Boredworkers.com

The National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) Malaysia are holding a protest in front of the Maybank branch in Damansara Uptown. The subject of the picket is the salary increment of non-clerical, clerical and special grade clerical staff that the union represents. Note that the protest is against all banks and not just Maybank alone.

According to the flyers, the NUBE has been demanding (I prefer requesting) for a 30% salary increase. This figure is based on the recent pay out made by the Government to government servants due to the increased cost of living. The banks via the Malayan Commercial Banks’ Association (MCBA) have offered to provide the 30% salary increment but at the cost of the two month contractual bonus that the staff are currently receiving. That is equivalent to an effective annual increment of 13.34%. Less than half of what the union is requesting.

NUBE has published a document on their site entitled “Bank Profits But Robs Workers Bonus” with details on the justification for the increment and comparisons between the salaries of bank CEOs vs the sum of salaries of the entire staff that NUBE represents. They are putting forth a compelling argument.

In an ideal world, everyone will get equal pay and equal opportunity. Better yet if no one had to work. But this isn’t an ideal world. Banks (and most business organisations for that matter) are all about profits and the bottom line.

On one level, I don’t really care if they get the demanded 30% annual increment but on a different level, I do support their cause. I’m not being mean or anything. It is simply because on a personal level, I try to have as little as possible to do with banks. My interactions are often limited to online banking and automated teller machines (ATM). I rarely, if ever meet the counter staff. In that sense, you could say the staff are invisible to me and the internal processes of the bank are transparent. Because I don’t know them, I cannot step forward and say that I give a damn. But I do understand their plight and the need to bring food to the table hence my support.

The problem is not so much the percentages but rather the base income that they are getting. With starting salaries of RM662/RM995, it is pitifully small. The basic incremental percentages (e.g. 5%) will not add any meat to the pie. Hence the need for a salary readjustment. Unfortunately, the market rates in Malaysia are skewed against the employees. It’s not just banks, but rather every aspect of the employee market.

On a greater scale, a minimum wage policy would do the people much good. But that’s not the direction we’re headed. The government’s direction is to draw in foreign investors and a minimum wage policy would be going against the grain. Malaysia is still one of the cheapest places to run a business. Cheaper even than India, believe it or not. But we’re going off topic now.

To sum things up, do I care? Not really. Do I support? Yes. Go fight for your increments but please, don’t ever whine. Nobody likes a whiner.

What do you think? Should they get the increment they are demanding?