|
CreativeDominant -> My Home Town Made National News! (12/31/2015 7:01:26 PM)
|

CAIR Negotiating on Behalf of Muslim Workers Fired from Meat Plant Over Prayer Dispute Walkout
Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images
by ADELLE NAZARIAN
31 Dec 2015
3,994
About 190 workers, most of them Muslim immigrants from Somalia, were fired from their jobs at a meat packing and distribution plant in Colorado this week for walking off the job to protest a workplace prayer dispute.
Approximately 200 workers reportedly walked off of their jobs at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan earlier this month to protest what they allege were changes made in times allowed for them to take breaks in order to participate in Islamic prayer.
According to the Denver Post, some workers later returned and were able to keep their jobs, but the majority stayed away in hopes of swaying management to reinstate a prayer schedule as representatives of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)–an “unindicted co-conspirator” in the Holy Land Foundation trial, which concerned fundraising for the Palestinian terror organization Hamas–negotiated on their behalf.
CAIR is also helping the aunt of a seven-month-old child left orphaned by radical jihadist couple who massacred 14 people and wounded 22 others in a terrorist attack in San Bernardino this month gain custody of the infant.
“They feel missing their prayer is worse than losing their job,” Jaylani Hussein, a spokesman and executive director of CAIR said. “It’s like losing a blessing from God.”
Salat is the obligatory Muslim prayer and the second Pillar of Islam, which is required to be performed five times a day by observant Muslims. Hussein reportedly said that the Muslims workers CAIR was negotiating on behalf of would pray at the plant multiple times a day in five-t0-10 minute blocks of time and alleged that the plant decided to change the practice. The Post notes that the time was carved out of a 15-minute break period or from the workers’ unpaid 30-minute lunch breaks.
“At no time did Cargill prevent people from prayer at Fort Morgan,” director of communications for Cargill, Mike Martin reportedly said. “Nor have we changed policies related to religious accommodation and attendance. This has been mischaracterized.” He added that accommodation on a daily basis is dependent upon changing factors in the plant, noting that this facet had been “clearly communicated to all employees.”
Martin also said that employees of all faiths are permitted to use a “reflection room” at the plant which observant Muslims also use to pray but noted the company’s policy that a maximum of two people are permitted to use the area at any given time in order to avoid slowing down production on the assembly line.
Over 2,000 people work at the plant. Cargill has a policy that prevents workers who are terminated from reapplying for a job there for 6 months. Hussein hopes Cargill will reconsider their policy and a teleconference on the issue is reportedly scheduled to take place next week.
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/12/31/cair-negotiating-behalf-muslim-workers-fired-meat-plant-prayer-dispute-walkout/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social
Muslim workers in Fort Morgan fired over prayer dispute walkout
By Kieran Nicholson The Denver Post
Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 - 11:21 a.m.

A Somali worker cuts and moves on the line as he trims beef in the manufacturing department at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan, Colo. ( Joe Amon, Denver Post file )
About 190 workers, most of them immigrants from Somalia, have been fired from a meat packing and distribution plant on Colorado's Eastern Plains for walking off the job to protest a workplace prayer dispute.
Ten days ago more than 200 workers walked off their jobs at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan.
Some workers later returned, but the majority stayed away as representatives of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) negotiated on their behalf.
On Tuesday Cargill, through its attorneys, fired the workers who were holding out, said Jaylani Hussein, a spokesman and executive director of CAIR.
Cargill is a Kansas-based company.
Some of the fired employees have been working at the plant for up to 10 years, Hussein said. Cargill had previously allowed Muslim employees to pray at the plant, even providing a prayer room, he said.
Depending on the season, the Muslim workers prayed at different times of the day, typically in about five-to-10 minute blocks, Hussein said. But recently a decision was made at the plant to change the practice.
"The workers were told: 'If you want to pray, go home,' " Hussein said.
Many of the workers, some who support family with their earnings, banded together and decided to walk off the job in an attempt to sway plant managers to reinstate a prayer schedule.
Hussein and Jenifer Wicks, also of CAIR, were negotiating with Cargill. On Tuesday, they were told of the mass firing.
Hussein said company officials told him the mass dismissal was over a "no call, no show, walk out."
"It's disappointing," Hussein said.
The workers have previously been using time carved out of a 15-minute break period, or time from their unpaid 30-minute lunch break.
Cargill has a policy stating that any workers who are terminated can not reapply for a position for 6 months.
CAIR continues to talk with Cargill, a teleconference is scheduled next week, and Hussein hopes that the 6-month freeze is waved and that the workers will be allowed back.
The workers continue to express their desire to be allowed a prayer break, Hussein said.
"They feel missing their prayer is worse than losing their job," Hussein said. "It's like losing a blessing from God."
Cargill could not be reached for comment Wednesday night. Last week, Mike Martin, director of communications for Cargill, told the Greeley Tribune that employees of all faiths are allowed to use a reflection area, but that because employees work on an assembly line only one or two at a time can use the area, to avoid slowing production.
He told the Tribune company policies had not changed.
The workers earn $14-per-hour and up, and are represented by a union, Teamsters Local 445. About 2,000 people are employed at the plant.
"These are people who want to work," Wicks said. "If they're allowed to return to work, we will continue to negotiate."
Updated Dec. 31, 2015 at 11:15 a.m. The following corrected information has been added to this article: The number of employees fired has been updated from 150 to 190 based on information provided by Cargill.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_29327985/muslim-workers-fort-morgan-fired-over-prayer-dispute
Cargill: Tried to resolve issues before firing Colorado Muslim workers
By Emilie Rusch and Jesse Paul The Denver Post
Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015 - 3:35 p.m.
Cargill Meat Solutions said Thursday it tried to resolve a workplace prayer dispute with Somali workers at its Fort Morgan meatpacking plant that led to the firing of about 190 employees.
The workers who lost their jobs were mostly immigrants from Somalia and their termination came after they failed to report to work for three consecutive days last week to protest what they say were changes in times allowed for Muslim prayer.
Cargill says, however, it makes every "reasonable attempt" to provide religious accommodation for all of its employees at the Fort Morgan plant without interrupting operations.
"At no time did Cargill prevent people from prayer at Fort Morgan," said Michael Martin, a spokesman for the Wichita-based company, which is part of the agribusiness giant Cargill Inc. " Nor have we changed policies related to religious accommodation and attendance. This has been mischaracterized."
Cargill also said while reasonable efforts are made to accommodate employees, accommodation is not guaranteed every day and depends on changing factors in the plant.

"This has been clearly communicated to all employees," Martin said.
But the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which is representing more than 100 of the fired employees, said Thursday messaging from plant supervisors has not always been so clear.
On Dec. 18, the Friday before employee protest began Dec. 21, "the workers were told: 'If you want to pray, go home,' " CAIR spokesman Jaylani Hussein said.
"To these employees, that is what it is. Maybe Cargill never changed its policy, but to these employees, they feel whatever the policy is, or how it is implemented, there was a change put in place," Hussein said.
Cargill provides a "reflection room" at the plant where observant Muslim workers are allowed to pray, something that has been available since 2009.
Hussein said depending on the season, the workers pray at different times of the day, typically taking five to 10 minutes away from their work. The time was carved out of a 15-minute break period or from the workers' unpaid 30-minute lunch breaks.
Many of the workers banded together and decided to walk off the job in an attempt to sway plant managers to reinstate the prayer policy.
"They feel missing their prayer is worse than losing their job," Hussein said. "It's like losing a blessing from God."
Cargill on Dec. 23 fired the hold-out workers who had not returned to work, citing a company policy that employees who do not show up for work or call in for three consecutive days will be let go.
"It's an unfortunate situation that may be based somewhere in a misunderstanding," Martin said. "But the policies have been in place and we go over the policies for all people who are newly hired to the company when they are hired."
All of the terminated employees worked second shift on the plant's fabrication floor, where chilled beef carcasses are broken down into smaller cuts and packaged, Martin said.
Of those involved, "fewer than 20" employees walked out in the middle of a shift, he said. About 160 failed to report to work, and 10 resigned.
Before the walkout, Cargill employed roughly 600 Somali workers at the Fort Morgan plant. More than 400 still work there, Martin said, and accommodations are still being made to allow Muslims to leave the floor in small groups to pray.
"There has been a desire among SOME employees to go in LARGER groups of people to pray. We just can't accommodate that," Martin said. "It backs up the flow of all the production. We're a federally inspected, USDA inspected plant. We have to ensure food safety. We have to ensure the products we produce meet consumer expectations."
The workers earn $14 per hour and up, and are represented by a union, Teamsters Local 445. More than 2,000 people are employed at the plant.
Cargill has a policy stating that any workers who are terminated cannot reapply for a position for six months. CAIR continues to talk with Cargill and Hussein said he hopes the six-month freeze is waived and that the workers will be allowed back.
"I'm confident in our upcoming negotiations that we can come to a resolution," Hussein said.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_29330180/cargill-tried-resolve-issues-before-firing-colorado-muslim
|
|
|
|
