Turbaned Sikhs in B.C. contest mandatory hard hat rule at sawmill

The Oregonian ^ | April 1, 2008 | Michael Rollins

[Stoat]

Turbaned Sikhs in B.C. contest mandatory hard hat rule at sawmill

Posted by Michael Rollins, The Oregonian April 01, 2008 06:59AM

 

Kalwant Singh Sahota

Sikhs in Canada have won several key battles over religious attire. For example, Sikhs can wear turbans instead of the familiar Royal Canadian Mounted Police hats. But what about a sawmill? Isn't this easily a safety issue? It might be, except the two Sikhs who filed a human rights complaints have been working there for years without hard hats and have suddenly been required to don them. The Vancouver Sun's Kim Bolan is expert on Sikh culture in B.C. Here's her story.

Two turbaned Sikhs have filed a human rights complaint against International Forest Products, saying a new hard hat policy is preventing them from returning to their jobs at a Delta sawmill.

Lawyer David Perry is representing Kalwant Singh Sahota and Mander Singh Sohal, who have worked at Interfor's Acorn Division for years, but are now unable to continue unless they abandon their turbans for hard hats.

Perry said Monday that the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal accepted the complaint March 9 and that Interfor has until April 9 to file its response.
Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'
Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'

The company did not return repeated calls to head office and the Acorn division manager Monday.

"Both of these guys are both long, long-term forestry employee workers and this is the first time this has ever happened," Perry said. "It is actually worse than it would be for other workplaces because when you think about the history of Punjabi pioneers coming here, forestry was one of the few industries that they could get into."

[Stoat]

Thanks to Orbusmax for the link:

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Also:

Sikhs file rights complaint

Sikhs in B.C. can ride motorcycles and bikes without helmets and also fought in two world wars wearing their turbans, Sahota said.

"This issue keeps coming and going, coming and going. There should be a permanent solution," he said.

(edit)

A similar dispute broke out a few years ago on Vancouver's waterfront, but was resolved when Sikhs wearing turbans were accommodated in jobs where hard hats were not considered essential.

[Slapshot68]

Well I’d tell him that perhaps the sawmill biz isn’t his line of work and to go open a 7-11...except they’re all owned by Iranians and Pakistanis now.

[mtbopfuyn]

And the first time they get bopped on the head with anything, they'll sue the company for not abiding by the hard hat rule.

[ladtx]

Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'
Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'

Maybe he needs to wear a hardhat, if he keeps repeating himself.

[ElkGroveDan]

Why can’t they put on the hard hat at home in privacy in the morning and then wrap their turban around the outside of the hat?

[KarlInOhio]

How about very large hard hats or else hard plastic safety turbans?

[vikingd00d]

Why don’t they just put a hard hat on top of the turban? I don’t see the problem.

[lilylangtree]

Exactly what I was thinking too.

[weegee]

One piece of headgear is strictly ceremonial while the other is protective.

A refusal to don all required protective headgear should be grounds for dismissal.

Just as those who don’t want to handle pork products or work a daytime schedule without 5 prayer breaks a day should perhaps seek nighttime employment or other lines of work.

[353FMG]

“Well I’d tell him that perhaps the sawmill biz isn’t his line of work..”

Oh, leave them be. This is plainly the blessings of multiculturalism and diveeeeeersity. America, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

[Mount Athos]

Sikh’s are very intelligent people.
I think they can invent a hard turban!

[PGR88]

Let’s see how the ridiculously politically-correct, all-inclusive and racially over-sensitive Canadians twist themselves in knots over this one.....

[milford421]

“And the first time they get bopped on the head with anything, they’ll sue the company for not abiding by the hard hat rule.”

Exactly. Surely the sikhs can compromise...perhaps wear a tighter hair cover under the hard hats. Wasn’t there a similar compromise for sikhs regarding the kirpan and air travel? I believe a plastic kirpan became acceptable. Common sense and safety concerns need to rule here.

[massgopguy]

How did Vlad Tsepesh deal with people who wouldn’t take their turbans off?

[RightWhale]

Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'

Kalwant Singh Sahota, 57: 'This is pretty devastating when they give you the news that you cannot come across the yard without a hard hat. So when you are in the industry for so long . . . and all of a sudden they drop a bombshell, imagine how you can feel.'

The company did not return repeated calls

Funny stuff. The complaining choir meets after work on Wednesday for rehearsal.

[TBP]

The turban is a requirement of their religion.

[Ramius]

I think they can invent a hard turban!

Hah! An excellent idea. A hard hat shaped like a turban.

Actually, the Sikh turbans I've seen are so thick they're probably not a bad protective hat as they are. Something drops on their head, and it'll probably do just as well as a plastic hard hat in preventing a skull injury.

[tbw2]

The moment a nail goes through someone’s turban because they weren’t wearing a hard hat, someone will sue for that.
Someone needs to invent hard hats that fit inside turbans.
Or a ruling like the Kuwaitis had in Gulf War 1 - that a protective helmet WAS hijab / harem, thus OK.

[milford421]

I don’t think it was the turban he was “eyeing”...

[proudmilitarymrs]

As a safety officer, just design the damn thing that goes around the sikh headdress you’ll make a million and quit whining in the process.

mrs