Freedom of Religion

[M&K's Retrievers]

[B...she will lose along with whoever has an agenda and backing her play

She/they have already won by bringing attention to this BS.

[YardleyLabs]

This seems perfectly reasonable, Jeff. Nothing to argue with there. However, if your business is making hot dogs that contain pork ... does it require that the company change its business plan to accommodate any religion. After all, an orthodox Jew also has a pork prohibition. I'd be guessing, but my guess would be that we have more Jews than Muslims in the US ... yet this has only become an issue now? Or I could be mistaken on this last point?

I can understand the break time (when applied to all workers equally) ... but it would also seem fair to let an applicant know in advance that his job would involve handling pork. If his conscience would not allow him/her to do that, then they would have to look for a different job, even within the same company (if they were qualified for another job).

Actually, you would have no difficulty with such a requirement if your business were as a pork processor any more than there would be a problem with dress code if you were hiring a topless dancer. The problem only arose in the Minnesota case because the employer's agent was requiring job applicants to agree to handle pork when the business of the employer only involves handling chicken. No orthodox Jew would work for a pork processor, any more than a Hasidic Jewish woman would work in a place where she could not dress modestly and wear a wig or other suitable head covering. However, if I am running a computer programming business and a Hasidic Jewish man shows up to apply for a job, I will be in trouble if I demand first that he agree not to wear his traditional clothing.

I have had several Hasidic employees, and they have been the most difficult to accommodate in my experience, primarily because their schedule of religious holidays makes it almost impossible to work a full year unless they are allowed to work from home. As a business operator, I was required to make reasonable accommodations. I was not required to let people work from home or work completely outside of normal business hours when supervision and interaction with other team members would be impossible. That is one of the reasons that you are likely to find most Hasidim working in businesses owned by other Hasidim. If you are shopping for camera equipment, you will learn quickly that B&H Photo simply closes down for major holidays such as Rosh Hashanah and Succos, which effectively makes them closed for half of September.

Atheists and Hindus have been the easiest to accommodate.

[walt8@cox.net]

Actually, you would have no difficulty with such a requirement if your business were as a pork processor any more than there would be a problem with dress code if you were hiring a topless dancer. The problem only arose in the Minnesota case because the employer's agent was requiring job applicants to agree to handle pork when the business of the employer only involves handling chicken. No orthodox Jew would work for a pork processor, any more than a Hasidic Jewish woman would work in a place where she could not dress modestly and wear a wig or other suitable head covering. However, if I am running a computer programming business and a Hasidic Jewish man shows up to apply for a job, I will be in trouble if I demand first that he agree not to wear his traditional clothing.

I have had several Hasidic employees, and they have been the most difficult to accommodate in my experience, primarily because their schedule of religious holidays makes it almost impossible to work a full year unless they are allowed to work from home. As a business operator, I was required to make reasonable accommodations. I was not required to let people work from home or work completely outside of normal business hours when supervision and interaction with other team members would be impossible. That is one of the reasons that you are likely to find most Hasidim working in businesses owned by other Hasidim. If you are shopping for camera equipment, you will learn quickly that B&H Photo simply closes down for major holidays such as Rosh Hashanah and Succos, which effectively makes them closed for half of September.

Atheists and Hindus have been the easiest to accommodate.

How many different religions can business's be expected to make adjustments for? Easier to just get rid of all of them and have people come to work? As a business owner, I've worked all the holidays and it never bothered me, but I'm not a very religious guy. And with me it was just the simple act of working. Not the added burden of dress codes and food to be handled, or whatever else someones religion may not want them to do.
Walt

[YardleyLabs]

How many different religions can business's be expected to make adjustments for? Easier to just get rid of all of them and have people come to work? As a business owner, I've worked all the holidays and it never bothered me, but I'm not a very religious guy. And with me it was just the simple act of working. Not the added burden of dress codes and food to be handled, or whatever else someones religion may not want them to do.
Walt

There are lots of things that a good employer tries to accommodate within reasonable limits: an employee who is ill, people who keep thinking that vacations and holidays mean they don't have to come into work, sick children, doctor's appointments, and so forth. It would be nice to never have to deal with any of that. Unfortunately, employees just want more, more and more. Now, if only I could get them to agree not to be paid.....

Religious issues are no harder to deal with than anything else. My approach was simple. I gave seven paid holidays as required by law, four personal days, 10-15 vacation days, and five sick days. If a person had specific personal or religious requirements, I was willing to work with them as long as the total time off taken did not exceed what our policy allowed and did not interfere with the business schedule. A few conflicts would arise over time, but religious needs were seldom the source.