HSBC Employee in Hyderabad Alleges Ethnic Humiliation at Work: Sparks Debate on LinkedIn

Summary:An HSBC employee in Hyderabad shared on LinkedIn that she faced ethnic humiliation and objectifying remarks from colleagues. Despite reporting the incidents to HR, she received no substantive response. Her post, including details of the discrimination and an HR email, went viral, garnering over 140,000 reactions. While many users supported her for speaking out, others criticized her for publicly naming her company and coworkers, highlighting potential career repercussions and privacy concerns. This case underscores the challenges of addressing workplace discrimination and the impact of social media on such issues.

A Hyderabad-based HSBC employee recently took to LinkedIn to share her harrowing experience of alleged ethnic humiliation and objectifying remarks at her workplace. In her post, she detailed how her seniors and colleagues subjected her to derogatory comments and how her attempts to seek redress through the company’s HR department were futile.

The employee, who has worked at HSBC GSC HYD for over a year, recounted multiple incidents where she was insulted and belittled. One such instance involved a colleague telling her, “Ek chamaat maarenge, Bihar pahuch jaogi” (I will slap you so hard, you will go back to Bihar), while another criticized her for smoking, saying it tarnished the team’s image. Despite reporting these issues to HR and filing a POSH (Prevention of Sexual Harassment) complaint, she received no substantive response, only an email weeks later asking for feedback without any updates on action taken.

Her post, which included a screenshot of the email exchange with HR, quickly went viral, garnering over 140,000 reactions. The LinkedIn community responded with mixed reactions. Many users expressed support for her bravery in speaking out, urging her to escalate the matter to higher authorities within HSBC, including the CEO in India. One user commented, “You should draft an email to the HSBC headquarters and CC the CEO in India. Please do not stay silent; self-esteem is so valuable.” Another user commended her for addressing the prejudice against people from Bihar, saying, “Disheartened about what happened. It’s high time people stop passing insensitive comments about Bihar and its people.”

However, some users criticized her decision to publicly name her company and colleagues. One person advised, “For the good of your career, please take this down. You have identified coworkers without their permission and aired detailed issues inappropriate for this forum.” Another user pointed out potential repercussions, “Publishing internal emails on social media with personal data is likely the worst possible way to handle this situation. Emails sent and received on work email accounts are the property of HSBC, which amounts to a potentially fair reason for dismissal.”

This incident highlights the ongoing challenges employees face in corporate environments, particularly regarding ethnic discrimination and inadequate HR responses. It also underscores the power and perils of social media in addressing workplace grievances.