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United Overseas Bank has agreed to
do away with its requirement for a spouse to resign if both husband and wife are
from the same bank.
It used
to have a clause in the promotion letter to those who are promoted that read as
follows:
Where two employees of the Bank with
signing power are joined in matrimony, one of the employees will be
required to resign from the service of the Bank
Whilst the policy applies only to
staff with signing powers, SBEU took up the issue because we feel that such a
policy is discriminating and insulting.
It would also means that our members
cannot get promoted if their spouses are already an officer with signing power,
unless they are prepared to divorce their spouses.
This is clearly wrong as it force
staff to choose between family and career.
There is also no evidence at all to
suggest that married employees pose a higher risk in security and control. Any
perceived risks can be easily be mitigated by suitable working arrangements.
It is heartening to note that UOB
after taking SBEU views into account has agreed to change their policy and amend
the clause in the promotion letter to the new one, which read as follows:
Where two employees of the Bank with
signing power are joined in matrimony, one of the employees MAY be
required to resign from the service of the Bank. However the Bank will try to
place the employee in a suitable position to enable the employee to continue
employment with the Bank.” |
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The bank will further be guided as
follows
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There should not be
any reporting relationship between husband and wife
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Their roles do not
compromise conflicting interest in their decision-making/approving authority in
the bank
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Both husband and wife
should not be in the same department or branch, especially when they fall under
scenarios 1 or 2 above.
We applaud the management taking
into account SBEU's views and for moving with the times to recognise that having
husband and wife in the same bank is not a bad thing.
On a lighter note, we encourage
members to cast their eyes wider and throw their nets further and look for
spouses in other banks/industry.
However please report to SBEU if any
banks force you to choose between your career and the love of your life. We may
not be able to choose your partner for you, but we can keep your job for you.
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