A Muslim man is suing Tesco for religious discrimination because they asked him to handle alcohol.
Now, I don't have every detail on this case, but it's a fair bet that one or more of the following predicates could apply:
- Our muslim friend is not smart enough to realise that working for a large retail store which sells alcohol may occasionally bring him into contact with, well, alcohol.
- Tesco are so cringingly culturally sensitive that they genuinely thought when hiring this man that they'd be able to work round this fundamental problem
- The hiring manager has no idea what goes on at floor level
- The staff at floor level are dicks (actually, this is likely to be true)
- Our muslim friend was OK with it to begin with, but later changed his tune and now expects a payout
- All involved are idiots and should be thrown out of court with prejudice
A number of questions come up, of course, for which I have no ready answers: Is he happy to have bacon on his forklift? What about copies of FHM, with their sinfully curvaceous and lightly-clad lovelies? Is Mr Ahmed insane? Are Tesco insane? And "Who the fuck is in charge of this shower"?
What if someone applied for a job at an electronics store, but after accepting the job said: "Oh, I'm sorry, I can't handle any electrical items which contain CCDs, such as digital cameras, video cameras and webcams, because I believe they are the tools of the Illuminati/Aliens/CIA/Pope, who use them to watch over us and manipulate our thoughts"? Would that person not end up out on his or her laughable arse? And what's so different here?
The real question, though, is this: Is this a case of Tesco trying to be culturally sensitive by not asking the appropriate questions at the interview or probation stage? Because there's a simple solution.
When hiring workers for a job which may involve them handling any items potentially objectionable to their 'faith', ask the following question, on paper, and get them to sign it
"Do you have any objections, religious or cultural, to handling any of the goods that we stock at the time of signing this agreement?"
If they won't sign it, they don't get the job, because they are simply not qualified for the position.
I would contend that it is more culturally sensitive to ask this sort of question up front than to avoid the issue.
Of course, many organisations and many jurisdictions prohibit questions of a religious or ethnic nature in their interview process, which makes this sort of question very difficult to ask, but the fact remains: cultural and religious mores can directly impact the sort of work individuals can undertake, and to brush that under the carpet is foolish. These questions should be addressed, and answered up front.
In this specific case, I believe Mr Ahmed deserves not a penny. Tesco have been selling alcohol, pig products and magazines with bikini-clad girlies for more years than I've been shaving, and they haven't been hiding the fact. If he objects to handling these items, he should never have applied for a job at their distribution depot. However if Tesco tried to bend over and 'accomodate' his idiotic views in the name of cultural sensitivity, then they deserve a stern slapping, or possibly a metaphorical stab in the neck, from the UK's industrial relations system.
I'll be interested to see what happens, though I have a feeling I'll be disappointed either way. Floor's open, again.