Question Questions regarding employment ethics and legalities for translators

Discussion in 'Translator's Corner' started by Eishun, Nov 18, 2021.

  1. Eishun

    Eishun Well-Known Member

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    Here's my situation.

    Company A

    Currently, I am kinda employed with Company A. I say "kinda" because I didn't actually sign any contract with them. Before you begin working for them, you have to register for their online platform using a China based number. I didn't have one so the staff helped me with it and I think they also signed the contract on my behalf? So like, right now, I don't even know what are the terms on my contract are. They just told me my contract was successfully signed on my behalf and that's that.

    And I haven't started doing work for them yet. Reason being their company initiation process is complex and I am still going through all the training docs and videos. And there's some confusion because my PM suddenly told me to register for yet another online platform. But my pay was supposed to be handled on the original platform, so I asked my PM if hopping over to the new platform would affect the payment of my wages. She hasn't responded to my query yet and so I am still holding back from registering on the new platform. Which means she has yet to give me a single chapter of work.

    When I sent my questions to her in an email, she just told me to go to Skype to get my answers. I hate IM apps so I insisted on keeping in touch via emails. And then the next email I got from her was an exact copy of the first email she sent me (i.e. the welcome letter to new employees).

    Company B

    So anyhow, while I am going crazy over the complex situation with Company A and the silence from my PM, I suddenly received an email from Company B. Apparently, I took their translation test a couple of weeks ago and they just wrote in to tell me I've passed. As soon as I sign the contract, I am in. And it's a contract I can see for myself. With the terms printed out clearly in a pdf file. Unlike the previous invisible contract with A.

    So my questions are:

    1) Should I leave A to join B? Because it seems, from the fact that they just sent me a contract I can read for myself, it seems the situation at B is less ambiguous and complex.

    2) Is it legal and ethical for me to resign from A right away just because I want to join B? Even though I am an employee (kinda), I haven't done a stroke of work for them yet. But on the other hand, I've already read all the employee training docs.

    3) In my position, would you quit A to join B? Here's some info for comparison. A is paying me US$9 for every 1000 Chinese characters translated. B, on the other hand, is paying me US$25 for every 1000 Chinese characters translated.

    4) How would you go about quitting A then? Like would you even bother writing in to A to resign or just maintain radio silence and hope they will go away? What reason would you give?
     
  2. Baldingere

    Baldingere Roseau pensant

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    First of all A is effing shady, I would leave in a heartbeat
    And any contract you haven't read and don't know the terms of shouldn't be liable to you.
    They don't have the high ground to attack you.
    Just tell them you call the negotiation (consider it like there was no contract at all) off and that you won't contract with them.
    Make sure you read B's contract, and good luck!
     
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2021
  3. Eishun

    Eishun Well-Known Member

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    But they have my CV and passport number so they filled in all the blanks with my personal info already? Does that not make it legally binding?
     
  4. Baldingere

    Baldingere Roseau pensant

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    What's your country?
     
  5. Eishun

    Eishun Well-Known Member

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    I am from Singapore but both companies I mentioned are in China.

    HOWEVER, Company A has a branch in Singapore as well. So I am afraid they can file for damages or whatever using the Singapore branch office.
     
  6. Baldingere

    Baldingere Roseau pensant

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    For a contract, there has to be a clear and firm offer that the other party accepts unconditionally. Because a contract is born when two wills join. But there's nothing clear about their offer, you don't know the terms they proposed. Not sure it's a firm offer either. And anyway, you need to receive and consider the offer before giving your acceptance. Which you couldn't. So there's no contract. Because they didn't make an offer and you didn't give unconditional acceptance. You didn't accept anything, you signed something but that's not enough to be an acceptation: you signed without agreeing.

    It was an employment "contract"?
    https://irblaw.com.sg/learning-centre/employment-contracts-employer-version/
    Cuz there are conditions for those to be valid. Given how shady they are being, they might not have followed all those. They wouldn't dare attack you legally if they are at fault themselves. They could harass you in other ways but there's no way they would win a fight before a court.

    You said somebody filled the stuff in for you, did you give your agreement to that? Did you intend for them to agree to the contract in your stead? If you agreed to them filling it in and making the contract valid in your stead, and they intended to act as your representative, that means you made a contract of agency and the contract they sign in your stead will be considered signed by you.

    That still won't make you liable because you never received the offer, so they signed something that means nothing, but the fact that they signed for you could be considered valid. But if the person said she would help you out then told you she signed the contract for you while at it, then it depends. I don't know how it is in Singapore, depending on the system you can give your agreement afterwards or you can't. So say you didn't give the person the agency to do that, if you agreed afterwards when she told you, it could be made valid that she signed for you.

    I'm gonna double-check the stuff in said in a while but I think you're safe legally. Even if the contract was considered established, you could ask for annulment, for error on consent or something else. Like, maybe they made you sign a contract where they hire you as a freelancer to do work for them, and you can ask for the contract to be annulled because you thought you were signing an employment contract, and thus there was a mistake on the contract type. And given you're the protected person, you can ask the judge for annulment of the contract.
     
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2021
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  7. Baldingere

    Baldingere Roseau pensant

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    So in Singapore contracts are created by the intent of both parties (so there's no need for the contract to be written or special formalism (generally)) but in your case, the formation of the contract didn't work out since they didn't give a firm and clear offer. There's no contract. You're free to go to B.
    I would send them an email of "resigning" still, just to be courteous so things stay civil and they give up on you without drama, hopefully.
     
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  8. Eishun

    Eishun Well-Known Member

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    Okay, I've decided. I am resigning from Company A.

    But what reason should I give?

    #1. I've just finished reading the operating manual for your online platform. But I am afraid it's far too complex for me to understand. Therefore, with the utmost regret, I must confess that I do not think I can be an asset to your company.

    #2. I am sorry to tell that another company has agreed to pay me a much higher salary, so I am going over to them.

    So #1 or #2? Anyone has any other suggestion?
     
  9. earlgreyt

    earlgreyt Active Member

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    I would go with 2 and be a bit more vague about it for example:

    "I regret to inform you that I have decided to resign from the job offer in pursuit of a better opportunity as I don't think we would be the best fit. Thank you for your time/appreciation, best wishes to you and your company, blahblah."
     
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