Question

Martha has been an employee at ABC Global for a total of 8 years. She has consistently been recognized for her solid work and creativity and has been twice promoted. Most recently, Martha received the Impact Award which is the highest recognition that the company bestows and also comes with a $2000 bonus. As a high-ranking American-born female of Nigerian descent, she has been an example to many in the organization in how hard-work & honesty can be rewarded.

Over the last several years, Martha's faith has become more important to her. As such, she silently reads the Bible only on her breaks and at lunch. A week ago, an employee named Drew complained that he was "offended" because he saw Martha reading her Bible. Drew has been with the company 10 years and has also been recognized for good performance. A factor that could be considered is that last year, Drew, Martha and a third employee competed for a promotion of which Martha received. In addition, Drew previously expressed a concern about a co-worker wearing a Sikh turban.

The owners of ABC Global are strongly opposed to any religious persecution and have taken a stance of accommodating all faith-based views whether they be Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu etc. As a result, an informal survey of the organization has shown several employees reading the Torah, the Quran and other books.

Focusing strictly on the legality and ethical issue, as an ABC Global leader, how would you address the situation with Drew?

please respond using one or more citations minimum 250 words

Answer 1

The situation here is quite common because this has been I served that various employees actually indulge themselves in religious knowledge while they are having a free break or less work and I completely consider this as fair because the organization may strongly oppose religious persecution but they also need to respect the religious beliefs of employees and ensure that they do not hurt the sentiments at any cost. I have been an employee in the management of the organization and I believe that the organization has been quite effective in maintaining such an attitude and this has helped.

The claim that Drew made in this context may actually be quite true but harmless as well because Martha is not promoting any religious views, instead she wants to gain knowledge for herself and this is quite common. Again the individual wearing a turban in office is just respecting the religious customs and nothing else. I would like to believe that this is normal and can be continued unless there is any issue arising from the same.

References

Workplace Religious Freedom Act of 2013: Text of Bill". GovTrack. Retrieved 15 December 2013