Respite for Sabah college workers after they finally get their pay

Sabah Animation and Creative Content Centre deputy director Marina Abd Ghanie (seated, third from right) with some of the 56 other staff members.

KOTA KINABALU: There is finally some respite for most of the 57 staff members of the Sabah Animation and Creative Content Centre (SAC3) here who had claimed they had not been paid their salaries and other remunerations for between one and three months.

SAC3 deputy director Marina Abd Ghanie, also one of those affected, said 51 of the 57 have received their December salary as of Dec 24.

“We received SMS texts from our respective banks informing that the transfer of money to our accounts had been successful.

“However, the other six have only received their October and November salaries. The status of their December salary is still unknown as of now,” she said.

FMT had reported previously that this group had appealed for help concerning their predicament.

Marina had said the University College Sabah Foundation (UCSF) had yet to pay the December salary of SAC3’s 51 permanent staff and three months’ salaries of six contract staff.

SAC3, which was set up in 2009, was originally placed under Kolej Yayasan Sabah (KYS), as the implementing agency, before being transferred to UCSF in 2014.

UCSF is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Sabah Foundation.

All expenditure, including the emoluments of staff, are borne by the Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (Sedia), which channels the funds through UCSF to pay SAC3’s salaries and bills.

Marina had also said she had sent appeal letters to the Sabah Foundation director twice but was told to discuss the matter with UCSF first. She said she had written to Sabah Foundation as it is the owner of UCSF.

Today, Marina said UCSF had not contacted SAC3 staff members thus far.

However, she was grateful to those who had attended to their plight, thanking particularly the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC), Industrial Relations Department, Labour Department and the media for the help.

“Most of all, our thanks go to the Sabah Foundation director for finally stepping in to help us at SAC3, especially during this festive period.

“The status and future of SAC3 is pretty much unresolved, even after the salary payment.

“What we really need now is the intervention or involvement from a higher authority in the government, namely the chief minister, to bring about a more permanent solution instead of just a temporary one,” Marina said. - FMT