AP Wire | 03/11/2005 | Muslims walk off job at Dell plant in Tennessee — The is a real eye-roller. Read the whole thing. I bet this temp agency gets no new calls. The temp agency is the Sepherion Corporation and its webite is here. I’m thinking there are problems surrounding the company.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Thirty Muslims walked off the job at a Dell Inc. plant after alleging the company refused to let them pray at sunset – the latest dispute over prayer between an American business and its Islamic employees.
The Muslim workers, who were packaging Dell computers through a temporary labor agency, are taking the dispute to mediation, both sides said Friday. Most of the employees are from Somalia.
Abdirizak Hassan, executive director of the Somali Community Center of Nashville, said the workers walked out of the company’s Nashville plant last month because they were not allowed time for prayers.
The question of how to integrate Islamic prayers into the American workplace is becoming far more common,
I say good for them. Why should they be denied the time to go pray? OK, I don’t know anything more that the little blurb here (the link doesn’t work), but I’ll bet you that Joe Sixpack is allowed several smoke breaks during the day, so what’s the difference?
-A
Adam, do you honestly believe that Dell allows white (and only white) employees 6 breaks a day while denying a single break to Muslims?!
We’ll, at least you’ve proved its a fine line between coming up with analogy and showing the world you’re a moron.
Religion should be practiced on ones own time. I don’t see why a company has to suffer downtime for someone’s religious practice. If you let this door stay open it will be nothing but problems for business. Next they will want to wear some religious getup contrary to the good of the business.
I think they need to find a job somewhere where they can freely practice their version of religion. Perhpas they should move to somewhere in the Middle East? Whatever happened to that old saying – “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”?
They should pray and thank god they have a job.
They should thank god the job is working for one of the best companies in the world.
Dell has always been voted as the top 10 companies to work for.
I’m sure thiers more to the story than what ap reported.
Are you kidding? The difference is that Joe Sixpack does not get several smoke breaks during the day. He gets two breaks and lunch.
I agree with Gquaglia, religion is a personal thing which should be done on their own time. If they don’t like it, they should look for employment elsewhere.
Miquel,
Should Rastafarians get a dope break too? I think not.
And while you may be right about the compensation issue American business folks do not even like job sharing or telework concepts, let alone prayer time-outs without pay. Nobody gets any sort of privileges, it would not be fair if Muslims suddenly got special privileges. This is the country of “no chewing gum unless you have gum for everyone” and the “if I let you do it then I have to let everyone do it” mentality. While this may all be stupid, it’s pretty consistent. Most folks adapt. The job itself is considered a privilege not a right unlike in other parts of the world.
How about if they worked 3rd shift? Or do they have to pray 6 times during whatever hours they are awake? Personally, I think religion is just a crutch for the weak-minded.
I agree with Thomas that maybe these folks aren’t thankful enough for what they do have in this country – the freedom to practice their religion outside of work, anyway they like. Having lived in TN before I am sure there are many unemployed non-Muslims who would love
to have a job, any job…
If they don’t like their work…they can’t sue Dell because they work for
Sepherion Corporation…they are hourly contractors and we don’t get breaks!
geez, if they work for Spherion…then — of course — the would get smoke breaks….after all the Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer (William (Bill) G. Halnon) has this in his bio…
“” He came to Spherion with more than 20 years of information technology experience, most recently as CIO of DIMON Incorporated, the world’s second largest independent leaf tobacco merchant. “””
http://www.spherion.com/corporate/aboutspherion.jsp
So, these guys can’t PRAY before work, during breaks, at lunch, and after work? And, what? Hourly contractors don’t get breaks? WHA!!! I thought it was the state labor boards that mandate the breaks and lunch. You don’t have to be PAID for them, in some states, but you have to be allowed them.
Nice.. Now the moto is “do as we do or move out”? Isn’t this a bit racist? In my opinion, one break doesn’t effect the company’s benefits. If this was about christians you’d be all about Dells’ fashism now…
Fotis, exaxctly how is this “racist?” Are you completely insane or do you see racism lurking everywhere? I take two people, same race. One wants to do things one way the other refuses. So this is racism too? And it does seem to me that if you move into a different culture you adopt their culture and not demand they adopt yours! Or does that seem wrong to you?
They have more than one break. they have two small breaks and lunch. They are at liberty to do their praying during that time.
No John, adopting their culture is no good, so is for them to adopt your culture. I am just saying, let their people practice their right to pray. After all it’s not a crime to pray, and it looks to me that the dope and pray parallelism is irrelevant. It’s not about a habbit, it’s about religion, something that is each person’s right to believe in. It is not a big deal to let these people get off their workstations and pray for JUST FIVE MINUTES – the actual time that a muslim needs to pray.
I’m talking about racism because I think that the whole deal is about the fact that they are muslims, not for a five minute break. The company, care so much for letting people from another religion to pray.
Can you imagine if the Plant Supervisor insists that everyone pray to Jesus right before the shift starts? Of course, if you don’t wish to, you could just stand there like an idiot. Hey wait, didn’t the Supreme Court consider that exact argument when ruling that religious prayers in public institutions are forbidden by the Constitution? And if you can’t do it in public, why should Dell let you do it in their place?
My two cents
If Dell can’t handle a little diversity in the workplace, they have serious management problems.
Sell your Dell stock.
Hank.
People should use their personal time for personal matters like religion.
Saying that Dell doesn’t want diversity because they are not obsequious to this religion is nonsense. What happens when the next religion comes along that wants to pray twenty minutes of every hour?
dope is illegal, prayer is not yet illegal. bad analogy. also, do rastafarians even have a required ritual of smoke at prescribed times of the day? sorry you missed me with that analogy.00
how long it takes a muslim to pray…is it that tough to make up the time off of the line?
and where are some of these commenters getting the impression that these folk were asking for 6 breaks? they said “prayer at sunset”.
j.
Pretty sure that you don’t see christians going and praying during work. They came into this country and they should have to follow our laws. Smoking breaks don’t last for as long as prayer breaks!!!
Im a revert to Islam and society is so messed up with what is REQUIRED for muslims in their religion. Has the world gone mad? Were talking about 7minutes away from the desk here to go and do something constuctive and beneficial. Let muslims pray at the stated time and make the time up..Im sure people spend more time in the toliet then muslims do on the prayer mat.
And Sarah I think your confused love…not all muslims came into the country. Many of us are actually born here and are probably more british or american then you are. I think you should research into islam and you will realise that its the fastest growing religion in the world. Its a religion for the educated and open-minded people, not for the ignornant.