Religious Practices in the Workplace

Abstract

Understanding and complying with various religious standards and viewpoint in the workplace is necessary for all good managers. Being flexible as well as considerate allows employees to establish trust and respect even when personal viewpoints diverge. Though religion is protected as a protected class related to discrimination, some of the standards and allowances that must be made are often unclear. Balancing the religious freedoms of employees while managing the flow of processes can be especially difficult when personal religious standards impact the company in a negative way or inconvenience other employees.  The following writing will discuss the observance of religious practices and freedoms of employees under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended. From the perspective of a human resources manager of a 2,500-employee company that produces fluorescent light fixtures in a continuous motion process, the essay provides analysis and recommendations for how to balance religious freedoms with work fluidity. Specifically, regarding a case in which Muslim employees request the ability to pray five times a day, the writing focuses on the legal responsibility as well as the responsibility to be considerate and respectful as a good manager. Peer-reviewed sources are incorporated to provide a clear foundation for this analysis and recommendation. The bottom line understanding is that requests which are truly required to maintain an individual’s religious criteria as defined by the individual’s faith group should be considered and accommodations acquiesced if possible. 

Legal Analysis

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 encompassed a comprehensive outlawing of discrimination against minorities and groups which were characterized by a certain race, ethnicity, sex or religion. By supporting the public accommodations of minorities, the act helped to protect these classes of people from unfair and unwarranted discrimination from others. An amendment expanded this protection in order to specify security for employees in Title VII of the act (Wright, 2005). Specifically, the Act states that employers with “fifteen or more employees for each working day in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year” (CRA,1964). This stipulation is important to note because it has significant implications for employees of small companies and those who have less than fifteen employees. Even with this streamlined definition, additional exceptions may occur. Employees that work for the federal government must be covered under a separate edict, as well as federally recognized Native American Tribes, religious groups, and nonprofit private membership organizations. As a result, employee discrimination protection is not as clear cut and broad as some may believe. The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission helps to enforce this protection and represent employees.

Despite the boundaries of the protection, employers are permitted to discriminate if the foundation of a protected act or trait is in direct conflict with business operations. This is referred to as a “bona fide occupational qualification”, and is only applicable if religion and adherence to employee responsibilities becomes an issue. Conflict with the central mission of the business and the lack of reasonable alternatives can also impact an employer’s obligation to abide by the standards of the act.

Case Study

In developing a recommendation for allowing Muslim employees to pray five times a day in a continuous motion processing environment, it is essential to research precedents set by others.  In 2011 the car rental company Hertz fired Muslim employees for refusing to sign a form to clock out on their prayer breaks, citing abuse of provided break time (CBS,2011). Although signing out did not affect their pay and employees were given time to pray, they refused to sign the form because they did not want to be regulated or monitored for prayer time. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission advises that “reasonable accommodations” for prayer time must be adhered to unless it results in hardship or significant financial burden. As Hertz attempted to manage these accommodations reasonably, the employee’s claims of discrimination are unfounded. Despite this many other companies have been subjected to suits related to prayer and religious accommodation discrimination allegations (EOEC, 2013). This often results in unwanted negative publicity and costly court fees.

Recommendation

In production and manufacturing companies, work is often a continuous motion process of assembly lines which require workers to be present consistently in order to maintain production levels. Legally, as manager of a company which integrates a continuous motion process to manufacture items, it would be permissible to stipulate that Muslim workers can only pray during pre-scheduled breaks. The bona fide occupational exception would apply because a workers absence for 10 minutes unplanned can significantly impede production and revenue. However, despite this legal option, it would be best practice to find an alternative for Muslim employees who need to pray five times a day. Special accommodations can be made to schedule their breaks around their own pray schedule. The requests will be addressed individually in order to allow for discourse and feedback regarding the most effective way to accommodate the employee while also maintaining expected production levels. 

Conclusion

While legal recourse is possible, creativity can benefit any manager looking to manage religious accommodations and organizational goals. The key to circumventing legal fallout is the ability or the sincere attempt to reasonably accommodate the employee. Sincerely caring about employees is the beginning of establishing trust and respect that will allow for mutual cooperation. This will minimize employees taking advantage of their flex time and also allow employers to feel more confident in trusting their employees. Every effort would be made to avoid legal recourse by using human resource management strategies to understand and value the personal and religious needs of employees as well as accommodate them accordingly.

References

CBS News (2011). Hertz fires Muslims for not clocking out to pray. 

Civil Rights Act of 1964, CRA. (1964)Title VII. Equal Employment Opportunities – 42 US Code Chapter 21

U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, EOEC.(2013) Selected List of Pending and Resolved Cases Alleging Religious and National Origin Discrimination Involving the Muslim, Sikh, Arab, Middle Eastern and South Asian Communities. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/litigation/selected/religion_nationalorigin.cfm 

Wright, S. (2005), The Civil Rights Act of 1964: Landmark Antidiscrimination Legislation, The Rosen Publishing Group, ISBN 1-4042-0455-5