How to support Muslims at work during Ramadan
Remember that different people will be celebrating Ramadan in various ways, understanding this is also an important part of how you’re supporting Muslims at work during this time.
Supporting Muslims at work goes beyond thinking about what to say to someone fasting for Ramadan, it’s about showing an understanding and considering how you can support them during this time.
Here are some ways for supporting Muslims at work during Ramadan:
Be flexible with working arrangements and time off for Ramadan
Options for flexible working and time off are key to supporting Muslims at work. Fasting will likely have an impact on energy levels, coupled with longer nights spent in community and worship. Colleagues can be supported with more frequent rest breaks and more inclusive meeting hours.
This could include earlier starts and earlier finishes, forgoing lunch breaks for an earlier finish and having meetings during more core working hours.
The last ten days of Ramadan are considered the most sacred of the month and so requests for leave should take this into consideration. Whilst flexible working and time off are wonderful inclusive options, this should be a choice for employees and shouldn’t be applied as an expectation.
Discuss with your employees how to help them
As a group, Muslims are not a monolith. Everyone will have a different relationship and approach to their faith. Be mindful not to assume your employees needs, cultivate meaningful connections with your employees and provide opportunities where they can openly and safely discuss their needs with you.
Be prepared for annual leave requests for Eid celebrations
Recognising that the Islamic calendar is lunar allows employers to make space for supporting Muslims at work. Employers can understand that Muslims won’t know the exact date upon which Eid will fall (as this depends on the sighting of the new moon). Eid is the festival that marks the end of Ramadan, you can learn more about it on our Eid al Fitr awareness day page.
This means many people may need to request time off at relatively short notice and others may request a range of 2-3 days off to make sure they will be off work at the right time.
For more flexible working arrangements, where organisational needs and service delivery permits allow, employees could provisionally book a range 2-3 days off and then work the days outside of where Eid lands. A pragmatic approach and open dialogue with employees is the best way forward.
