Spiritual Diversity in the Workplace:  Is it a Challenge or an Opportunity?

Upcoming 2018 Speaking Engagements:
  • ​Friday, April 6th, Des Moines, IA "Women Empowering Women" Conference
  • ​Friday, April 27th, Cedar Falls, IA "Women Empowering Women" Conference
  • Wednesday, June 13th, Tacoma, WA. Polka Dot Powerhouse meeting. Topic:  "Spiritual Activism as a Business Strategy"
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How would you respond in the following instances?
  • The most qualified job applicant has dreadlocks down to his waist.  You have a policy that requires all hair to be shoulder length or shorter.
  • A cashier refuses to check out customers purchasing pork products or alcohol.
  • A machine operator requests time away from a press to allow for prayer during her shift.  A male coworker also requests the same time away, but wants a separate area from her to pray.
  • An employee complains about other employees washing their feet in the bathroom sink.
  • You have a drug testing policy.  You have a new hire who uses peyote for religious reasons.

How prepared is your organization to deal with spiritual diversity? 
Learning how to respond to requests for religious accommodation can be tricky, and many organizations fear them.  That fear is usually reflected by keeping the organization's proverbial head in the sand rather than being proactive.  How do you know what's a real request, what you need to accommodate, and where do you draw the line when multiple groups are making requests?  When can you just say no legally?  Who on your everyday staff is trained to know the answers to these questions and knows what to say immediately when an accommodation is requested?  

EEOC statistics show the number of religion-based discrimination cases filed with the EEOC has more than doubled in the past 20 years.  The cost to companies to defend against these types of cases has skyrocketed.  Over $10 million was paid out in 2016 alone, for monetary benefits that excluded benefits paid through litigation.  How well-trained are your managers and HR personnel to work with religious-based employee requests?  Are you at risk for being sued?

When management understands the gifts different religious traditions can offer, the workplace can thrive by using those gifts instead of fearing them.  I can educate your teams on how to address these kinds of requests in a positive way, thus avoiding escalation, and winning employee loyalty instead.  For situations that have begun to escalate, I can mediate resolutions that could save you tens of thousands of dollars, and possibly even bankruptcy.
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I am a professionally trained, formally ordained interfaith minister who holds  a graduate level certification in Dispute Resolution from Hamline Law School’s Dispute Resolution Institute.  I worked in employment law on EEOC cases for 3 years, and have seen the devastating effects to both sides when disputes are not resolved quickly or averted altogether.  Contact me today to be proactive rather than reactive in these matters.  Let me help you establish policies and procedures and educate your staff so you are ready for that first request.

Responding correctly and immediately to a request can make all the difference between a peaceful outcome and a mess.  Contact me today to arrange for corporate training, mediation, seminars or other services regarding spiritual diversity. 
Does your current diversity training program really work?  

​According to the Harvard Business Review, its success depends on how it's presented.

Mandatory programs can actually lead to activating bias and sparking a backlash.  Instead, offering options such as spiritual diversity in addition to traditional diversity training, engaging managers in solving the problem, exposing them to people from different groups, and encouraging social accountability for change will produce buy-in and positive results. 
https://hbr.org/2017/07/two-types-of-diversity-training-that-really-work