Reference no: EM1332475
Jasmine, aged 17, is passionate about acting. She aspires to be a leading actress in local TV dramas in a few years' time.
Jasmine decided to participate in a 10-month workshop for acting skills. This workshop was run by A-Acting, a company that was set up by Rainie, a former TV actress.
She had to sign a contract and pay the full amount of course fees upfront. As time went on, Jasmine began to find the terms of the contract very restrictive.
Under Clause 5 of the contract, she is not allowed to take on any part-time or full-time job. Instead, she has been spending her time studying and during the weekends, working long hours as an "assistant" to Rainie.
Her work included preparing documents for the various departments of A-Acting, making reservations for Rainie etc.
Sunny Productions had approached Jasmine recently and offered her a small role in their upcoming movie. Rainie pointed to Clause 5 of the contract and refused to let Jasmine accept Sunny Production's offer.
To placate Jasmine, Rainie told Jasmine that she viewed Jasmine as her younger sister and would take care of her; she would pay her S$10 per hour for being her assistant. Rainie even said that she would back-pay Jasmine for the past few weekends of work.
a) Discuss whether Rainie is bound by the arrangement to pay Jasmine S$10 per hour.
b) Consider and discuss whether Jasmine is entitled to the back-pay for the previous weekends of work.
c) Jasmine also thinks that S$10 per hour is too low and asks if she has any basis in common law principles to insist for a "more decent" pay. Advise her