SOMETIMES, unexpected events can occur in our day-to-day lives that may cause delays — especially for workers. However, depending on the company you work for, such reasons may not be considered valid for clocking in late.
This was allegedly the case for a Malaysian worker who was still marked as late despite presenting an MRT delay slip after arriving at work 20 minutes past their scheduled time.
“I understand the company has its own policies, but could they please show some empathy for us regular employees?” the employee wrote in a Xiaohongshu post.
The worker initially believed that since the slip served as official proof of the delay, their employer would not deduct their attendance bonus.
However, they claimed that the human resources department informed them that their late arrival would still be recorded, although the delay slip would be kept on file.
The worker was allegedly advised that they “could try leaving home earlier” to avoid such situations.
“I take the MRT as well, but you don’t see me being late often,” the HR staff member allegedly told them.
This response left a sour taste in the worker’s mouth, and they felt unfairly penalised for something beyond their control. But things took a surprising turn later that day when the HR department issued a team-wide announcement stating: “Anyone with a delay slip won’t have their bonus deducted, but it can’t happen more than once a month.”
This left the worker even more confused, wondering why their MRT delay slip had initially been said to be for record purposes only.
“Now it doesn’t count against our bonus? The inconsistency is just ridiculous!” the worker added.
As the Xiaohongshu post gained traction, users shared a variety of perspectives on the situation.
Some urged the worker to resign and look for a better company, while others suggested filing a report with the Labour Department for allegedly deducting wages due to lateness.
On the other hand, one user — claiming to work in HR — explained that the HR staff member was likely just relaying a decision made by higher management regarding workplace punctuality.
Other commenters also warned that even if the attendance bonus wasn’t deducted, the worker’s performance review or appraisal could still be negatively affected.