Category: Religion in the Workplace

A Muslim woman who said Disneyland wouldn’t let her wear a religious headscarf on her job as a vacation planner or ticket seller – the second such complaint in recent weeks – has reached an agreement with the Southern California theme park and is now wearing a Disney-provided blue scarf and beret-style hat to work.

The park worked with Abdallah to design a covering to match her costume and meet her religious needs, Disneyland spokeswoman Suzi Brown said. She’s been wearing a blue scarf topped with a beret since early this month.

“Walt Disney Parks and Resorts has a long history of accommodating a variety of religious requests from cast members of all faiths — with more than 200 accommodations made over the last three years and this instance was no different,” Brown said in a statement.

However, the woman in question is not Imane Boudlal, the hostess at Storyteller’s Cafe in Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, who was part of a media dust-up last month after she refused management’s offer to either remove her hijab or take a job working out of public view.

Prison officials can ban employees from wearing religious headscarves out of concerns they pose a safety risk, a U.S. appeals court in Philadelphia ruled Monday in a split 2-1 decision.

Prison officials have legitimate concerns the headscarves can hide drugs or other contraband, or be used by an inmate to strangle someone, the majority said.

Is it O.K. to put up religious symbols or sayings in your office or cubicle? If your employer tells you it’s not acceptable to express your faith at work — whether in how you decorate your office, how you dress or what you say to others — is this religious discrimination?

You sometimes want to discuss things related to your faith, like religious teachings or an interesting sermon you’ve heard. Is that appropriate at work? Eilene Zimmerman answers these and other questions in The Balancing Of Church and Cubicle

A growing number of companies are offering the services of chaplains in the workplace. Managers say many employees who wouldn’t think of calling a therapist or an employee-assistance program will willingly turn to a chaplain.

Customer: “Had this been a copy of the Koran I am confident any Christian person would be happy to do her job, and for this to happen in a Marks & Spencer of all places beggars belief.”

A British Airways worker who was suspended for wearing a cross around her neck to work has lost her case alleging religious discrimination.

Proposed regulations for the religious worker visa program, which the U.S. government says is rife with fraud, have kindled fears at religious organizations nationwide that workers they depend on might be shut out.