Laws are vital to ensure that employers take pro-active steps to protect their employees from sexual harassment in the workplace, safeguard their careers and livelihoods, and give them a way to lodge their grievances. Having laws against sexual harassment will benefit not only local employees, but also the significant population of foreigners who come to Singapore to work (and who may otherwise be deterred from coming or harmed by the lack of sexual harassment laws). Certainly, such laws would go a long way in deterring a number of would-be offenders and protecting employees, and reprehensible cases such as the Jack Neo saga could be minimised or averted.

On restricting employees from competing or soliciting

It seems a fairly common practice in Singapore for employers to contractually impose post-employment restrictions on their employees to prevent them from working for a competitor or taking fellow employees away.

Because of these restrictions in their employment contracts, many employees worry that they cannot work for companies of their choice after leaving their employers. Further concerns which they have include:

• They cannot earn a living during the period of restraint, especially if their skills are not easily adaptable to other kinds of work.


• Their skills may be rendered sterile if not actively used.


• Their work experience will be adversely affected.

Why do employers impose such restrictions? Well, there are legitimate reasons for doing so if an employer wants to protect certain interests, such as:

• Preventing unauthorised use of its special trade connections.


• Preventing unauthorised use of its business secrets.


• Maintaining the stability of its workforce.

There are two competing principles at stake here: an employee’s freedom to work versus an employer’s right to protect its business interests.

Are these restrictions legal in Singapore? The short answer to this appears to be, it depends – on whether the restrictions are reasonable:

• First, as mentioned, the employer must have genuine legitimate interests to protect.


• Second, the extent of the restrictions themselves (such as the types of activity being restrained, the geographical area of restraint, the duration of restraint etc.) should be no more than necessary to protect the employer’s business interests.


• Third, the restrictions also have to be reasonable from a public policy viewpoint.

If the restrictions fail to meet any of these conditions, they will not be legal in Singapore.

But often, employers in Singapore impose such restrictions unfairly, either (i) simply to deter or “scare” their employees from working for a competitor, even if the employer doesn’t have adequate interests to protect, or (ii) having unreasonable restrictions, such as lengthy non-competition periods or restraining a wider scope of work than necessary or applying blanket restrictions to all their employees (even rank-and-file employees and junior executives) without heed as to whether these restrictions are even relevant to the nature of the jobs involved.

Now, many of these employees are generally helpless to negotiate the terms of their employment, and have very little choice in the matter. They are invariably taken advantage of by unscrupulous employers in these situations and are effectively “scared” or tied down. They usually also lack the financial resources to seek legal counsel of their own.

It would be good if the Singapore government could recognise this issue, and set up a small unit (perhaps at the Ministry of Manpower) to investigate and help mediate complaints in this respect, and also provide general advice to companies about not restraining their employees unduly.

On medical leave and the employee

Medical leave is an employee benefit that is given in the form of paid leave which employees can use during periods of sickness. In most countries, there are statutory laws which provide for and protect the employee’s right to medical leave, especially for the rank-and-file employees who seldom possess the bargaining power to negotiate the terms of their employment.

The approach typically taken in Western countries, with regard to an employee taking medical leave, displays compassion and understanding. If an employee falls ill and requires rest for a couple of days, most companies will allow the employee to call in sick. There is no need for the employee to produce a medical certificate issued by a doctor in order to take short term medical leave. Only in cases of longer medical leave, e.g. four or more days, will medical certification be required. This approach is based on mutual trust and respect accorded between the employer and the employee. The underlying principle which companies adopt, is that the employee is regarded as a mature adult and is trusted not to abuse the benefit given to him or her. Equally, the employee appreciates the trust given, and does not abuse it.

The attitude adopted by the majority of companies in Singapore is markedly different. The employee is required to go to a doctor to obtain a medical certificate as proof of his or her sickness, even for just 1 day of rest. Otherwise, medical leave will not be granted, and the employee’s absence will be considered as unauthorised, with the consequences that the absence will be deducted from his or her annual leave or salary, and possibly, disciplinary action taken.

Why do employers in Singapore treat their employees in this way? Well, Singapore employers claim they are afraid that medical leave benefits will be abused, resulting in a loss of productivity at work.

But if we think about it, the prevailing system in Singapore doesn’t really do much to prevent the abuse of medical leave benefits. Most companies will concede that employees who are determined to use up all their medical leave, will do so anyway whether or not their employers require them to see a doctor and obtain medical certification.

Does abuse exist in the Western system? Yes, of course there are some individuals who will tend to abuse the trust given to them. However, these are isolated cases, and by and large, the majority of employees do not abuse the system.

Now, the cost of providing health care to employees in Singapore is expensive – according to one estimate, it costs between S$800 and S$1,400 annually per worker. The larger companies in Singapore usually procure group health insurance for their employees to cover their medical expenses. However, many small and medium businesses find such group health insurance plans expensive, and they typically choose to reimburse their employees’ medical expenses on a per occurrence basis instead. What Singapore employers may have failed to realise, is that there is actually a cost-saving benefit if an employer allows its employees to call in sick without obtaining medical certification, i.e., medical expenses will not be incurred. Of course, this is in no way advocating that companies should do away with medical certification requirements just to save costs. The principle is about treating the employee as an adult.

To minimise the abuse of medical leave benefits, it is submitted that companies may consider giving small monetary rewards to employees who achieve full attendance (i.e. no medical leave taken) during the work year. Such a gesture will recognise the employees' efforts, and also serve as an incentive for them to keep healthy.

Hopefully, we will someday see a mindset change among Singapore employers in this aspect.