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Sarawak BEU says “Do not short change and discriminate against us”

Published: 4 April 2011
Google translate: 

 Sarawak Bank Employees Union (SBEU-Sarawak) is seeking the Sarawak Commercial Bank Association (SCBA-Sarawak) to honor its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed on 8 March 2010 to extend benefits that they granted to employees in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah, be extended to Sarawak employees. Despite the MOU and agreeing to extend 13 other benefits, the Banks refused to do so. This MOA was signed after SBEU-Sarawak signed their Collective Agreements in March 2010 before the other two union concluded their agreements to ensure that the benefits extended is in line with the rest of the country.



SBEU-Sarawak listed the core benefits that they are short changed:-

-The extra 2% salary increase to employees in Sabah

-Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) of RM100/RM150 per month granted to employees in Peninsular Malaysia.

-Higher annual salary range from Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah

-Higher annual increment of 5.5% for Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah and only 5% for Sarawak.



SBEU-Sarawak is constrained to take industrial actions as all their efforts to resolve the matter amicably with the banks has been rejected. Initial well planned pickets were held in Sarawak in January 2011 on selected locations and intimidation actions against the union members were reported, including treats of stopping check off system by the management.



Law Kiat Min, the General Secretary said that “SBEU-Sarawak will only resort to pickets as a last resort and seek SCBA-Sarawak to come to the negotiation table in good faith to honor the Memorandum of Agreement.”



Presently the union had ceased any industrial actions as fresh start has been made to start the negotiation with SCBA-Sarawak. Hadiah Leen, President is firm on the union’s stand that the workers in any industry, including the banking industry should not be short changed.



Sarawak Bank Employees Union represents 96% of the non-executive workers in the state comprising more than 2,000 members.