Reference no: EM132269432

Frank Piechowski, plant manager for a refrigerator production plant, has just received his instructions from the vice-president for manufacturing. He is to hire 40 more temporary workers through Cities Staffing, the local labour agency. Frank already knows from past experience that most, if not all, of the new hires available to work the assembly line will be Muslim Somali refugees, people who have emigrated from their war-torn native country en masse over the past 15 years.

The company, like all appliance manufacturers, is trying to survive in a highly competitive, mature industry. Appliance companies are competing mainly on price. The entrance of large chains has only intensified the price wars, not to mention that consumers can easily do comparison shopping before leaving home simply by logging onto the Internet. The pressure to keep production costs low is considerable.

That’s where the Somali workers come in. In an effort to keep labour costs low, Frank is relying more and more on temporary workers rather than increasing the ranks of permanent employees. Frank has been quite pleased with the Somali people already at work on the assembly line. Although few in number, they are responsible, hard- working and willing to work for the wages he can afford to pay.

It was the first time this son of Polish immigrants has ever come into contact with Muslims, but so far, it has gone well. Frank has established a good working relationship with the Somalis’ spokesperson, Halima Adan, who explained that, unlike in most Western faiths, Islamic religious practices are inextricably woven into everyday life. So together, they worked out ways to accommodate Muslim customs. Frank authorised changes in the plant’s cafeteria menu so the Somali workers had more options that conformed to their dietary restrictions, and he allowed women to wear traditional clothing as long as they weren’t violating safety standards.

After learning that the Somalis would need to perform at least some of the ceremonial washing and prayers they are required to do five times a day during work hours, the plant manager set aside a quiet, clean room where they could observe their 15-minute rituals during their breaks and at sunset. The Maghrib sunset prayers that second shift workers had to perform were disruptive to a smooth workflow. Compared to their midday and afternoon rituals, the Muslim faithful had considerably less leeway as to when they said the sunset prayers, and of course, the sun set at a slightly different time each day. But so far, all of them, including Frank, had coped. But what was Frank going to do about the sunset prayers with an influx of 40 Somali workers that would dramatically increase the number of people who would need to leave the line to pray? Is it time to modify his policy? Has he reached the point where the accommodations Halima Adan would probably request crossed the line from reasonable to unreasonable? But if he changes his policy, will he risk alienating his workforce?

1. Is Lauren a first-line manager, middle manager, or top manager? Please use evidence from the case study to support your answer.