A female bank employee has accused her employer of alleged union busting and racial discrimination after she was sacked for not attending a Bank Negara-mandated refresher course.

Katheriene Vimala D Aricasnin, 44, said she was unfairly terminated from her job of 22 years by Bank Muamalat Malaysia Berhad (BMMB) although she had applied for leave which she claimed was approved by the management, to exempt herself from the training.

The training on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism and Shariah Refresher course was scheduled on Saturday, March 16, in Seberang Jaya.

NONE Katheriene ( right ), who works as a clerk in the bank’s Kulim branch, said she applied for leave for personal reasons and it was approved on March 12 by the management.

She added that she was to attend a picket by the National Union of Bank Employees (Nube) in Kelantan from March 16-18.

However, on March 15, Friday, at 5.45pm, she received a  letter threatening her with disciplinary action from the management for not attending the training.

She was eventually dismissed on June 7 by the acting head of the bank’s human resources department Mohd Rasol Raman Mustapha, after being told to show cause for not attending the course.

“The bank did not follow proper procedures to terminate me. They did not accept my explanation nor arrange a meeting with me.

“Another staff member, a Malay, and a Nube member, also did not attend the training but no action was taken against him,” Katheriene said at a press conference in Komtar today.

“Since I am the only Indian and Nube member active in the Kulim branch, I see this action as union busting and  I am a victim of racial discrimination,” alleged the single woman.

Katheriene also claimed she was further discriminated against when she did not receive the laundry allowance of RM50 monthly which was normally paid out to other employees.

Accompanying Katheriene were Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy, Nube vice-president Abdul Jamil Jalaludeen and about 10 union members.

‘Reasons flimsy and unacceptable’

Ramasamy questioned the reasons for Katheriene’s dismissal, saying they were “flimsy and unacceptable”.

“Did the bank dismiss her because she is a woman, an Indian Malaysian or a Nube member?” he queried.

“I do not want to turn this into a racial issue but the facts seem to point to it. As a member of the Penang government in charge of human resources, I view this matter seriously,” he said.

“She worked half of her working life in this bank and they dismissed her over a flimsy reason for not attending a training course. What kind of bank is this?” he asked.

NONE Ramasamy expressed “shock” that the bank would dismiss an employee on racial grounds, urging the management to reinstate Katheriene immediately.

He added such racist attitude should not be employed on any staff member, no matter from which community they come from.

Abdul Jamil also viewed the dismissal as “questionable and curious”, claiming that the union have had problems with the bank related to their anti-union activities.

“To instill fear in other employees, they have to find a black sheep, who is also black in skin color,” he said.

“Katheriene is being sacrificed to threaten other employees not to be active in unions. It is also racial discrimination. When a Malay staff member did the same (did not attend training), why was no action taken?” he queried.

Abdul Jamil said that the bank operated based on Islamic principles but have acted in a “barbaric manner” when dismissing Katheriene.

He added that the normal process of filing the case at the Industrial Court will proceed soon.

When contacted, Mohd Rasol denied that the bank had racially discriminated against and terminated Katheriene, who started work in the Kulim branch in 2011.

“We have followed the proper procedures. There is no racial discrimination. It was not about her union activities,” Mohd Rasol told Malaysiakini .

“Her termination was purely based on her non-attendance at the training, which is compulsory and mandated by Bank Negara,” he added.

“We advise her to go through the proper channel to bring up her grievances,” added the bank’s industrial relations department chief.