Earlier this week, a Kuala Lumpur Grab driver took to his Facebook account to write a detailed post about an experience carrying a group of foreign worker passengers, and the life lesson that came with the ride.
Fadhli Sahar, wrote that he was very surprised that after one ride transporting three Bangladeshi security guards, an RM50 (US$12.50) tip was left inside a jar that he kept in the car for passengers wishing to leave a little bit of extra cash.
Recalling the events that led up to the generous gift, Fadhli added that his most consistent tippers were actually foreign workers, especially Bangladeshis.
https://www.facebook.com/fadhli.sahar/posts/10220114447955555
His post begins with a conversation he had three years ago when he started driving for the car service app, where a fellow driver advised him not to pick up Bangladeshis their body odor, claimed the other individual, lingers in the car long after the passengers are gone.
On one fine afternoon, while he was waiting in the Sunway area of KL, Fadhli accepted a booking that he recalled was quite high – coming in at over RM40. When he arrived to pick the passengers up, he saw that they appeared to be Bangladeshi security guards. Tentatively asking him if he was OK to take them, he responded of course, and the men piled into his car.
It was the end of a long working day for the men, and they were smelling less than fresh. Nay, these men were RIPE.
Fadhli tried to initially blast the car with air conditioning, later lowering his window for a little fresh air. While two of the passengers slept, he recalled that the third man observed his increasingly uncomfortable actions, such as frequently lowering his window, and even covering his nose with his shirt.
“Are you OK boss?” the guard asked.
“Ya. I’m OK,” said Fadlhi.
He continued that he avoided telling the men the source of his discomfort, believing it to be “rude and offensive to talk about people’s body odor.”
“Even though they are immigrant, they still human,” he concluded.
The man then told him that they had been having no luck booking a car that afternoon, having been rejected by no less than three other drivers before Fadlhi agreed to take them.
When the trio arrived at their destination, they paid for the ride using an RM100 note. Returning their change, Fadlhi was shocked when the man insisted that he keep the balance – more than the actual ride itself.
Telling the man that it was far too much, the passenger told him to share the money with his children, perhaps taking them out to eat.
“Sometimes, Bangladeshis teach me a lot about life,” he wrote.
He concluded that at times we forget that the foreign workers doing the difficult jobs no one else wants to do are humans with feelings and depths of emotion just like anyone else.
He also chastised rude Grab drivers who profile passengers before taking them: “If it is your job, just get it done,” he said.
The post has now been shared over 3,300 times, garnering nearly 8,000 reactions, with many commending him for being, you know, a human with a heart and conscience, while others agreed that foreign workers making low salaries were often the most generous tippers.
