TN poultry plant inserts paid holiday for Muslims
Posted: August 4th, 2008, 3:56 am
Taking away Labor Day, Tyson Foods as given its nearly 700 Muslims (out of a plant labor force of 1200) at its Shelbyville, TN plant the holiday marking the end of Ramadan. Oh yeah, everyone else gets the day off, too. The rule only applies to union members; non-union members still get Labor Day (what an irony!!!).
Here's a quote that got me out of the story.
No one has asked. A two-edged sword, this is. In one way, it means that Americans typically believe that work should not mean taking a religion break in the middle of the shift. It's just not the American way. Probably, no one ever thought to ask for it because, well, no one thought to ask such a thing at all. It just seems foreign.
On the other hand, and more disturbing to me, is the underlying assumption we all probably work on: separation of church and work. We don't say that, but we operate that way. Some employers do say it outright, and even discipline, ostracize or fire people for religious expression. We've bought into the lie that religious exercises are limited to religious places and inside our homes. Muslims haven't experienced that sort of compartmentalization of life and faith, and so it was probably foreign to them NOT to have a place to pray. Tyson's position of "Well, you didn't ask for it" doesn't wash for me, but it does reveal that we have capitulated to the culture that religion is personal and private.
Here's a quote that got me out of the story.
Former employee and Shelbyville resident Anthony Proctor said he thinks what's happening is wrong.
He said he helped build a special Muslim prayer room that's located inside the plant and that no other Tyson facility has been that accommodating for any other religion.
"If we want to go pray, we don’t have one for Christians," he said.
Tyson is headquartered in Arkansas.
Lawson said they consider religious accommodations on a case-by-case basis. She said that so far, no one has asked for any other type of religious prayer room.
No one has asked. A two-edged sword, this is. In one way, it means that Americans typically believe that work should not mean taking a religion break in the middle of the shift. It's just not the American way. Probably, no one ever thought to ask for it because, well, no one thought to ask such a thing at all. It just seems foreign.
On the other hand, and more disturbing to me, is the underlying assumption we all probably work on: separation of church and work. We don't say that, but we operate that way. Some employers do say it outright, and even discipline, ostracize or fire people for religious expression. We've bought into the lie that religious exercises are limited to religious places and inside our homes. Muslims haven't experienced that sort of compartmentalization of life and faith, and so it was probably foreign to them NOT to have a place to pray. Tyson's position of "Well, you didn't ask for it" doesn't wash for me, but it does reveal that we have capitulated to the culture that religion is personal and private.
