3 Reasons Religious Holidays Matter to Business
by Hillary Kirtland

The closer we get to the “traditional” religious holiday season here in the United States, the more I see an inequity in how our religious holidays are treated during this time of year. The three religious holidays we talk (or hear) about the most in the United States during this season are Christmas, Chanukah (Hanukkah), and Kwanza. It’s known, already, that these three do not have equal space for celebration or representation in our society (and if you think they do, let’s discuss.)

Christmas is—by far—the single most celebrated, accepted, and accommodated religious holiday in the States, since it is celebrated by “Nine in 10 Americans (90%)” every year. The government, along with most private companies, offers it employees standard paid days off for Christmas. Many organizations encourage Christmas decorations in the office and may even host at least one Christmas-related event (such as white elephant, secret Santa, or a tree-lighting ceremony). Umpteen products will have some form of Christmas advertising or marketing throughout the season. There are radio stations dedicated solely to Christmas music. And as for the Christmas movies—well, I think you know where I’m going here. I’ll just say that I’ve never seen anything to that scale for the eight days of Chanukah or the entire week of Kwanza.

That’s Christmas in comparison to the two next-most popular winter holidays. Then, there are the frequently overlooked religious holidays that may occur during this end-of-year season depending on their respective calendars: include Muharram (in 2010), Mawlid al-Nabi (in 2015, 2016, and 2017), Ramadan (in 2030), and Diwali. I’ve seen some fast-breaking potlucks or festival food catering, occasionally, but this is always up to the individual team and that team’s maturity level when it comes to understanding and creating space for these holidays. These are extremely important milestones in the Muslim and Hindu calendars which just don’t get anywhere near the airtime our “traditional” American religious holidays get. 

Forget the political and social implications of how this affects our lives. Below are some reasons why this fact matters with respect to an organization’s bottom-line:

(1) Leadership has the power to drive productivity through culture

According to this HBR article, “…organizations with a high level of engagement do report 22 percent higher productivity,” and engagement has everything to do with valuing your employees in ways that matter to them (like caring about the holidays they celebrate). But you cannot simply say you value them and walk away; they have to see they’re valued in the same ways as their peers. If this wasn’t the case, we wouldn’t have all the debate over the various wage gaps or opportunities for minority groups. The key here is that so much of engagement is driven by culture, and “…culture change begins when leaders start to model the behavior they want the organization to emulate.”

(2) It’s important to get inclusion and belonging right; it’s in our DNA

Brené Brown, a leading researcher on shame, worthiness, and courage talks about this a lot. Biologically, humans work so hard to “fit in,” sometimes at the expense of truly belonging, and that exacerbates disconnection. When I think about this perspective, all of my friends who buy Christmas trees only because everyone else does come to mind immediately. Inclusion must come before diversity, because if you feel you need a dead and decorated Fraser fir in your home to feel like you are accepted at work, then you are most likely also feeling disconnected from your company, colleagues, and work. It is up to organizations and their holiday policies to change that narrative to create a place where employees can thrive and feel a part of something that values them in return.

(3) Inspiration isn’t just a soft skill; it matters every day 

It’s not enough to talk the talk of “freedom of religion” and HR policies that state people “should” be able to take that time off without retaliation. It doesn’t become real until those employees are given the space to do so. Employees who are inspired at work are “…250 percent more productive than their satisfied counterparts” and use their discretionary time to better the business. This is important to organizations, because if people are using all their paid time off—an already limited resource—to accommodate nontraditional holidays, then they will not have the discretionary time and effort to put back into the business in the first place. Some organizations have offered creative ways to maintain work-life integration and allow their employees to more holistically manage their lives. A big part of those people’s lives is omitted from the equation when inequity exists among the holidays they celebrate at home.

My life has been enriched by having the opportunity to repeat the 127 different ways you can say a Hindu goddess’s name; from supporting my friend with physically demanding tasks during a fast; from understanding the meaning behind their traditions; and from learning different ways my own holidays show up all over the world. The experiences I’ve had in this regard are incomparable memories I will treasure forever—my life is better for them. Most importantly, every single person I know, friend I have, or colleague I’ve worked with who celebrates something different than the rest of the United States is still ready and willing to support and celebrate with those of us that do. Businesses are not just missing out on their bottom-line, but we are missing out on each other if we don’t involve our colleagues and their traditions at work. They deserve the same respect they so freely give their Christian coworkers every year.

How can you get involved? Try to find a colleague who celebrates something different than you this year, and find ways incorporate their traditions into your organization.

Happy holidays. (All of them!)

Hillary works as a Senior Strategy Consultant at IBM. She found her passion for her new job in the two years she took off work to pursue a full-time, Global MBA degree at George Washington University in Washington DC. She is driven by her constant curiosity and her truest love is for travel and adventure. Having moved to California in early 2019, outside work you can find her planning her next trip, exploring her local beaches, reading a book, or wandering along a new hiking trail.