MindShare quits 4As in China over poaching fine row

<p>A bitter row has broken out in China over the contentious issue of </p><p>staff poaching - with MindShare resigning its membership of the 4As in </p><p>the mainland. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Staff poaching has been rampant recently, with an increasing number of </p><p>media independents setting up in the mainland and disputes over the </p><p>"gentlemen's agreement" imposed by the Hong Kong 4As have been </p><p>flaring. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>A row over poaching penalties pushed MindShare into withdrawing from </p><p>association with the 4As in China, after the media shop was allegedly </p><p>accused of failing to pay the 4As-imposed poaching fines. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Under current rules, an agency will be punished for poaching staff who </p><p>have attended a 4As training programme if the poaching occurs within a </p><p>year after completing the course. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>MindShare has refused to pay penalties for poaching junior staff from </p><p>McCann-Erickson Guangming Beijing and Starcom Shanghai. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>According to MindShare Greater China CEO Leo Wong, the refusal to pay </p><p>was based on principle. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Some people use this poaching rule to take advantage of MindShare </p><p>China," said Mr Wong, who claimed the staff hired had already resigned </p><p>from their previous employers when MindShare took them on. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The McCann staffer was hired as a freelancer and management and </p><p>MindShare informed McCann prior to the appointment, said Mr Wong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In a letter to the 4As, he described the penalty as "total nonsense" and </p><p>accused unnamed parties of "trying to take advantage of MindShare". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We completely agree with the 4As and (the poaching penalty) is a </p><p>straightforward situation," said McCann Beijing associate media director </p><p>Andrew Hebden. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"It was a decision taken by the vote of the group of 4As agencies." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Hebden said McCann had filed two poaching complaints against </p><p>MindShare to the 4As; the first had already been settled. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The penalty for the first offence is HK$50,000; this doubles for </p><p>the second attempt made to poach. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>McCann, Ammirati Puris Lintas and MindShare all handle Unilever </p><p>accounts, with MindShare snatching the AOR media business in a pitch </p><p>last year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"In these two cases, I don't think we have done anything wrong," said Mr </p><p>Wong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We will not pay any money and, in fact, I would like to complain that </p><p>some people are trying to use this condition to take advantage of </p><p>us." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Hong Kong 4As chairman Jeffrey Yu said he was very disappointed with </p><p>MindShare's decision to pull out of the 4As in China. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We're there to exercise the rules and enhance training; we don't want </p><p>to become police to find out who is wrong and right. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"You can't use (the poaching penalty) as a way to blame the 4As," said </p><p>Mr Yu, who said the whole issue reflected the "lack of maturity" among </p><p>the agencies' management. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Yu said staff poaching and training had become a major issue in </p><p>China, with a growing number of media shops not committing to providing </p><p>adequate staff training. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>However, MindShare's Mr Wong said he had doubts over the real </p><p>contribution of the 4As in China, as it operated out of Hong Kong as a </p><p>subsidiary of the China business committee. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Asked if MindShare would consider rejoining the 4As at a later stage, Mr </p><p>Wong said it was unlikely as he felt the 4As did not really function as </p><p>an adequate representative body in the mainland. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Yu of the 4As said the association would welcome MindShare back any </p><p>time - as long as it paid outstanding penalties. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>However, Mr Wong repeated his refusal to settle the fines, and said he </p><p>was prepared to fight the case in court if need be. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>