By Asia Samachar | United States |
Employers in the United States can make avail of a newly released document to learn about Sikhs and ensure that their employment decisions are legally-compliant.
The 33-page ‘Accommodating Sikhs in the Workplace: A Guide for Employers’, released by the Sikh Coalition, is meant to allow Sikhs to practice their faith fearlessly while at the same time assist public and private sector employers in the US to welcome diverse talent to their teams.
“This guide serves to educate U.S. employers about Sikh employees, including their religiously mandated articles of faith and the legal standards that protect religious practice in the workplace,” said Sikh Coalition senior counsel Harsimran Kaur in a statement. “We hope that the sangat can utilize this resource and share it with their current or potential employers to address any challenges that may arise in the workplace.”
Click here to download the Accommodating Sikhs in the Workplace: A Guide for Employers for free.
The guideline provides background on the history of Sikhs living in the U.S., explains what the Sikh articles of faith are, and outlines existing U.S. legal protections for religious minority employees. Most importantly, it discusses and provides specific examples of how to achieve mutually acceptable solutions to the accommodation of Sikh religious practices in the workplace.
Since its founding, the Sikh Coalition has been contacted by hundreds for help to resolve employment discrimination cases, including instances where their articles of faith conflicted with workplace policies.
The coalition said its goal in creating and disseminating the guide is to demystify and explain Sikh practices so that employers understand how to welcome and accommodate Sikhs in the workplace.
During the course of the pandemic, more than two dozen frontline healthcare workers contacted the Sikh Coalition after being told to shave their religiously-mandated beards to wear N95 masks.
In addition to favorably resolving these cases by securing accommodations for its clients, the Sikh Coalition said it has taken steps to address the issue at a systemic level, including by testifying before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in April 2021 and submitting policy recommendations to various federal and state agencies.
It noted that the Sikh community has disproportionately been subject to workplace discrimination, but no one should be forced to choose between their faith and career.
Ultimately, this new resource will help U.S. employers implement legally-grounded and culturally-competent practices that counter workplace discrimination, advance equal employment opportunity and lead to a more welcoming and inclusive environment for all, the statement added.
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