The management of Bumiputra-Commerce Bank (M) Bhd will revert to the National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) on the issue of ex-gratia payment for unionised staff within 10 days.

The bank will also revert to NUBE on the long service awards and pilgrimage leave concerns by June 3, after its board meeting.

These are part of the six-issue complaint letter dated Jan 31 sent to BCB managing director Dr Rozali Mohd Ali, stipulating a seven-day period to resolve the issues.

Union members had also considered taking industrial action by wearing protest badges.

Following that, the Human Resources Ministry called for a meeting on Monday.

The complaints included:

  • non-payment of ex-gratia monies to unionised staff;
  • 30-day pilgrimage leave for officers compared with 14 days for the unionised staff;
  • scrapping of long service awards (20 years) as previously practised by the Bank of Commerce before the merger with Bank Bumiputera (M) Bhd; and
  • outsourcing of bank operations.

    • NUBE secretary-general J Solomon said due to time constraints, today's conciliatory meeting was cut short.

    "We didn't manage to cover the outsourcing issue but we will meet the BCB management again specifically for this on Thursday morning.

    "This is a major concern among our members," he said when contacted today.

    'Very cordial'

    Solomon also described the two-and-a-half hour conciliatory meeting as "very cordial".

    He said with regard to the ex-gratia payments, the management understood the feelings of employees.

    "They have indicated that a proposal will be made to the management committee before reverting to us by the end of the month.

    "We also decided to give them more time to revert to us on the long service awards and pilgrimage leave issues since the time [for these events] has already passed. These events will occur again next year," he said.

    There are approximately 6,000 NUBE members in BCB.

    Meanwhile, the union is gearing up for branch elections expected to be held at the end of March. Nominations must reach the respective branch secretaries no later than 6pm on March 1.

    The delegates conference and the 20th triennial general meeting are expected to be held by April 30.