Daily Lessons from Life 27 August 2010 - Taiwan boss sentenced for forcing Muslims to eat pork

"Taiwan boss sentenced for forcing Muslims to eat pork - Fri, Aug 27, 2010 AFP

TAIPEI - A Taiwanese garment factory owner was sentenced to six months in jail for forcing three Muslim women on her staff to eat pork, but she could escape prison by paying a fine, a court official said Friday.

Chang Wen-lin was sentenced for coercion after she confessed to pushing the three women, all from Indonesia, to eat the meat, which is considered strictly taboo in Islam, according to the Panchiao district court in Taipei county.


However, in light of her confession and her decision to compensate the women, she will be allowed to pay a fine of 60,000 Taiwan dollars (S$2,543) in exchange for a two-year suspended sentence, said a court spokesman."

A good ending. A lesson learned from the Taiwanese employer and hopefully the 3 Indonesian workers continued to work well in the company. Sometimes, after a big bust up, understanding deeper. Of course, it is contingent upon the errant party wanting to really learn and change.

Lessons for me are:

1. to be an employer of employees from a foreign country and culture is not easy. You need to be open and flexible in treating your people though being respectful while demanding high performance are good place to start!;

2. globalization means anyone can work in any country. It also means everyone needs to learn more about each other's country, culture, custom, etc. Otherwise, unnecessary misunderstanding and confrontation that may lead to permanent damage to relationship will happen;

3. increasing non-traditional source of labor is popping up. This put further pressure for potential employers to think hard and deep about where to hire and how to ensure fair and proper treatment of the foreign workers after they landed at the work country. Many SMEs are probably not properly equipped to deal with such a phenomenon. It also means time for the authority to help provide that needed education and monitoring!

May the Muslims enjoy their halal food and get the energy to work well and produce excellent performance for their employees. When it comes to measuring performance, there should be no grey area! Let it be SMART - Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Result-oriented, and Time-bound!