Q: How do other organizations allow their employees to handle holiday decorations and celebrations We want to allow people to tastefully decorate/celebrate and we also want to make sure that we are not offending people.
A:Before we answer this question directly, we’d first like to address the issue of religion in the workplace. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits workplace discrimination based on religion, national origin, race, color or sex. Companies abide by this policy, but the more progressive ones create inclusive environments in which employees are encouraged to integrate their mandated religious practices into their day-to-day jobs. This helps companies build loyalty, raise morale and productivity, and reduce one of the hidden costs of ignoring religious diversity: absenteeism.
- Nine years ago, only 42 percent of theFair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50had floating religious holidays, compared with 74 percent in 2011 and 78 percent in 2012. Sixty-six percent of all participants in the 2012 Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 survey had floating religious holidays. To put these statistics into perspective, a “Religion and Corporate Culture Survey Report” by the Society of Human Resource Management found that just 28 percent of 513 respondents offered paid leave for days that are not part of their regular holiday calendar.
- Seventy percent of the Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 companies have onsite religious accommodations, such as prayer rooms, compared with 32 percent eight years ago.
- Twenty-eight percent of the Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 companies have religion-basedresource groupsversus just 5 percent eight years ago.
For more information on religion in the workplace, visit Fair360.com to read “Best Practices on Religiously Inclusive Workplaces.”
