On Tuesday, I was fortunate enough to accompany SALDEF’s Western Regional Director Bhupinder Kaur to a seminar hosted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in beautiful San Diego, California. The seminar was part of a two day conference held for employers across California to learn about fair workplace practices and network with fellow employers. Bhupinder Kaur participated as a panelist on a seminar entitled “Worship in the Workplace.” The 140 people in attendance were able to hear from Rabbi Avram Bogopulsky of the Beth Jacob Congregation of San Diego, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Public Relations Director Edgar Hopida, and Bhupinder Kaur of SALDEF on each of their community’s struggles with discrimination and religious practices in the workplace. The attendees were very receptive to the panelists, who went over the background of each religion and outlined the major holidays and possible religious dress that men and women of the religions may adorn at the work. The difference between observing required holidays by the religion and desired holidays by the employee was also a major topic of discussion, to ensure that with this new knowledge of different faiths, employers would be able to tell which requests by employees are legitimate and which are not. Questions from the audience were plenty and frequent throughout the hour and a half discussion, and the conversations were continued well after the seminar. Some asked whether the traditional Indian attire for women, the salwar kameez, was a part of the Sikh faith or just the Punjabi culture. Others were curious as to how to deal with the turban when safety measures, such as those of construction companies, overrule the ability for a Sikh to wear a turban in the field.
For many employers, this was the first time hearing about the Sikh religion, finding out that 97% of people who wear turbans in the United States are Sikh, and realizing that they have Sikh men and women on their staff. These employers have any number of employees under their payroll – reaching out and raising awareness with even one of those in attendance would ensure better hiring practices as well as equality and accommodation in the workplace for employees that do observe a religion. Kudos to the EEOC for providing such an opportunity for so many employers and for SALDEF to educate others on Sikhism, all towards the goal of equality in the workplace.
Coming to you from 634 S Spring Street, Jasleen K. Singh