Company issues apology after guard caught verbally abusing Top Glove worker

 

A representative of Westlite Dormitory Management Sdn Bhd has issued an apology to a Nepalese worker staying at a dormitory for Top Glove workers following the release of a video in which a security guard is seen shouting and manhandling a worker.

"We will locate the affected Nepalese worker and apologise on behalf of the security company for the incident which happened at 9.30pm on Jan 27 at the hostel building," said Westlite's Daniel Ng in a statement yesterday.

Ng said that Westlite had told the security guard was not performing up to Westlite's standards and that Westlite had served notice to the security company to have him removed.

It will also lodge a formal complaint over this issue, he said.

"What he did is not forgivable and he is solely responsible for portraying a bad image of both Westlite and Top Glove. His actions were inappropriate, and he failed to show maturity and professionalism and also distracted other residents," Ng added.

In the video, a security guard is shown yelling abusively and motioning threateningly towards a foreign worker before eventually pushing him.

A source who communicated with Top Glove workers present at the incident told Malaysiakini that the incident erupted from a simple misunderstanding over the path that workers in the hostel needed to take to get to the canteen.

"The guard became angry and aggressive. The video that is released only shows the middle of the incident but those present claim that before the footage, the guard beat the worker," alleged the source.

The source told Malaysiakini that footage of the beating was on another video but that it had been deleted by some of the security guard's co-workers.

The source added that workers at the dormitories were unhappy over living conditions and long lines to get food.

Ng said in his statement that they are seriously evaluating the security company and will not hesitate to terminate their services should standards not be met.

"Rest assured that the incident will not happen again and we will do everything to monitor them," he said.

Last month, Selangor police received a report from Top Glove regarding allegations of abuse by an enforcement officer on duty around its quarantine facilities in Meru, Klang.

This happened after a video went viral showing a man, purportedly a foreign worker at a Top Glove factory, being abused by what appeared to be a member of the security forces, prompting outrage and calls for an investigation. - Mkini