It urged Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to intervene in the interests of workers, many of whom are in the B40 and M40 groups, and ensure that multinational companies do not treat local workers unfairly through voluntary separation schemes and mutual separation schemes (VSS & MSS).

In a statement, NUBE general secretary J Solomon said the union had raised the matter with the human resources ministry numerous times in the last year about the repeated VSS and MSS being undertaken by HSBC Malaysia, but to no avail.

“There is no remedial action from the ministry to prevent acts of harassment, especially with the implementation of VSS and MSS. Implementing outsourcing strategies will eliminate permanent job opportunities for local citizens.”

Solomon questioned the rationale behind the ministry’s approval of HSBC Malaysia’s downsizing exercises at a time of crisis when they should be helping to protect the livelihoods of local workers.

“Looking at the attitude of the human resources ministry only confirms that it is more than happy to allow corporate sector employers to harass and victimise workers.

“The ministry should act decisively so that no employer is willing to do the same to workers in this country.

“The ministry should not give approval to HSBC Malaysia to retrench workers unilaterally. Instead it should direct them to retrain and upgrade their workers as the bank continues to make a profit.”

He hoped Muhyiddin will be firm in ensuring his Cabinet ministers act in the best interests of local workers.

Previously, HSBC Malaysia said it was investing in new technology to “transform the future of banking via digital enablement”, which will see several changes to its operations while creating more than 200 new jobs.

A HSBC spokesman also said the bank was offering certain segments of its workforce VSS if redeployment was not possible.