Religious Awareness & Consideration During Ramadan

“We can learn to see each other and see ourselves in each other and recognize that human beings are more alike than we are unalike.”
- Maya Angelou

Often, life gets in the way of understanding the background, faith and religious obligations followed by our closest friends, coworkers, and neighbors. While some of us might quickly piecemeal information to gather baseline knowledge, we never take a moment to fully process how it impacts their lifestyle, beliefs and interactions in our workplaces and the community. While faith-based practices may vary significantly across religions, they are all rooted in compassion, solidarity, and respect. A better understanding can help transform tolerance into celebration.

One such religious event that Muslims around the world are observing since mid-April is Ramadan. Ramadan [raa·muh.daan], also called as Ramazan, is a holy month of fasting, introspection and prayer for Muslims or people who follow Islam. This month not only recognizes many religious milestones but promotes gratitude, charity, togetherness, and celebration. Below are three ways in which you can support your Muslim colleagues and friends during these last few days of fasting leading up to the celebration on May 13th.

1. Practice Empathy & Mindfulness: Fasting from dawn to dusk (without intake of food or water) for anywhere between 9-17 hours can be challenging and might reflect in a person’s choices and interactions.

2. Offer Flexibility and Accommodation: The fasting schedule might impact an employee’s work routine as they could start their day early, skip lunch breaks and end their day by early afternoon. Accommodating prayer times and seeking better understanding of their availability will help employees to plan and create a structure where personal and professional obligations during this month can both be met.

3. Initiate Dialogue and Seek Clarification as Needed: As a leader, it is helpful to learn about the needs and schedule of Muslim employees. This allows an employer to further work with the employee and the team to help create an environment that promotes deeper understanding, respect, and consideration. Enduring a pandemic has altered our world in ways we never imagined. We are universally forced to be patient, authentic, vulnerable, and more than anything else value the presence of others around us. As we collectively continue to learn hard lessons through these COVID times about the importance of inclusion and resilience, let us carry them forward in our personal and professional communities.

A workplace should be where everyone feels like they belong and can take pride in celebrating differences, being their true self and furthering the values of our shared humanity.

Ramadan Kareem (which means “Have a generous Ramadan”) to all those celebrating!

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At Kanarys, we are the diversity, equity, and inclusion people with the data-driven approach. Since 2018, Kanarys has aimed to change the world by creating equitable workplaces where everyone belongs. We guide your organization’s DEI path every step of the way with courage and collaboration. It starts with data, analytics and insights, and continues with recommendations and implementation. 

Our mission, as your partner and champion in the ever-evolving DEI journey: Help you understand what it takes to foster lasting, systemic change today and for tomorrow. Because when you succeed with DEI, your employees can thrive—and so can your organization.

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Dinaz Kachhi-Jiwani

Founder, work/REFINED

Dinaz is an analytics and research expert who combines her passion for data and people to help problem solve, strategize, and generate outcomes for clients. Dinaz is an experienced data scientist who has worked for several Fortune 500 clients and international non-profits to provide data-driven solutions to attract and retain underserved consumers. 

Dinaz was a lead research methodologist at Nielsen and worked on projects for Walmart, Verizon, Google, Comcast and Bank of America.  She also served as a Diversity & Inclusion leader at the Boy Scouts of America, where she was instrumental in developing strategic plans, creating and expanding employee resource groups and key community partnerships.

Born and raised in India, Dinaz moved to the United States in the early 2000’s to pursue her higher education. Dinaz has a master’s degree in Applied Research from Boston University and University of Pune (India). She has been a board member for several professional associations, a proud mother of three children and enjoys playing Throwball, traveling and creative arts.