UNDER the banner “Justice for Uva”, over 300 National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) members nationwide are expected to stand in solidarity picketing against Maybank at its Batu Gajah branch in Perak today (Oct 28).
According to the workers’ union deemed Malaysia’s third largest, the picket is intended “to severely condemn Maybank’s complicity in condoning racism and callousness” towards bank clerk Uva which NUBE alleged was a victim of “harassment and blatant racial slurs” by bank executive Christine Loo.
“Uva was subjected to frequent harassment, rude reactions and called “hak”, a derogatory Cantonese term meaning “black” because of her skin colour,” NUBE general secretary J. Solomon pointed out in a media statement.
“In her distress, Uva cried for help from her manager Chang Yet but no action was taken to stop the abuse by Loo. Even after months of suffering and numerous pleas for help, Maybank’s management failed to act decisively, leaving Uva to endure emotional and psychological trauma.”
Solomon further revealed that no proper disciplinary action was taken against Loo despite she having “boldly admitted to harassing Uva with her racist actions and adamantly refuses to apologise despite numerous counselling and an official grievance filed by the victim”.
“In the face of such gross injustice, Loo remains protected by Maybank by merely being transferred from the Jelapang to Batu Gajah branch which is not more than 20km away,” he lamented.
“Maybank refused to remedy the traumatised victim who suffered escalated emotional and psychological toll. Despite a zero tolerance in Maybank’s group dignity policy and Loo’s glaring misconduct, there was no punishment, no accountability!”
Recall that in late August, NUBE also had also bone to pick with Malaysia’s largest bank in terms of market capitalisation and total assets after a female staff from the Maybank Bercham branch in Ipoh who was allegedly bullied and intimidated was ultimately suspended on Aug 20 for having reported incidents of sexual harassment against her.
The chain of events from this incident eventually culminated into widespread “spirited picketing” at numerous Maybank branches across the country after office hours (6pm to 7pm).
Below are three demands from NUBE in its latest “Justice for Uva” call:
- Severe disciplinary action against Loo and others involved in the cover-up in accordance with Maybank’s zero tolerance policy.
- A formal public and written apology to Uva; and
- Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), Maybank’s largest stakeholder, to step in and ensure the bank’s ESG (environment, social and governance) compliance towards their investees. – Oct 28, 2024
Main image credit: NUBE Malaysia/Facebook
