Was browsing through one of our Nigerian blogs and came across this piece and taut I should share it with everyone.


From: Peter I Acha
Sent: Monday, September 23, 2013 10:02 AM
To: Executive Management
Cc: Transactions Officers
Subject: TELLERS WELFARE - THE TALES AND
WOES OF A TYPICAL ACCESS BANK TELLER
Good day Management, Good day my fellow
Tellers
Having sat down and pondered for a while about
some trivial issues concerning tellers in this
bank, I decide to break the silence, damn the
consequence and speak out to save other people
that are suffering and smiling. Away from the
stories and now to the crux of the matter.
On the 14 April 2008, I got an employment as A
TRANSACTION OFFICER with a Bank called
INTERCONTINENTAL BANK PLC (IBplc). I was
happy just like every other person because I saw
a promising future. Time went on, policies and
programmes of government and monetary
agencies unfolded, the bank was later taken over
by another bank called ACCESS BANK. This
process brought a lot of tension among staff of
IBPLC that led to more than half of the total staff
of IBplc resigning their appointment as a result
of the threats posed by Access Bank
management.
Finally, the process of integration was concluded
and then…….. Things began to happen,
First, I discovered that as a support staff in
Access bank, there won’t be any form of growth
either in salary or promotion to become a core
staff as it were in IBPLC.
Secondly, that you could be ask to leave the Job
at any slightest provocation or human error
without considering your previous efforts or
your outstanding performance or even the
numbers of years you have put into the Job.
Thirdly, the bank do not take responsibilities in
terms of fatal injury or death as you will be refer
to your employer in the case of any negative
eventuality. This is unacceptable and negates
world’s best practice.
As a human being, I take comments to be mere
rumors till I have verified them, because during
upbringing, my lovely parent taught me this
philosophy to apply in every circumstances, the
philosophy is simple, they are: (1) SEE (2)
JUDGE (3) AND ACT. This philosophy is the
motto of the Young Catholic Student (YCS) back
then in my early schools days.
Finally, I began to see things for myself in this
working arena called ACCESS BANK. My first
ugly encounter was during the cut over periods.
I saw what I never bargained for. I don’t know of
branches in other regions, but here in Abuja, it
wasn’t funny, we resumed work by 7.AM and do
not leave until 2.00am (midnight) this continued
for weeks all in the bid to avert all the lapses
caused by the process of integration.
In the normal IBPLC, compensation would have
come in at least for taking risk to work till that
horrible hour of the day. But to my surprise,
there was no comment from any quarters, not
even to show appreciation. Yes! You heard me
right, there was no appreciation because going
by the terms of my employment, I was to leave
the office not later than the stipulated time of
6pm. We even had to come on Saturdays and
Sundays to work, yet, no lunch, no allowance, no
appreciation nothing.
In the course of this suffering, a meeting was
schedule for all IBPLC tellers here in Abuja, the
aim of the meeting was to intimate us how we
will be used In all the units of the bank e.g
Funds transfer Desk, customer service, etc as
against our sole responsibility which was cash
management. We all thought our token salary
will be increase along side, instead it was reduce
as the cash hazard allowance and monthly
feeding allow was stopped. This meeting brought
sadness to the entire IBPLC tellers because
tragedy strucked. Four of our colleagues were
coming from Gwagwalada branch ,all of them in
the same vehicle had a fatal accident. We lost
two and two others survived with various degree
of injuries and were unconscious for days.
I was the first person the hospital called to
inform of the accident, I quickly informed the
‘’REGIONAL OGAS’’ who were anchoring the
meeting that made these fellows leave their
homes to their untimely death, finally we all got
to the hospital premises, in fact the mortuary to
be precise, we confirmed the death of BUKOLA
AREMU AND KINGSLEY EMEZIE, while the two
others Ozeigbe and Ayo were still alive. To
confirm the earlier rumor I heard, the ‘ogas’
started making calls, it was later I realized that
call was for immediate replacement as all the
four branch tellers were all involved in the
accident. As a student of Public Admin, I know it
was right to quickly look for replacement. The
big question is, what about the souls (dead and
alive)? All that was done was to contact the
company that outsourced the staff, there was no
follow up whatsoever on the side of the bank who
these people labored for, the matter died down,
Bukky was buried on the fourth day while
Kingsley was buried two weeks later. None, I
mean none of Access bank staff was there to
witness this. Of course some of the branch staff
were there because of the close relationship they
had with their late colleagues.
Bukky and Kingsley, you both died a Hero and a
Heroine, even if you were not recognized, you
live on in our hearts. I say may your souls rest in
peace. (Amen)
Coming back to other issues, I will be
summarizing them for easy and better
understanding.
Access bank is known to have a general belief of
‘empowering employees’. Now I ask, how have
the tellers been empowered?
-. Is it by paying the ‘’professional staff’’ benefits
and a penny is not accrued to tellers?
-. Is it by paying professional staff medical
allowance while the tellers who suffer the same
risk or even more with them are left at the mercy
of their so called employers?
-. Is it by promoting professional staff and
leaving a teller to be stagnant? In management
science, stagnation is the worst form of
demoralization.
-. Our female tellers are not allowed the full
benefits of a nursing mother, they get half pay
during their period of maternity, and are not
entitled to nursing mother’s right after the
completion of the three month half paid period.
If I may ask, is there any difference between a
female professional staff and a female support
staff? Why should a fellow human be wicked to
his brother and sister? Too many questions
begging for answers.
If Access Bank wants me to believe they
empower their employee’s then they should
revisit some of the aforementioned cases.
Despite all these maltreatment, do you still
expect the tellers to put in their best? Against
all odds, even after putting your best into the
job, the almighty ‘’professional staff’’ takes the
glory. (e.g) a branch that had 5 stars in Abuja,
the core staff in the branch were paid huge sums
while the ‘’robot ‘’security men and tellers who
were outstanding in attending to the MS were
left with nothing.
Access Bank wants to be the world most
respected African Bank, how will this be
achieved if there is unethical discrimination
among the people working in the same
organization?
Now funds are being lavished on rebranding, I
ask this question what is the essence of
rebranding if the staff welfare is not a priority to
the Bank? I was able to speak to a teller who
have spend six year with Access Bank, and I
could feel the pains right from his heart, he
made me understand that the case was worse
even before Access acquired Intercontinental
Bank .What is the importance of flashy ambience
if the core element (frontline staff) of the bank is
unspeakable. My Grandfather had this proverb
“You will be wasting your time if you are looking
for clean teeth in a rotten mouth”. You can’t give
what you don’t have, why should a teller be
happy in his work environment when he is not
happy with the job. One may see them laughing
but is never from their mind – plastic smile. We
try to express all this maltreatment, however,
when we mention it, the next thing they say is
‘resign if you are tired of the Job’’ the fact that
there are no jobs in Nigeria does not mean those
who get a partial employment should be
retrogressing instead of improvement in their
well being. (this is a typical experience of an
Access Bank Teller.) especially those who
resides where cost of leaving is alarming. E.G
Abuja P/H and other cities.
FACT YOU SHOULD RATHER CONSIDER:
1. HND is never a disease and will not make
someone like me feel like a second class citizen.
So whatever a Bsc holder can do in Access Bank,
an HND holder will also do and even do it
better, is the brain and ability that matters and
not the empty certificate.
2. When there is no motivation at work place, it
demoralizes the people especially at the grass
root level.
3. There should be upward and downward flow
of communication to know the feelings of your
staff who interface the customers.
4. Adequate and enough leave days be granted
to staff so they can rest. In the days of IBPLC, it
was difficult to differentiate between core staff
and a support staff, leave days was 20 days for
all. Please note, then, professional and non
professional does not come to play. Is either a
You’re a core staff or a support staff and is not
obvious for the world to know who is who.
Customers sees us all as IBPLC employees. So
let’s correct this notion of professional or non
professional thing. An illiterate can be a
professional while an educated illiterate a non
professional, go to a country like China, you will
understand.
5. There should be an avenue where you serve
as a support for years and you are elevated to
become a core staff too, whoever you employ no
matter the pay, will know that he or she is
working for something and will put in his or her
best to merit that position. But If there is
nothing to lose, what do you expect?
6. Even tellers employed with National Diploma
should be encouraged in terms of payment
review even if there won’t be promotion ,for
example in GTB a teller’s salary is increased
with N10,000 yearly until the 3rd or 4th year,
but reverse is the case in Access bank.
7. Appreciate your employees. Whether a core
staff or a support staff. It gives people that sense
of belonging.
8. If you must celebrate any employee, then it is
better to celebrate who ever deserves to be
celebrated, I watch carefully when cakes are
being baked for core staff on their birthdays, I
laugh over it because it seems support staff
don’t celebrate birthdays. Or perhaps they were
all given birth to on a day that never
exist.maybe on the 32nd of December 19xxxxxx,
this is the worst form of discrimination. Is better
not to do it at all than to do for some and make
them feel too important.
9. Pay allowances to all employees that are
exposed to the same hazard and risk irrespective
of their mode of employment. Why paying
medical allowance to core staff and neglecting
support staff, or are tellers robot made by
scientist that they don’t need to take care of
themselves? The only thing being shared equally
at the branch level in Access Bank is the yearly
December Rice, please it should not just be only
rice that you share using that kind of formula
extend it to other aspect. (How am I sure it will
even continue this year?)
10. If you don’t show empathy to the people that
are working for you, how will they show sincere
empathy to customers? In Abuja, house rent is
very expensive, you earn N50,000 per month
and pay rent of not less than 20,000 per month.
Pay monthly Transport of not less than N15,000,
and feed with not less than N10,000. How will
the tellers and other support staff grow with this
token? Where is the empathy on the part of our
management? All these little things make
support staff to always maintain CV and they
leave at any time after they feel the
embarrassment and harassment is too much for
them to bear.
11. Today, the bank is aiming and preaching
customer retention, but have the management
bother to retain any of this tellers who put in
their best? Any result driven organization is
suppose to develop her employees and retain
them. This can simply be refer to as moral
obligation.
12. Management is made up of people with
heart, In other words, empathy can be shown.
The management can also decide not to take this
issues serious, one thing we must know as
religious people, when God gives you wealth,
money authority and power to lead and you use
it to punish or maltreat people under you, that
same God knows how to take it away from you
and judge you after your earthly deeds. Like the
bible will have it, it is easier for a camels head to
pass through a niddle than for a reach man to
enter into the kingdom of GOD. This does not
mean rich men cant enter heaven, it all depend
on how you use your wealth on people who do
not have what you have got.
13. Finally, to my dear fellow tellers, the
difference between where we are now and where
we all want to be is ‘’TIME AND
OPPORTUNITY’’ do not hesitate to act fast when
the time comes. In other words, stay if you want
to stay, walk if you need to walk and run if it
become necessary for you to do so. GOD BLESS
US ALL. And for the bank, if you must be the
best as you desire, start with the staff (tellers
and support staff) who are victims of this
inequality.
Just to mention a few, there are so many
injustice we see on a daily basis, but I cannot
put everything down in writing to express my
displeasure and say all I intend to say. If
Mandela never summoned courage, South Africa
would not have been what it is today particularly
to the black citizens.
I must also add that nobody should be held
liable for this act of mine if its view to be
negative, I should be held liable as it’s a plan I
conceived and decided to send to top
management to know if they are aware of all
these challenges.
WARNING: No teller is expected to reply in any
negative way, if you must comment, let it be
genuine and no insult. But I will rather advice
you do not reply so I don’t rub you into any
issues. I have consider the good, the bad and the
ugly expectation that may arise from this write
up, do not join me if you don’t have the mind
and the will to do so. “He that is down fears no
fall at all”.
Thank you.
LONG LIVE ACCESS BANK PLC.
LONG LIVE THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF
NIGERIA…


By d way, D staff that wrote this memo was sacked on Monday
Got it fron:
mojidelano..com/2013/09/memo-from-disgruntled-access-bank-staff.html?m=1