Somali women face job discrimination

[Blessed]

Interesting article:

 

Sorry, no room at the office

Somali women face job discrimination

by Mafo Kamanda-Kosseh

 

Like many Somali women, Saida Mahamed came to the United States to escape the civil unrest in her homeland. Aided by a daughter already in the country, the 57-year-old Mahamed moved to Minnesota to find work. She hoped to earn enough money to send some home to help support her husband and children still living there.

 

But finding work in her new home has been more difficult than she anticipated. Although she attended a few English classes, she isn't fluent, and that has held her back.

 

At one point, she found work assembling computer parts. But after three months, her supervisor summoned her and asked her to sign her name in English on a piece of paper. "I couldn't," she admitted.

 

She was dismissed from that position and hasn't found work since April 2001. "I thought I would work in Minneapolis. Everywhere I go, I say I am strong and can work. ... I don't think I'll ever work in Minneapolis."

 

Every day, an average of 14 women walk through the door of the Somalian Women's Association (SWA) looking for work. Opened in 1996, the SWA provides employment and training assistance to new immigrants. Like other new immigrants, Somali women have to overcome numerous barriers to employment, including language, dress codes, transportation and affordable housing.

 

Many Somali women have never held a paying job before. In Somalia, it is customary for men to be the breadwinners while women are responsible for the family and home. They often have limited access to schools. They arrive in the United States as single parents, having lost their husbands in the civil war or left them behind in Somalia.

 

But since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the women have also felt increased discrimination and increasing suspicion toward immigrants, especially those from Africa and the Middle East. Somali women in particular are easily distinguished by their long, flowing dresses and head coverings. Many of them say they have been verbally and physically harassed in the streets and turned down for jobs because of their dress.

 

These subtle and not-so-subtle instances of discrimination have further reduced employment opportunities for Somali women, according to SWA Director Amal Yusuf.

 

Between January and July of 2001, the SWA helped 118 women fill out job applications for multiple employers. Twenty-four of those women found work, mostly as janitors or in other entry-level positions.

 

During the first six months of this year the number of SWA job seekers leaped to 185, but only 14 found either full- or part-time work, despite attempts by the SWA staff to contact new employers. Of 69 new employers the SWA contacted, only one responded, Yusuf said, and that was to say there were no jobs. She estimates it's the toughest market since the SWA opened six years ago.

 

"When the job counselors at SWA call companies, they have job openings. But when we take clients, we were often told that the positions were filled and most of the time, the women were not called for an interview, even when they have skills and experiences in these particular areas," Yusuf said.

 

Employers often object to the way the women dress, citing it as a safety concern. As part of their Islamic faith, many Somali women wear a jalaabiib, a full-length dress than covers everything except the face and hands.

 

Qalio Samatar, 22, recalled an instance when she, along with a job counselor and 15 other Somali women, walked into a factory that manufactures computer parts. "They looked at us from head to toe and said, 'you can only wear pants.'" The women pleaded with the employer, offering to wear a shorter head scarf known as a

 

khamaar or jiaab, but the employer still refused. Samatar is now working at a temporary job.

 

Some employers also object to the reddish-brown henna dye used to create intricate designs on some women's hands. The Islamic faith forbids women to wear makeup, including nail polish, during prayer. As an alternative, women have sought out natural products, like henna, as a way to adorn themselves. At a food processing plant, they were told the decoration was a health risk, even after the women explained the markings are permanent.

 

Another Somali woman, Saida Mohamud, 27, said she applied for a job on an assembly line Sept. 11, but was toldjust after she was offered the job during an interview on Sept. 12that the position was no longer available to her. While discussing hours and scheduling with the hiring staff person, he abruptly excused himself to speak with a supervisor, she recalled. When he returned, he explained that he did not know the policy well enough and therefore did not know he couldn't hire people who didn't speak English.

 

In partnership with Hennepin County, the SWA is working to improve employment opportunities for Somali women. The SWA, together with the Hennepin County Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP), has implemented a program to help women improve their English and their job skills and to provide help with housing, life skills and immigration issues. The Welfare Innovations and Solutions for Employment, or WISE project, targets Somali women in the core cities, but also is reaching out to the suburbs, and particularly Eden Prairie, where a growing number of Somali women have located.

 

This year, the SWA began offering ESL and job skills classes in both Eden Prairie and Minneapolis. The classes focus on preparing the women for entry-level jobs and helping with transportation. When they complete the training, the women receive a stipend and are asked to make a commitment to accepting and retaining employment.

 

Since the program began earlier this year, 40 women have completed the course, and 10 have found either part- or full-time work.

 

Other initiatives include building strong relationships with employers. The SWA has built a relationship with Keller Meyer Building Services as a way of eliminating some of the barriers to employment, such as a dress code, so that the women can work while observing their religious practices.

[Business_Man]

Interesting Post. Seems to me that discrimination is playing a big part in the US due to what Atta and his men did!. I was their this summer working so this article is just the toss of the coin!.

 

Peace

 

Cont.

 

P.S Sweet sunshine like you dont PM me no more!.

[Rahima]

What saddens and angers me the most is knowing that had we as Somalis not destroyed our land we would not be in such a situation. Even more disgusting is we continue to create havoc and then it’s always the women who suffer the most.

[Valenteenah.]

It is a depressing state of affairs for Somalis as a whole, but particularly for the women. I think the best thing we can do is to help each other. If a strong [women's] support network exists, it becomes possible and easier for each woman to overcome problems and difficulties with the help and support of the group. I'm glad the SWA is there to offer those much needed training and employment services to the community.

[PrettyYoungThang]

When employees feel they have been overlooked for a promotion or raiseor getting a speific job, due to age, race or gender, they may claim that they have been discriminated against. But somalia women are not the only one that are facing this problem. Its happening to women/men of all race. And in a way, the reason why i think somalia women are facing this is because of them not having enough education. Thats my opinion for the time being.

 

Jaaaaaaawe