Religion and work
By Joan Lloyd
Dear Joan:
I am Wiccan, and have had issues on the job, and now that I am
job hunting, have issues in being hired. I usually wear my
pentacle the same as many Christians wear a cross. I have
been told by many that I should not wear a pentacle to job
interviews; if I do wear one, to have it on a long chain and
tuck it in for the interview. I also have a Myspace and a
Facebook page, and my religion of choice is expressed on
both.
I also have my own business as a minister, and a
psychic/medium, which is also advertised on my Facebook and Myspace
pages. My income from these is not much, so I am job
hunting.
I feel that I should be able to be as proud of my beliefs as
anyone else. I am a stable, good employee and work hard at
any job I am given. I know that, legally, I cannot be
discriminated against because of my religion, but with the economy
the way it is, a potential employer can use any one of a number of
reasons to not hire me.
I have been advised to put my Myspace and Facebook pages
as private, so they can only be viewed by friends, but
that would defeat the purpose of the pages, since they are my
advertising.
I usually wear a business suit, or at least dress slacks, a
nice blouse or sweater, and a jacket for interviews. When I
get to the interview I see everyone else in casual attire and I
wonder if my dressing up for the interview is hurting my chances
for hire. Any advice you can offer would be
appreciated.
Answer:
Your image is important when job hunting—whether it is
how you dress, or how you present yourself Online. I agree with the
advice you’ve been given. Since your advertising hasn’t
generated enough customers to provide an income, and it can create
the wrong impression to employers (fair or not), I suggest you keep
your religious preference private.
Dear Joan:
I work as a sales representative for a small, family-run
business. The family is of a religious sect, which requires
all the women to wear skirts. Although I agreed when I was
hired, I wonder if this is considered illegal in this day and
age.
The double standard question arises when all the family
members need to attend church, or family functions. They go
whenever they wish (and of course) this is their business, so they
have the right, I guess? The rest of us, who are not members of
their religious sector, cannot take holidays unless they give
permission, even if we have our vacation days banked. Is this
legal?
If this is legal, then I would have to call this an unbalance
of respect. Whereas we have to respect their church and
gathering dates, but they have no respect of our preference of
vacation dates.
If one was to take the vacation dates anyway, regardless of
whether the employer has given permission or
not, regardless of the reasons why the employee has
chosen the dates, are of no consequence of why permission was not
given, does the employer have the right to fire the employee?
Isn't the above illustration a case of discrimination based on
religion? And in this case the employers are religious, but the
employees are not.
I suppose you can say, “Why work there?” You are
right. I am ready to quit. I will quit the day before I wanted my
time off and was refused.
Another question is that, because I am paid on commission, and
the commission will be calculated up to, and including, the last
day of the month. If I quit, will the company by law have to pay me
the commission owed to me? It is usually paid two weeks after the
last day of the month. This means I would have quit two weeks
before the check is issued. I don't want to have to fight for my
commission check. Will the company have to pay the commissions owed
to me?
I don't know if this type of work environment is up to legal
standards, especially in a small company, where there isn't a human
resources manager to oversee the rights of the employees. I feel
helpless.
Answer:
You would be wise to consult an employment attorney in your
state, but here is my non-legal opinion. Since wearing a skirt was
a condition of employment (that you agreed to) they can enforce
that rule.
In general, owners typically set their policies so that
employees can use their vacation when they want. However, owners
have the right to deny a vacation request that comes at a bad time
for the business. For instance, if too many people want off at one
time, or someone wants off during a busy period. If you are denied
a vacation day, but take it anyway, they would probably call it
“insubordination” and fire you. However, If they are
limiting vacation time for some but not others, this is getting
into sticky legal territory.
I asked Eugene K. Hollander, an employment attorney from
Chicago, what he thinks. “Employers can require
employees to use their vacation days for religious holidays.
It may be religious discrimination, however, if the employer
affords certain employees of one religion time off and does not
require them to use their vacation time, while requiring those of
other religions to either use their vacation time, or outright
refusing them time off.”
Your commission was earned while you were employed, so they
would be required to pay it. Hollander agrees, “If the
employee has earned the commissions, those sums, like salary or
unused vacation time should be paid to the employee.
Illinois, for instance, has the Wage Payment and Collection Act,
which requires that all such sums be paid to employees within three
days of their last day.”
In spite of these legal boundaries, I wouldn’t be
surprised if they refused. They seem to be oblivious to how their
behavior negatively affects their employees and their
business.
