KUALA LUMPUR: The Industrial Court has ruled in favour of a secretary who resigned from a government-linked company after experiencing what was deemed sexual harassment by her chief executive officer.
According to a report by FMT, the court led by chairman Salahudin Hidayat Shariff, upheld the secretary's claim of constructive dismissal on July 16.
Salahudin said the CEO's actions, including requesting the secretary to give him a "massage", constituted sexual harassment as defined in the company's employee handbook.
Although witnesses from Construction Labour Exchange Centre Bhd testified that the CEO's request was intended as a joke, Salahudin said the handbook categorises such behaviour as sexual harassment.
The handbook defines sexual harassment as including "offensive or suggestive remarks, comments, jokes, teasing, or discussions about sexual activities.
"The CEO also reportedly asked the secretary to book adjoining hotel rooms for a trip, suggested over lunch that she could improve her position by doing a "certain" thing, and directed her to sit next to him in his car."
The secretary also alleged receiving a love song and several WhatsApp messages from him, though it was not proven that the number was the CEO's.
Despite some claims being unproven, Salahudin said that the court must consider the CEO's behaviour collectively as sexual harassment according to the handbook.
He criticised the company's decision to transfer the complainant from Kedah to Johor rather than to Penang, where the company had a branch, after an internal committee deemed her allegations false.
The complainant, who had been with the company since 2013 and resigned in 2019, had appealed against the transfer and requested to remain in her current office until her complaints were resolved.
Salahudin said the company had not taken disciplinary action against her, despite the committee's finding that her claims were false.
He also questioned the independence of the company's investigation, which was conducted by a committee comprising company officers who reported to the CEO.
He suggested that including a director from the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB), the company's sole owner, could have ensured a more impartial investigation.
He also found it unusual that the committee's report did not include an interview with the complainant.
"The court found that the company's investigation was not independent and that the complainant was obstructed from receiving justice."
Salahudin said the Industrial Court's standard is to decide based on a balance of probabilities, not beyond a reasonable doubt.
Based on this standard, the court concluded that the secretary had demonstrated that her resignation was due to sexual harassment.
The claimant, who earned RM5,670 a month, was awarded RM158,760, which includes RM136,080 in back wages and RM22,680 in compensation in lieu of reinstatement.
Rasvinder Kaur Sodhi represented the claimant, while Azam Mohamed and Zahrizal Zakaria represented the company.