KUALA LUMPUR – A HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd employee has lodged a police report against several National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) picketers for allegedly displaying “rude and unprofessional” remarks during a recent protest.
HSBC’s employee relations head Seetha Kumarasamy, who filed the report at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters today, claimed that the July 31 gathering outside the bank’s Bukit Bintang branch saw several placards containing phrases “personally targeting” her.
Asserting that the signs had caused her personal distress, Seetha also said she was subjected to harsh condemnation from netizens after videos of the protest, which is part of NUBE’s ongoing nationwide picketing exercise, made the rounds on social media.
“This blatant (instance) of cyberbullying and disturbance to my peace has caused me to fear for my safety,” Seetha said in the report sighted by Scoop.
According to the report, some of the offending signs in question said: “HSBC human resources chief Seetha K is stupid,” “mentally insane HSBC Seetha Kumarasamy screws up employee relations,” “the epitome of ego and folly HSBC ER Seetha K,” and “ignorance and foolishness in ER Seetha K.”
One sign that touched on religious sensitivities, Seetha said, had also tarnished HSBC’s image.
Besides that, the department head said it was “illogical” for NUBE picketers to attack her personally as her role with the bank was merely to facilitate relations between HSBC and NUBE, stressing that she had no power to make decisions in ongoing negotiations on industrial disputes.
“HSBC is not part of the Malayan Commercial Banks’ Association (MCBA) exco, (yet) NUBE has launched personal attacks against me to the point where my health has been affected and I am fearful.
“Even though I was hospitalised due to preterm labour, I still invited NUBE to negotiate the collective agreement,” she added, referring to the Customer Service Banker Collective Agreement between HSBC and NUBE.
On July 21, NUBE launched a series of nationwide pickets to protest against, among others, employers’ alleged refusal to cooperate in negotiations for increased salaries and more benefits under a separate agreement.
The demonstrations, said to be the longest in recent years as they enter into their third week now, highlighted NUBE’s dissatisfaction with top bank executives over issues such as alleged wage disparity, lack of career development programmes, and union busting.
In response to the protests, MCBA urged picketers to resume discussions to ensure that NUBE’s actions would not inconvenience bank customers and the general public, insisting that its disputed compensation and benefits packages had been “consistently competitive”.
In May, it was reported that the industrial court will resolve the clash between the two parties after Human Resources Minister Steven Sim referred the matter to the court in April for a fair and just decision aimed at safeguarding the interests of all involved. – August 6, 2024