United Way

Hunter1

We're holding United Way meetings and two employees have told their supervisors that they do not want to attend due to religious beliefs. Some of our managers have made the meetings mandatory. My feeling is that it is a waste of time to make the employee go, however; do the employees have a valid complaint based on religious beliefs?

dchr9203

I don't think so as its simply an informational meeting, which I wouldn't make mandatory anyway. Making contributions to the United Way mandatory is another matter. I would simply make the meetings optional, encourage attendance, and let those opt out of attending who are not interested.

TN HR

I would not get bogged-down in the minutia regarding personal choices in charities. Announce the company's involvement, offer details, answer questions and let it be.

Gene

Parabeagle

Seems like a bit of a stretch to me, but I suppose it's possible. I have encountered those who do not want to contribute to United Way for religious reasons insofar as United Way donated funds to Planned Parenthood - the employees were Catholic and did not want their donations being used to fund birth control education, birth control pills, condoms, etc. It did not stop them from attending a United Way meeting, however.

I think that to make them attend is a wasted effort. You'll achieve nothing but having two disgruntled employees at best, and find yourself having to answer an EEOC charge (however frivolous) at worst.

Crout

Attending a meeting and receiving information on a charitable organization does not violate any religion, but why even go there if your manager was wrong in the first place? Make the meeting voluntary and save yourself some problems. On the other hand, it could be that if you cave in on this one you will soon be deluged with nonsensical religious accommodation requests. It's a judgement call.

Don D

The answer is that they do indeed have a valid complaint if they feel they have one. If I tell you that in my opinion mandatory attendance at a non-work related function violates my religious or strongly held personal convictions then that is that and it is not up to someone else to perform a dissection of my principles or my religion to see if they agree with my feelings.

Hunter1

That's where this religious accomodation gets tough: If I know that you're a practicing Catholic, and you tell me that you can't work on Saturday due to your religious beliefs, or you cannot work Yom Kippur, I'm just supposed to accept that?? Pretty soon I won't have anyone working Saturday, Sunday, or religious holidays.

dchr9203

No, you're only supposed to offer an accommodation appropriate to your company and if they refuse, you're off the hook.

Whatever

The real issue is not the ees complaint. The real issue is that the meeting is mandatory for some ees and not mandatory for others. Furthermore, there is the real question of why it is mandatory at all.

szemcumo

Could a solution be that the meeting is mandatory in that we want all ees accounted for in one place while meeting is going on but it is not man. that you take part in the discussion or handouts and no one is required to donate. Just a thought. I can see where you wouldn't want ees just wondering around unsupervised while everyone else is in one place.

twochr

What on earth kind of employees do you have that 'you wouldn't want [them] just wandering around unsupervised while everyoe else is in one place."!!!! If you have that kind of employees, I can't imagine why you hired them in the first place!

mrbill

Do not force the EE's to attend
Do not force the EE's to contribute
Do not even talk about religious beliefs.

If one does not want to give, they are not going to give, and from past experience with United Way Campaigns, you will be talking to a wall. Move onto something constructive.