Approaching holidays...are we thinking the same thing?

[spooky spice]

"A 44 year old Toronto resident was arrested Friday and charged with two counts of unlawful decking of halls. A further count of conspiracy to commit glad tidings was dropped."

I put up fairy lights in December/January to make the house look bright and cheerful in the gloomy dull weather. Irritatingly this coincides with some quazi-religious festival that I have no interest in. I object to people assuming "it's for Christmas".

 

[Danoz]

At least in the States, I think organizations like the ACLU and local government have overstepped their bounds. I have no problem with religious symbols in public places, and I think the Christian right actually has an argument here. When they start removing paintings from public libraries and traditional Christmas music from public school choirs-- they are essentially trying to ban history. I'd prefer an all inclusive policy to one that tries to ban everything. I'd rather see a healthy respect for multiple ideas than this bizarre desire to silence the majority faith, and I'm not even religious.

General rule of thumb: ALLOWING more religions to be represented is better than BANNING any one religion from public display.

 

[JarodRussell]

General rule of thumb: ALLOWING more religions to be represented is better than BANNING any one religion from public display.

That's the best point made in this thread so far.


There's two options: you can either celebrate diversity, or you can hypocritically pretend there is none.

Either allow christmas trees in the office and also allow the symbols of all the other religions. Or try to pretend there's no such thing as religious people by keeping the office "clean". I am reminded of the rather silly "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the US military concerning gays. Pretend there are none, and ban anyone who's openly gay.

 

[JoeZhang]

There's two options: you can either celebrate diversity, or you can hypocritically pretend there is none.

Or you can acknowledge it exists and keep that shit at home and for your own time like it belongs. It's not hypocritically for an employer to ask religious people to keep their beliefs out of the workplace.

 

[JarodRussell]

Or you can acknowledge it exists and keep that shit at home and for your own time like it belongs. It's not hypocritically for an employer to ask religious people to keep their beliefs out of the workplace.

Why? What are we afraid of?

 

[Warped9]

General rule of thumb: ALLOWING more religions to be represented is better than BANNING any one religion from public display.

That's the best point made in this thread so far.


There's two options: you can either celebrate diversity, or you can hypocritically pretend there is none.

Either allow christmas trees in the office and also allow the symbols of all the other religions. Or try to pretend there's no such thing as religious people by keeping the office "clean". I am reminded of the rather silly "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the US military concerning gays. Pretend there are none, and ban anyone who's openly gay.

True.

Allow me to also clarify. My employer is owned by BestBuy, an American company, that for the longest time allowed Christmas decorating. Now I don't know if they allow decorating in their U.S. stores, but they won't allow it in the Future Shop Canadian stores. Apparently they will allow Halloween decorating, but not Christmas.

And as far as decorations go the most religious symbols in Christmas are Christ, a crucifix, angels and a nativity scene, none of which are usually seen in public display outside of a church or in someone's home. The rest of it (bells, trees, lights, reindeer, elves, Santa, snowmen, snowflakes, garland and tinsel, ornaments and the rest) aren't overtly religious and most of them not at all.

 

[Sean Aaron]

Well, I for one applaud your employers restraint. Seeing as we have no Thanksgiving holiday and attempts to big-up Halloween to American levels of spend have failed shops here start up their Christmas campaigns in earnest sometimes as early as late September, which seems a bit egregious.

 

[Warped9]

Well, I for one applaud your employers restraint. Seeing as we have no Thanksgiving holiday and attempts to big-up Halloween to American levels of spend have failed shops here start up their Christmas campaigns in earnest sometimes as early as late September, which seems a bit egregious.

I'm certainly not advocating decorations and such before mid to late November. It does bug me when I see Christmas wares and decor before we've even had Halloween. And the only reason I've started thinking and talking about this now are because it takes time to affect change (if possible) and I'm starting to try finding out who makes these decisions within my company so as to communicate with them. I was actually resigned to let the whole thing go until I heard that Halloween decorating will be allowed and yet not Christmas. That really pissed me off.

 

[Roger Wilco]

What does one have to do with the other?

 

[Warped9]

What does one have to do with the other?

They're allowing decor for one commercial reason and not another more significant one. Now Halloween decorating can be seen as just fun, but so can Christmas decorating.

 

[Sean Aaron]

I was actually resigned to let the whole thing go until I heard that Halloween decorating will be allowed and yet not Christmas. That really pissed me off.

I suppose Halloween having even less religious overtones than Christmas might have made it okay.

I'm not saying I agree with your employer's policy, but I've worked for companies where you were forbidden any personal touches in your cubical at all including family photos. Not having a little tree on your desk seems like small beer to me.

 

[Roger Wilco]

What does one have to do with the other?

They're allowing decor for one commercial reason and not another more significant one. Now Halloween decorating can be seen as just fun, but so can Christmas decorating.

What does decorating your employee break room have to do with commerce?

 

[{ Emilia }]

What does one have to do with the other?

They're allowing decor for one commercial reason and not another more significant one. Now Halloween decorating can be seen as just fun, but so can Christmas decorating.

What does decorating your employee break room have to do with commerce?

Somebody please explain to him that one of his examples happens out in the public while the other happens at work.

 

[Warped9]

Excuse me they're decorating the sales floor which is obviously open to the public.

Allow me to ask a question: does BestBuy decorate their stores for Christmas in the U.S.?

 

[Sean Aaron]

Allow me to ask a question: does BestBuy decorate their stores for Christmas in the U.S.?

Someone else can answer that better than me, but what would the policy of one retailer have to do with another - unless your company is owned by Best Buy?

 

[Warped9]

Allow me to ask a question: does BestBuy decorate their stores for Christmas in the U.S.?

Someone else can answer that better than me, but what would the policy of one retailer have to do with another - unless your company is owned by Best Buy?

Very on point. BestBuy owns Future Shop (where I work) after buying it about ten years ago.

 

[{ Emilia }]

Excuse me they're decorating the sales floor which is obviously open to the public.

Allow me to ask a question: does BestBuy decorate their stores for Christmas in the U.S.?

No, you didn't get it. :/

 

[Sean Aaron]

Very on point. BestBuy owns Future Shop (where I work) after buying it about ten years ago.

Checking out Best Buy is a good idea, but given you work for a subsidiary based in a foreign country it might make more sense to check with corporate HR to see if this policy is company-wide or at the discretion of the store manager. In either case I would take it up with HR and challenge their position. If you don't complain you don't know how serious the intent is behind the policy.

I would go further and suggest that if this is one of many grievances then organising your fellow employees into a collective bargaining unit is a worthwhile pursuit.

 

[Warped9]

Very on point. BestBuy owns Future Shop (where I work) after buying it about ten years ago.

Checking out Best Buy is a good idea, but given you work for a subsidiary based in a foreign country it might make more sense to check with corporate HR to see if this policy is company-wide or at the discretion of the store manager. In either case I would take it up with HR and challenge their position. If you don't complain you don't know how serious the intent is behind the policy.

I would go further and suggest that if this is one of many grievances then organising your fellow employees into a collective bargaining unit is a worthwhile pursuit.

I've communicated with coworkers I know in other stores and it's not just a store-by-store issue. None of the FS stores are allowed to decorate.

It's why I want to know if BestBuy stores in Canada have the same policy and if BestBuy stores in the U.S. have as well.

 

[RoJoHen]

Best Buy always decorates during the holidays, but I can't remember if they do Christmas decorations or if they stick with more general winter themes. I'm pretty sure they have Christmas commercials, though.