31 July 2006

WITCH HUNT OF EMPLOYEES

Staff pays for BCB/SBB merger! 

BCB INCREASE INTEREST RATE FOR STAFF HOUSING LOAN (SHL) 

SHIFTING GOALPOSTS

Please note that the meeting was not a consultation nor does it seek the views of the unions.  The decision has been made prior to the briefing.

At a time that staff are really suffering from the pain of the exorbitant increase in the  fuel price , such interest rate hike will mean at least 70% of the staff will have to fork out up to more than RM100 extra a month.

UNJUSTIFIED

The bank’s reason that interest rates in Malaysia are on the way up does not hold water.  Why didn’t the bank reduce interest rates for SHL when interest rates were at a historical low and banks even offered interest free loans to customers during the past 7 years???

Interest rate for SHL has always been consistent and never directly linked to BLR.  Because of SHL, SBEU has been conservative in demanding salary increase because banks always argue that there is a monetary benefit in the preferential interest rates.  The only other time interest rate was revised was when the bank reduced it from 3.5% to 3* because of the harmonization of the terms and conditions after the merger between BBB and BOC.*

Even at 3 % banks are making profit out of SHL.  Please note that customers are putting hundred of millions in savings accounts that earn less than 3%. Customers are also putting and more millions into current account that does not cost the bank a single sen in interest.  Bad debts provisions for SHL are negligible. There is no marketing cost and minimal credit management cost for SHL.

The banking system is still flushed with excess liquidity and banks are struggling to maintain loan growth until they have to relax credit criteria.  So why does the board of BCB do to increase their profits and to please shareholders?  Squeeze money out of their own staff loans, knowing that staffs are not able to shift their loans to other financial institutions.

This is also a blatant attempt to discourage staff to take SHL.  Why? Simple -when the bank introduced VSS/MSS, one reason why staff did not

apply for VSS is that they are still committed in their SHL so that bank gets less employees to apply for VSS.

DISHONOUR LOAN AGREEMENTS

The bank is also even prepared to dishonour the loan agreement they sign with the staff at the time when the loan was approved- Interest rate was fixed at 3%. There are no provisions in the loan agreement that gives the bank the right to increase the interest rate.

WHO IS TAKING OVER WHOM?

Another reason which is very clear to us is that current SBB staff housing loan is at 4%.  BCB now wants to follow SBB.  Is BCB taking over SBB or is it following SBB?

It also offends the basic principle that employees will enjoy the better of the terms and conditions of employment after a merger. As evidenced * above.

STAFF DECLARATION Witch Hunt

The Bank is also using the pretext of the merger to go on a witch hunt of employees and their families who have credit facilities with either bank,  if they borrow money from staff, have football bets, outstanding traffic summons or have outstanding alimony or child support payments.

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

The Bank also decreed that they will implement new benchmark and change the ratings/weightage of the system with effect 1 July 2006; they only brief the Unions on 27 July- i.e. after it has been implemented.

They blatantly shifted the goals post during the game- after half time- actually. The senior management should be red carded!!

Such arbitrary decrees are a direct result of the merger, which is designed to benefit shareholders only- not customers, not employees. They appear to ignore the views of the unions and employees, much less respect the wishes of staff.

This is the mantra of the merged bank- expect more of these arbitrary decisions.

What message do members want to send to the bank?

GET READY!