THE National Union of Bank Employees Union (NUBE) has accused Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong of going back on what was agreed between the Malayan Commercial Banks Association (MCBA) and NUBE last year on festival aid payments yearly.
However, the banks had on April 2 came up with the announcement on payment of one-off ex-gratia of one month salary for non-clerical staff and half-month for clerical and special grade staff.
The circular on the one-off ex-gratia payment was issued five days after the failed meeting between NUBE and MCBA chaired by the Industrial Relations Department.
The failure to reach an agreement between NUBE and MCBA on the payment of festival aid constitutes a trade dispute. Since there is a trade dispute, Sim should have called for an all- party meeting to resolve the trade dispute.
Unfortunately, he did not but allowed the matter to fester. More than 90% of NUBE members are those in the clerical and specific grade category.
In 2023, as result of the agreement between NUBE and MCBA, the workers were supposed to receive the festival aid of full month salary. This agreement was incorporated under the Festival Aid Memorandum of Agreement.
Banks thrive on employees’ contribution
NUBE has disputed that the agreement in the above memorandum was for the one-off ex-gratia payment.
The union is of the opinion that what was agreed between the union and the management over the festival payment has been disputed by the latter.
Given the fact that some banks in the country had paid festival aid of two months’ salary to workers of their foreign affiliates, why should the MCBA representing certain banks should opt for the one-off ex-gratia payment?
The existing trade dispute between NUBE and the MCBA remains to be resolved. The newly minted minister Sim should intervene in the matter before bank workers especially the rank and file are denied their basic rights.
As banks make huge profits in the country, surely a certain portion of the profits can be channelled into improving salaries of their employees.
The contribution of their employees is the primary source of profits gained by commercial banks. There can be no dispute on the matter.
Festival aid aims to lift the burden of finance expenses incurred by the families during festivals. Depreciation of the ringgit has given rise to inflation impacting negatively on the workers’ purchasing power.
There is no reason for MCBA to deny the workers what was agreed upon to be substituted with one-off festival aid payments.
Minister’s guilt
Was Sim party to the decision to substitute yearly festival aid payments with one-off payments remains to be seen. NUBE thinks that the substitution took place without its knowledge in the presence of Sim.
Sim took his ministerial responsibility very seriously to the extent of showing his 100 days report card to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. He wanted to impress Anwar.
Now there is need on his part to show his report card on what he has done for the workers in the country especially the financial crunch faced by bank workers.
Since there is an ongoing trade dispute, there is an urgent need for Sim’s intervention before thousands of bank employees take their Hari Raya break.
Sim cannot be an effective Human Resources Minister if fails in his duties to uphold the dignity of workers who constitute more than 50% of the nation’s workforce.
I sincerely hope he does not repeat the abysmal failures of the human resource ministers before him especially those from DAP, the party that supposedly champions the principle of social democracy.
I hope that Sim continues to subscribe to the idea of social democracy that places premium on the welfare and well-being of workers. – April 8, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
