The treatment of
immigrants has been drawn into sharp contrast at meat-packing plants JBS U.S.A.
runs in Canada and the United States.
The Canadian
plant, which JBS bought from XL Foods Inc. in the midst of a food-safety
crisis, has won plaudits from the federal government for hiring and treating
immigrants and refugees well.
But its plant in
Nebraska is tied up in court challenges over its refusal to allow Muslims
prayer time.
"It is
encouraging to hear about how JBS Food Canada has implemented a number of
measures to ensure that newcomer employees feel welcomed, are able to work
safely, and have every opportunity to successfully settle and integrate into
Canadian society and their new community,” said Ahmed Hussen, the Canadian cabinet
minister in charge of immigration. He gave the company and award,
“By recruiting immigrants and offering them
meaningful employment, Canadian employers like this one go above and beyond to
create a welcoming environment where newcomers, their families and local
communities can thrive," he said by way of a news release.
But in Nebraska,
the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission spent six years trying to
convince a federal court that the company’s packing plant at Grand Island discriminated
against Muslim workers by not accommodating their requests for prayer breaks
during Ramadan.
JBS is a
Brazilian company.
