High Court rules ex-HR minister showed bias in union-banks dispute

 

The Kuala Lumpur High Court has ruled that a former human resources minister acted in a biased manner by intervening in a dispute between banks and their employees over 2024’s Hari Raya festive aid payments.

According to the New Straits Times, judge Aliza Sulaiman said the minister had violated the trust and confidence placed in his office when he involved himself in the dispute while the issue was still undergoing mediation.

While the court did not name the minister involved in the matter, the National Union of Bank Employees (Nube) had in 2024 accused then-human resources minister Steven Sim of abuse of power and breach of trust.

At the time, Nube alleged that Sim had sidelined workers in favour of negotiations with their employers, represented by the Malayan Commercial Banks’ Association (MCBA), for a festival aid payment.

Tensions between the two parties emerged when banks declined to pay a one-month festival aid to union members for 2024, despite an established agreement between Nube and MCBA.

While Nube argued that the payment formed part of the understanding reached under the parties’ collective agreement and that bank employees were entitled to the festive aid, the banks instead proposed a reduced, one-off ex gratia payment, which the union rejected.

Amid the turmoil, the matter was brought to the Industrial Relations Department (IRD) for conciliation. Nube subsequently filed a judicial review to challenge the then-minister’s decision to refer the dispute to the industrial court.

‘Minister’s neutrality compromised’

Citing Aliza’s grounds of judgment dated Feb 23, the New Straits Times reported the judge as ruling that evidence showed the minister had given his “time and input” to the MCBA on the issue while it was undergoing conciliation.

The judge said the minister had entered the arena of the dispute and apparently supported MCBA’s proposal for an ex gratia payment, a move aligning his office with the employers’ position and compromising the ministry’s role as a neutral arbiter.

“I find that, while the minister had denied any ‘secret meeting’ between himself and MCBA, he had evidently given his time and input to the latter to discuss the matter while it was undergoing a conciliation process at the IRD.

“By doing so, the minister had entered into the arena of dispute and apparently supported MCBA’s proposal to make the ex gratia festival aid payment for 2024,” the judge ruled. 

The court further found that the minister’s actions had violated the trust and confidence placed in his office, as well as subverting the statutory process designed for impartial resolution and violating the objectives of the Industrial Relations Act 1967.

“Thus, the minister had demonstrated bias, and his decision to refer the trade dispute to the industrial court was tainted with unreasonableness,” Aliza said.

In awarding RM10,000 in costs to Nube, the court also held that the minister had failed to properly consider the internal dispute resolution mechanism under the parties’ collective agreement before referring the matter to the industrial court.

MCBA has since reportedly filed a note of appeal against the decision.

Nube was represented by lawyers Ravi Nekoo and Arvin Kumar Mohan, while Sivabalah Nadarajah and Chua Kim Lin appeared for MCBA. - Mkini