Accommodating Religious Practices in the Global Workplace

In the daily operations of a nation, each employee is protected by numerous laws which ensure they are not discriminated on different grounds such as race, sex, age, as well as religious and other individual differences. In 2011, the San Francisco court filed, a case that involved an employee being fired because of her religion practices ( Ghumman et al., 2013) . In this case, Abercrombie & Fitch a clothing agency, fired Umme-Hani Khan for putting on her religious attire which is the hijab because the attire was violating the company's ‘looks policy. The court ruled in favor of the employee indicating that the employer had significantly violated the employees’ discriminatory act which emphasizes the need for providing equal opportunities and treatment in the workplace. 

Exception 

Apparently, the US Constitution protects its employees from any form of discrimination by the employers. In this case, the doctrines were not excepted because the company had fired the employee due to her religion which was termed as discrimination on religious grounds. In this case, the employee had complied with the agency rules and regulation, and to some extent, she matched her hijab with the color of the store, which the court indicated that it was her way of meeting the company's ‘'look'' policy. It is also important to indicate that the company was violating the employees' religious rights as it required the employee to do away with the hijab which was against the Muslim culture and religious teachings. The Muslims teaching require women to cover their head. The Civil act of 1964, as well as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) as found in the US Constitution, prohibits the employers from discriminating employees on religious grounds ( Ghumman et al., 2013) . In this case, discrimination involves lack of promotion, harassment, firing or being denied other rights in the working environment due to an individual’s religious beliefs and practices as well as the lack of some religious beliefs and practices. It is also important to indicate that the US Constitution requires the employers to provide equal opportunities to his or her employees despite their religious and other differences ( Aslam,2011) . Therefore, no specific exceptions provided a disadvantage or advantage treatment by the Abercrombie & Fitch on this case. It is also important to indicate that the Constitution requires the employers to make appropriate accommodations that match their employees' religious practices and beliefs. 

Responsibility of the Employees 

Despite the fact that the employers have to protect the employees from discrimination that arise from religious matters, the employees also have a role in eliminating chances that might lead to religious discrimination in the work place. Firstly, it is the duty of every employee to understand, appreciate and respect other employees’ religion ( Kelly, 2011) . The approach aids in solving conflicts that arise from religious differences among employees which in turn shapes the employees’ different behavior and believes in the workplace. It is also the duty of the employee to inform the employer about any necessary religious accommodation. In this case, the employer will be aware of the employees' practices and believe and work a way to accommodate them in the working environment. The request for the accommodation should be formal and should be communicated through a written document; this will ensure the employer has a company as well as the employee, the copies can serve as a point of reference at a future date in the event of a conflict ( Kelly, 2011) . The request for the accommodation should be genuine as opposed to requesting for accommodation for other reasons. The employees should also ensure that their religious behaviors do not adversely affect the organization, for example engaging in many religious holidays without compensating the off days among other elements that can adversely affect the company's productivity. The employees should also be consistent in their behavior according to their religious teachings ( Kelly, 2011) . 

Avoiding Discrimination 

The employer has the duty of providing all employees with equal opportunities. In this case, the employers must protect the employees from all forms of discrimination. In an attempt to prevent the employer from facing law cases that arise from religious discrimination, the employer should engage in religious accommodation that meet the employees’ religious teachings and practices ( Kelly, 2011) . In this case, the employer should amend the rule, regulation, beliefs and the organizational practices to ensure that they meet the different individuals' religious accommodation needs, for instance, mode of dressing, departure and arrival period among other accommodations. Firstly, necessary accommodation should be implemented in the employees' mode of dressing to ensure that employees from some religious are not limited due to their unique mode of dressing. Additionally, the employer should also ensure that the work schedule is flexible in an attempt to accommodate various religious observations such as the fasting period for both Muslims and Christians ( Aslam, 2011) . Lastly, the employer should also ensure that the employees have paid leaves which will, in turn, ensure that the employees are not discriminated when engaging in their religious observations that require days off from work ( Aslam, 2011) . 

References 

Aslam, S. (2011). Hijab in the workplace: Why Title VII does not adequately protect employees from discrimination by religious dress and appearance. UMKC L. Rev. ,  80 , 221. 

Ghumman, S., Ryan, A. M., Barclay, L. A., & Markel, K. S. (2013). Religious discrimination in the workplace: A review and examination of current and future trends.  Journal of Business and Psychology ,  28 (4), 439-454. 

Kelly, E. P. (2011). Accommodating religious expression in the workplace.  Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal ,  20 (1), 45-56.