The Industrial Court has backed the decision of Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) to dismiss an officer found guilty of sexual harassment, affirming that a woman’s dignity should never be the subject of workplace jokes.
Sarawak Industrial Court Chairman, Taufik Yusoff, emphasized that jokes with sexual undertones should never be normalized in the workplace, as they can lead to sexual harassment.
The officer, who had worked with Maybank for 31 years, was fired in December 2023 after the bank’s disciplinary board rejected his defense following a show-cause letter.
In his ruling, Taufik praised the bank for taking swift action, highlighting that its policy clearly identifies sexual jokes as harassment. He noted that any reasonable employer would have dismissed the employee to preserve the company’s reputation and maintain workplace harmony.
“There is no appropriate punishment other than dismissal for the actions committed by the claimant against the complainant,” Taufik stated. He stressed that in cases of sexual harassment, the primary concern is the victim’s experience, not the perpetrator’s intent or justification.
Taufik pointed out that the claimant failed to show any evidence that the victim had consented to the behavior or was not offended by it.
“The claimant could not demonstrate that the victim had previously engaged in such behavior with him, making it unreasonable to consider this as a normal interaction,” Taufik said.
The claimant argued that the victim never explicitly told him to stop, leading him to believe the harassment was merely playful banter. However, Taufik dismissed this defense, noting that the victim believed she could handle the situation herself and had made it clear through other means that she disapproved.
The officer was accused of secretly photographing the complainant, persistently inviting her for meals, including a candlelight dinner she had already declined, and sending inappropriate messages. He also took a photo of her backside and made a disturbing comment about buying software to digitally remove her clothing, among other sexually charged remarks.
Andrew Lo of the Sarawak Bank Employees’ Union represented the claimant, while Gordon Tang appeared for Maybank.
