I was reading the other day that a Tyson plant in Tennessee has decided to offer the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, as a paid holiday instead of Labor Day.  Almost 700 of the plant's 1,200 employees are Muslim.

Somehow, I think this is going to be a heated topic of discussion. 

MSNBC recently reported that workers at the Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Shelbyville will no longer have a paid day off on Labor Day but will instead be granted the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr.  According to a news release from the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, a new five-year contract at the plant included the change to accommodate Muslim workers at the plant.

Eid al-Fitr, which falls on Oct. 1 this year, marks the end of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting.  Union leaders said implementing the holiday was important for the nearly 700 Muslims, many of them Somalis, who work at the plant that employs a total of 1,200 people.

Tyson company spokeswoman Libby Lawson said by phone that, "This isn't a religious accommodation, this is a contractual agreement. The majority asked for it."   The change didn't bother some workers, but others strongly opposed it.

Thinking out loud….this touches on many issues that people feel very strongly about such as American patriotism, religion freedom, days off, etc.  For most companies, offering the standard days off of New Years, July 4th, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas satisfies the majority.  When that doesn’t make sense due to a multi-cultural environment I suggest shifting the balance of fixed versus floating holidays to accommodate the workforce.  A greater portion of the holidays being floating holidays offers employees the flexibility to identify the days that are most important to them to be away from work.