KUALA LUMPUR – An Instagram post by a Nigerian graduate who claimed to have been rebuffed for a job interview despite being approached earlier by the company in Petaling Jaya has gone viral.
Many users have been sharing the post, asking for an explanation from the company and rallying to fight against perceived racism.
Benice Festus, who came to Malaysia in 2014 to pursue a degree in nursing and business administration, was approached by the company via WhatsApp. He was told that there were two existing positions available – that of an insurance agent and team leader.
Festus requested more information, but the staff who contacted him encouraged him to attend an interview first.
Festus explained on his Instagram post that he had sent a clip of himself to the company during the WhatsApp exchange.
On the appointed day, he rented a car with whatever cash he had left and travelled almost two hours to a branch of the company.
“I was told to sit in a waiting room for the boss to interview me. The interviewer came in, asked me in a rude tone, ‘Who are you, what are you doing here?’
“I was a little confused and said, ‘Hi, good morning I was told to come here and wait for my interview’, then she said that we don’t take foreigners, adding that they barely employ Indians,” he claimed.
He added that she suddenly acted nice when she possibly suspected that Festus was recording the conversation on his mobile phone.
After he posted the unfortunate event on Instagram, the company contacted him to apologise and offered him a compensation of RM200 for his trouble, he said.
Festus felt that it was unfair and he was discriminated against.
He had never applied for a job there but posted his resume online at WOBB, a Malaysian job search platform.
He said that this was not the first time he had felt discriminated against.
Homeowners have rejected his request to rent a house, and even when he is dining at a mamak stall he says he gets charged more than the normal price, he said.
According to Bar Council president Salim Bashir, there is no issue of racism in this case as companies have their respective policies on hiring of foreigners.
However, they should have screened through Festus’ resume before calling him for an interview, he said.
He added that under Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, everyone is equal before the law and entitled to equal protection of law, and should not be discriminated against on grounds of one's race, religion, place of birth or gender in any matter including business, profession, vocation or employment.
The company could not be reached for comments at the time of writing – The Vibes, November 19, 2020.
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