Not often that I repost CAIR press releases, but since this covers both Muslim community issues and tech issues, I thought this would interest any Muslim interested in buying Dell's overpriced, overrated computers with that flaky operating system. All e-mail addresses have been spam-proofed.
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
CAIR ACTION ALERT #449
DELL FIRES 30 MUSLIMS OVER MAGHRIB PRAYER Contact Dell to urge rehiring of workers, mediation
(WASHINGTON, D.C., 3/10/05) - CAIR today called on Dell Computers to rehire 30 Muslims workers allegedly fired from a plant in Tennessee for seeking to perform Islamic prayers in the workplace, and offered to help the company and its employees reach a mutually-agreeable solution to the dispute.
CAIR said the workers were fired from a Dell facility in Nashville, Tenn., after they sought to perform the Maghrib prayer each day after sunset. (Because the Maghrib prayer is tied to a particular time of day, it requires greater flexibility and creativity on the part of employers and workers.)
SEE: 30 MUSLIM WORKERS FIRED FOR PRAYING ON JOB AT DELL http://www.tennessean.com/local/archives/05/03/66733769.shtml
"Given sufficient goodwill on the part of all those involved, both the employees' legal right to reasonable religious accommodation and the employer's right to maintain smooth operations in the workplace can be maintained," said CAIR Legal Director Arsalan Iftikhar.
In a letter sent today to Dell President and CEO Kevin B. Rollins, Iftikhar asked that the Muslim workers be rehired pending resolution of the issues involved. He said CAIR staffers who have experience dealing with workplace religious accommodation are available to act as mediators between the Muslim workers and Dell.
CAIR publishes a booklet, called "An Employer's Guide to Islamic Religious Practices," designed to prevent just such incidents. The booklet is available by e-mailing pubs [at] cair-net.org. (Include name, address and phone number when requesting the booklet.) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires an employer to accommodate religious practices unless it causes an "undue hardship."
ACTIONS REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE.)
Contact Dell to request that they re-hire the Muslim workers pending a mutually-agreeable resolution of the dispute.
CONTACT:
Mr. Kevin B. Rollins President and CEO Dell Computers One Dell Way Round Rock, TX 78682
TEL: 512-338-4400 FAX: 512-283-2299 E-MAIL: InvestorRelations [at] dell.com, trreid [at] dell.com, kevin_rollins [at] dell.com COPY TO: cair@cair-net.org
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CAIR Council on American-Islamic Relations 453 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20003 Tel: 202-488-8787, 202-744-7726 Fax: 202-488-0833 E-mail: cair [at] cair-net.org URL: http://www.cair-net.org
I never like Dell products, this just adds to my dislike of the company.
I never like Dell products, this just adds to my dislike of the company.
Looks like the incident at Dell is now settled to the satisfaction of all parties.
"Recent prayer incident at Dell reflects changes in Nashville
Don Mooradian, dmooradian@nashvillecitypaper.com
March 21, 2005
The return of 31 Muslim contract workers to DellâÂÂs Nashville fulfillment facility was called a win-win situation by several people involved in negotiating the settlement.
âÂÂWe are pleased,â said Kelvin Jones, executive director of the Nashville Metro Human Relations Commission, âÂÂand believe this is a win-win for Nashville.âÂÂ
In early February, the workers, mostly from Somalia, left their jobs when they believed they were being forced to choose between working or saying their sunset prayers (called Magrhib), as prescribed in their Islam faith.
âÂÂIn their mind, they felt their faith was being threatened,â said Jones.
There are about 300 workers of the Muslim faith at the Dell facility, Jones said.
There are guidelines that instruct managers and supervisors there to grant paid time away from an employeesâ work area for prayer as long as those requests are reasonable.
âÂÂSome managers apparently misunderstood that one day,â Jones said.
âÂÂThe situation reflects that there has been a growing immigrant population in the community and it is more diverse than it was even 10 years ago,â Jones said.
A number of parties helped work out a settlement, and the entire affair is being called by some as a misunderstanding of employment laws and company policies.
The workers are being re-instated on their jobs and will receive back pay, and accommodations have been made so they will be able to pray.
The workers are actually employees of the Spherion Corp., which contracts labor to the fulfillment center. Both it and Dell are generally regarded as being sensitive to diversity issues, Jones said.
As part of the settlement, Middle Tennessee managers at the two companies will receive additional training regarding DellâÂÂs existing practices for religious accommodation.
Jones said it was Abdishakur Ibrahim, imam at NashvilleâÂÂs Al-Farooq Mosque, who brought the workers to the commission, and he said the imam helped bring the situation to an amicable settlement.
The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations also was involved in the settlement process.
The group publishes a booklet called "An EmployerâÂÂs Guide to Islamic Religious Practices" that is designed to prevent just such incidents. The booklet is available by e-mailing pubs@cair-net.org ."
Looks like the incident at Dell is now settled to the satisfaction of all parties.
"Recent prayer incident at Dell reflects changes in Nashville
Don Mooradian, dmooradian@nashvillecitypaper.com
March 21, 2005
The return of 31 Muslim contract workers to DellâÂÂs Nashville fulfillment facility was called a win-win situation by several people involved in negotiating the settlement.
âÂÂWe are pleased,â said Kelvin Jones, executive director of the Nashville Metro Human Relations Commission, âÂÂand believe this is a win-win for Nashville.âÂÂ
In early February, the workers, mostly from Somalia, left their jobs when they believed they were being forced to choose between working or saying their sunset prayers (called Magrhib), as prescribed in their Islam faith.
âÂÂIn their mind, they felt their faith was being threatened,â said Jones.
There are about 300 workers of the Muslim faith at the Dell facility, Jones said.
There are guidelines that instruct managers and supervisors there to grant paid time away from an employeesâ work area for prayer as long as those requests are reasonable.
âÂÂSome managers apparently misunderstood that one day,â Jones said.
âÂÂThe situation reflects that there has been a growing immigrant population in the community and it is more diverse than it was even 10 years ago,â Jones said.
A number of parties helped work out a settlement, and the entire affair is being called by some as a misunderstanding of employment laws and company policies.
The workers are being re-instated on their jobs and will receive back pay, and accommodations have been made so they will be able to pray.
The workers are actually employees of the Spherion Corp., which contracts labor to the fulfillment center. Both it and Dell are generally regarded as being sensitive to diversity issues, Jones said.
As part of the settlement, Middle Tennessee managers at the two companies will receive additional training regarding DellâÂÂs existing practices for religious accommodation.
Jones said it was Abdishakur Ibrahim, imam at NashvilleâÂÂs Al-Farooq Mosque, who brought the workers to the commission, and he said the imam helped bring the situation to an amicable settlement.
The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations also was involved in the settlement process.
The group publishes a booklet called "An EmployerâÂÂs Guide to Islamic Religious Practices" that is designed to prevent just such incidents. The booklet is available by e-mailing pubs@cair-net.org ."
When in Rome .....
When in Rome .....