Religion in work!!!

corelon

Can someone please help me regarding Religion in work. I have started in a new job that I was really looking forward to... to good to be true I suppose something bad always happens.. I am undecided regarding my religion.. It turns out the owner of this company has his own religion and a vast majority of the company are now part of. I have been approached a few times already about going to meetings, but I have refused.. I was warned by an employee not to voice my opinion as, they!!! have their own rules...
There is also material on the wall regarding their religion.. books and e-mails... Not sure what I should do about all this.. I thought it was illegal to preach/talk about religion in work.
If anyone can shed some light on this I would really appreciate it.
Thanks

corelon

Can't say where it is what business their in.. its nothing illegal.. actually they are well respected pretty much worldwide.. but obviously privately owned!!!
Do you know anywhere I can find out if all of this is legal???
Thanks

Esel

I hope you are posting this from a cafe, not from work!

jackie g

hi,

you best bet would be the equality authority of ireland - do a google for it - i think it is equality.ie - they would have all the information about what is okay in work and what isn't. i think what you describe probably isn't !!, j

corelon

Nope, from work..don't particulay care.. I just want to know if the situation I'm in is legal are not.. Because its really doing my head in???

MeatProduct

Do you know anything about this religion? Had you heard of it before? Does it revolve around an individual that is alive now. What's your feeling on this religion?

Nick

solas

as far as I know the Irish constitution permits religious freedom. Don't know where i saw that before, but someone in politics or the work section might be able to clarify.
Afaik to hire or fire someone based on their religious persuasion is ilegal.

corelon

I have no opinion other than I don't want people asking me about my religion and I don't want to be involved with a religion that is run by some guy... I have tried to ignore whats going on, but its in my face.. I haven't read anything other than I know that he has pupils here and they have meetings reg. And, its amazing one of the guys that is involved in it, he is such a timid guy but when he started talking to me about religion he became this larger than life, very confident man.. WOW.. I was taken aback...

solas

I had a similar experience about two years ago, I just left.

the_syco

Tell them to f*** off. If you ever get the sack, bring up how you were continually harassed to join the religion.

Velcrow

Visit:

http://www.equality.ie

and do a search for religion or call them directly

Public Information Centre: Lo Call 1890 245545

Nevyn

Magpie that is not helpful.

Under eu law you can not be descriminated against due to your religion.
If you are working for an organisation that is funding or promoting a relgion you may be asked not to rock the boat, ie if you are working for the Catholic Youth council.

Be firm about where you stand and know that if it is kept up it can be considered harassment. State pretty clearly that you are not intrested.
But you may be better of not working there .

corelon

If you had a brain you would realise that I wouldn't and could not disclose who I work for.. And for sure you of all people would not be getting your hands on the name..

Thanks to everyone else for having the maturity to be helpfull,muchly appreciated.

magpie

So what's the name of the religion then?

frodi

Keep a log of "requests" to attend their meetings along with your polite response and posters etc around the work place. You may need them as proof/evidence later.

Esel

frodi wrote:

Keep a log of "requests" to attend their meetings along with your polite response and posters etc around the work place. You may need them as proof/evidence later.

This is a very good idea. Suggest you keep this in handwritten diary form *at home*. And contact the Equality agency.

Keep your head down in work - zealots can be dangerous (don't like the sound of that guy 'changing' when talking about it).

Nevyn

right this forum has a cat mod and he is being pmed about this thread.
The spirituality forum has a policy about respecting the posters and not putting up with ths type of abuse.

magpie

right this forum has a cat mod and he is being pmed about this thread.
The spirituality forum has a policy about respecting the posters and not putting up with ths type of abuse.

Glad to hear it, I shouldn't have to put up with abuse like
for merely asking for some corroborative evidence, like the name of this supposed religion.

I presume that was what you were talking about, right?

---

and you behaviour also Magpie, disclosure of such information is not needed,
and it is rude and wrong of you to demand it.

Consider this your second warning. 3 strikes and your banned.
Thaed

stevenmu

I'm usually against unions (especially the ones who go on strike everytime their company switches coffee brands) but in your case it may be a good idea to see if you get into one. You obviously won't have much support by way of strike action if you get into trouble, but the thing that unions are really great for is understanding the ins and outs of employment law.

I think it's basically legal for them to have religious items up and around the place and to discuss stuff and invite you to meetings. As others have said before me, if you're discriminated in anyway as a result of not participating then that's completly illegal and you can sue, especially because the boss (and I assume owner) is creating an atmosphere that encourages it. Also, if it gets to the stage of harrasment you can leave and sue for constructive dismissal, it'll get you a couple of months wages while you're looking for a new job. Again as others have said, keep records of everything, and if possible start thinking of others in there who are in the same position as you and may be on your side. Whatever you do, try and get some legal advice before taking any actions. You may also want to post on the Work Foum, they're more used to dealing with this kind of thing.

Also, as much as I'd love to know what company it is, posting their name could get boards in serious trouble so it's a good idea for you to refrain, it could also obviously make your situation there much worse too.

Stabshauptmann

Glad to see this thread has been cleaned up.
Me personally, I get so fed up of being identified as an outsider when it comes to religion that I try to pretend sometimes that Im going with the flow. This never works. Never. It's impossible to ignore your principals.

If you feel most of the business belongs to this religion then you might very well hit a glass cieling by rocking the boat. There might be nothing you can do about ti but definitly document all this harassement.

McGinty

Like what the others have said, keep records of events, but interestingly when you mentioned the timid guy becoming so confident when talking about his religion, it sounds like he is slightly brainwashed. Your wise to keep away from it. I must say I've never encountered this in a work situation, although privately I have. The main thing is to be clear, assertive and don't use any language or anger towards these people. They genuinely believe they are on the right track (delusional people can often be the most dangerous and at the same time the most persuasive to others). Don't engage in anything personal. The minute anyone talks about religion and I don't want to know, I say 'thank you but I have no interest, can you please change the subject'. If they continue, repeat the same thing, and keep saying it until they stop, and believe me they will. Good luck

Stabshauptmann

Just reading in yesterdays Sunday Tribune about a UCD lecturer whos being investigated for implying that students wouldnt pass their course without attending an Opus Dei seminar. Anybody know anything more about this?

who007

magpie wrote:

Glad to hear it, I shouldn't have to put up with abuse like
for merely asking for some corroborative evidence, like the name of this supposed religion.

I presume that was what you were talking about, right?

---

and you behaviour also Magpie, disclosure of such information is not needed,
and it is rude and wrong of you to demand it.

Consider this your second warning. 3 strikes and your banned.
Thaed

eehhhmmmm....
sorry, but I am with Magpie on this one... I think this person is setting us up for a joke of some sort if they won't even divulge the name of the supposed religion and was it not them in the first place who became ratty and abusive? :cool:

stevenmu

who007 wrote:

eehhhmmmm....
sorry, but I am with Magpie on this one... I think this person is setting us up for a joke of some sort if they won't even divulge the name of the supposed religion and was it not them in the first place who became ratty and abusive? :cool:

It's generally best to treat all topics as if they were serious. Even if the original poster was taking the p*ss, which I see no evidence of, then the discussion which follows may be of help to someone else. The situation described is certainly possible as is evidenced by Solas having had a similar experience. The original poster can't really post the name of the company/religion, unless it becomes widely known in the public domain through other means first, as it could leave Boards.ie open to libel action.

Stabshauptmann

who007 wrote:

eehhhmmmm....
sorry, but I am with Magpie on this one... I think this person is setting us up for a joke of some sort if they won't even divulge the name of the supposed religion and was it not them in the first place who became ratty and abusive? :cool:

Not the op didnt become abusive first, there are a few posts which were abusive that have deleted. Ill see if I can restore them and then bin them, I agree with thead that they should be removed from this thread but Id like to keep them somewhere as examples of what we consider unhelpful/abusive. This should only take a min...

[edit] http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=249438

Heres a link to some of the deleted posts[/URL] [/edit]

Drummer

The situation sounds a bit iffy , if u ask me. However, if it is the case that you work for someone like the Catholic Youth Council or similar religous group, it can be deemed that you having an alternate faith is a conflict of interests. In which case, they shouldn't have emplyed you to begin with. Most companies have a section in your contract or in the company rules requesting that employees do no involve themselves in anything that might arise to a conflict of interests. You are supposed to be willing to work towards one goal, as a team etc .....