Accommodating Religious Practices in the Workplace
Religion is an increasing component in the workplace. Reasonable accommodation of different religions in the workplace continues to be a problem within organizations. This paper will look at a discrimination case where religion accommodation is present, what laws, doctrines, and customs were related to the decision, and proactive policies to avoid a religious discrimination lawsuit.
EEOC V. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc.
Umme-Hani Khan started working at Hollister (owned by Abercrombie & Fitch) in 2009. At first she was asked to wear hijabs (religious headscarf) in Hollister colors, which she agreed, but in mid-February 2010 Khan was asked to take off her hijab because it violated …show more content…
Title VII prohibits discrimination based on religion and requires employers to accommodate the sincere religious beliefs or practices of employees unless doing so would create an undue hardship on the organization (EEOC, 2013). As the judge stated, just because Khan is wearing a hijab is not sufficient enough evidence to prove an undue hardship. She can still perform the necessary duties of the job, it is only a cosmetic difference.
Doctrines and Customs Related to Decision
The main custom related to and affecting the decision of the case was Khan wearing a hijab. Islam urges Muslims to dress modestly (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). This includes, for women, to wear a headscarf. It is considered a mark of devotion and commitment to Faith (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). While in the United States it is a personal choice to wear a hijab, it is still disrespectful to criticize a woman for wearing it.
A doctrine, not officially talked about in the case but still having a big importance is the Quran. It is the central religious text of Islam that Khan adheres to. They consider the Quran to be the only revealed book by God that has been protected from corruption and distortion (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). As part of her religion and following the Quran comes the custom of wearing a …show more content…
In regards to Muslims, one of the biggest issues is appearance (Ball & Haque, 2003). Whether a woman wearing a hijab or men having a beard, there have been many discrimination cases about employees complying to the organization 's dress code policy. The courts have become more and more willing to accommodate the appearance requirements of Islam (Ball & Haque, 2003). The first thing management can do is to have a religious accommodation policy within their dress code for Muslims or any other religion that has certain customs related to how they dress.
The second proactive policy management should adopt is a scheduling accommodation. This can range from breaks for praying rituals to days off to observe important holidays (Ball & Haque, 2003). In the United States, the government and many businesses observe Christmas, a Catholic holiday, mainly because of how commercialized the holiday has become but it is still observed. Organizations need to embrace the differences of all their employees and have policies in place so that the employees with religious backgrounds can observe the important holidays with their families (Ball & Haque,
Religion is an increasing component in the workplace. Reasonable accommodation of different religions in the workplace continues to be a problem within organizations. This paper will look at a discrimination case where religion accommodation is present, what laws, doctrines, and customs were related to the decision, and proactive policies to avoid a religious discrimination lawsuit.
EEOC V. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc.
Umme-Hani Khan started working at Hollister (owned by Abercrombie & Fitch) in 2009. At first she was asked to wear hijabs (religious headscarf) in Hollister colors, which she agreed, but in mid-February 2010 Khan was asked to take off her hijab because it violated …show more content…
Title VII prohibits discrimination based on religion and requires employers to accommodate the sincere religious beliefs or practices of employees unless doing so would create an undue hardship on the organization (EEOC, 2013). As the judge stated, just because Khan is wearing a hijab is not sufficient enough evidence to prove an undue hardship. She can still perform the necessary duties of the job, it is only a cosmetic difference.
Doctrines and Customs Related to Decision
The main custom related to and affecting the decision of the case was Khan wearing a hijab. Islam urges Muslims to dress modestly (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). This includes, for women, to wear a headscarf. It is considered a mark of devotion and commitment to Faith (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). While in the United States it is a personal choice to wear a hijab, it is still disrespectful to criticize a woman for wearing it.
A doctrine, not officially talked about in the case but still having a big importance is the Quran. It is the central religious text of Islam that Khan adheres to. They consider the Quran to be the only revealed book by God that has been protected from corruption and distortion (Sharon Pluralism Network, 2015). As part of her religion and following the Quran comes the custom of wearing a …show more content…
In regards to Muslims, one of the biggest issues is appearance (Ball & Haque, 2003). Whether a woman wearing a hijab or men having a beard, there have been many discrimination cases about employees complying to the organization 's dress code policy. The courts have become more and more willing to accommodate the appearance requirements of Islam (Ball & Haque, 2003). The first thing management can do is to have a religious accommodation policy within their dress code for Muslims or any other religion that has certain customs related to how they dress.
The second proactive policy management should adopt is a scheduling accommodation. This can range from breaks for praying rituals to days off to observe important holidays (Ball & Haque, 2003). In the United States, the government and many businesses observe Christmas, a Catholic holiday, mainly because of how commercialized the holiday has become but it is still observed. Organizations need to embrace the differences of all their employees and have policies in place so that the employees with religious backgrounds can observe the important holidays with their families (Ball & Haque,