YOURSAY | ‘Money can't buy lives but Yubaraj’s heroic act has saved lives…’.

'I did the right thing', says Top Glove whistleblower Yubaraj

Bruclax: God bless Top Glove whistleblower Yubaraj Khadka. Your selfless act of exposing the company for not enforcing social distancing measures among workers has saved many lives in the company.

It took a brave Nepali to bring to light the ‘atrocities’ of this company. It is the responsibility of our government authorities to carry out inspection and take action accordingly.

BlueShark1548: Top Glove terminated Yubaraj’s employment wrongfully, had breached his right to privacy, and wrongfully took his phone.

The Human Resources Ministry should ask Top Glove, a company that makes millions, to pay compensation to Yubaraj and reimburse him for his return flight expenses, which under the law is the responsibility of the company.

The government should hold Top Glove accountable for its actions.

GreenRusa0250: I do not agree that what Yubaraj did was right. He should have reported to the Nepali embassy instead of journalists. If he himself breached company rules to be a “hero”, that is considered a major misconduct he should pay for.

Guest workers should return home if the environment is not as expected or promised. The workers should not be expected to be told to observe safety protocol which is good for them. Self-regulation is the primary requirement here.

Quo Vadis Malaysia: @GreenRusa0250, you live in a fantasy world. Big corporations have their tentacles everywhere, official channels do not carry any weight at all.

Kappa: I agree with @GreenRusa0250, I see this as insubordination. Firstly, social distancing is a self-regulated thing and one should not expect the management to set a ruling that if any workers failed to observe it, they will be seriously dealt with or fired.

I see this as business sabotage by some people behind the scene to smear the image of Top Glove. There are so many foreign workers employed in many other factories, why are others not being interviewed?

Top Glove has made promises that they are investing close to RM100 million to improve workers' accommodation. Kudos to this. Are other factories doing that?

Its management should learn a lesson from this crisis. When it makes superb profits, workers tend to be jealous and so the company should provide a yearly special bonus to these essential foreign workers to ensure they are able to share the fruits of Top Glove's harvest.

I trust that such incidents will be eliminated if this is done. Please bear in mind that without these foreign workers, Top Glove is as good as dead.

Hang Tuah PJ: @Kappa, how about cramped living quarters? Is this the workers' fault too? Come off it, are you working for Top Glove?

If your desk is placed without any social distancing space, who would you blame? The workers?

Gerard Lourdesamy: This is a case of profit and greed for money being far more important than basic human dignity. That is why Malaysia will remain a third world backwater for the next 50 years.

The workers are not asking for 5-star hotel facilities but minimum standards of accommodation. Is that so difficult to provide when a company is raking in billions of dollars in profit and on the share market?

LR6SO4BK3: I enter the wet market wearing a mask and after registering my name, temperature and handphone number.

Social distancing inside the market is generally observed but popular outlets are crowded and shoulder-to-shoulder contact often occur. If at that moment Yubaraj were to take a photo of me and my contacts, will the viewers blame the local council/People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) for the crowding?

Top Glove, like the authorities, issued the standard operating procedure (SOP) because of Covid-19. But if the workers failed to comply, should the blame fall solely on the company?

Perhaps the blame should go to Yubaraj too because he did not play his part in getting his fellow workers to observe social distancing. Instead, he was busy taking photographs of the situation at that particular moment.

Sphzxcv: @LR6SO4BK3, business establishments know of the SOPs but don't enforce it once inside their premises.

I have been in many arguments with other people regarding the wearing of masks and social distancing but many business establishments don't bother reprimanding those who don't comply. They just turn a blind eye.

This is why the pandemic hasn’t diminished. It just grows and gets worse. People don't fear the virus until they are in the hospital ICU (intensive care unit).

VioletCamel2167: Top Glove may be the top earner in Malaysia but clearly the company’s culture is still third world.

It needs to step up to bring its culture and image in tandem with its earnings, otherwise it will be relegated to the forgotten annals of a streaking star - seen briefly and never again.

Learn and improve, Top Glove, so we can be proud of a homegrown Malaysian business done well on the global stage - with integrity.

Gaji Buta: It is an absolute embarrassment and slap in the face of Malaysians that a foreigner was willing to sacrifice his livelihood to improve working conditions for workers here.

What are Malaysians doing when they see things not being done properly? Report it? More likely, they look away or ask for bribes.

Mokhtar Ahmad: Thank you, Yubaraj for helping Malaysia. Some big companies bring in a lot of money for the nation but they do not care for the health of the people.

Money can't buy lives but your heroic act has saved more lives than the ones lost due to the irresponsible act and greed of the company. May you have a wonderful life and Allah bless you.

Oriole: This young man's integrity puts all our elites to shame. He can give them a lesson in what it means to have principles.

God Save Us: The exploitation of foreign workers in Malaysia is rampant. Many employers have no reservations about exploiting them. They are virtually held to ransom for pitiful wages and very poor working conditions.

“Not happy, you leave”, mirrors that uncaring, merciless sentiment that many Malaysians seem to have acquired over the past 50 years. Shameful indeed.

I applaud this man's courage. He paid a heavy price for his principles (which seem lacking among many Malaysians).

Unfortunately, Top Glove will get away with a slap-on-the-wrist fine, a meaningless admission and apology, and will continue to rake in millions in profit, continue to depend on foreign workers for low wages, and continue to be supported by the government as they contribute to the economic coffers, which seems to be the bottom line these days.

Inhuman value systems don't matter.

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