Supporting Inclusive Holidays

Nov 15

Holiday recognition can be challenging for companies trying to acknowledge diverse religions, cultures and traditions. With many holidays packed into the last couple months of the year, it is important for organizations to approach holiday time off, celebrations and recognitions from a place of inclusion. With some forethought and sensitivity, companies can foster an inclusive atmosphere where all employees feel recognized and valued during this festive time of year. By promoting diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in holiday observances, organizations can set the stage for unity and understanding all year long.

In this blog post, we’ll discuss the importance of taking an inclusive approach to holiday celebrations at work, how to restructure holiday calendars in a way that promotes inclusion and flexibility, and how to communicate and receive feedback from your team about the ways that they would feel most supported when it comes to holiday recognition.

Benefits of Inclusive Holidays

Inclusive holiday recognition provides benefits that span recruiting, employee morale, engagement, retention and customer service. It's clear that supporting inclusive holidays is both the right thing to do and good business. Here are a few examples of the ways inclusive holiday recognition can improve your organization and the experience of your team.

Foster DEIB - Acknowledging various religious and cultural holidays demonstrates that your company values and respects employees from all backgrounds. This helps build an environment of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.

Promote cultural awareness - Recognizing different holiday traditions can be an opportunity for employees to learn about cultures or religions outside of their own. Sharing holiday customs and foods from around the world fosters greater cultural awareness and understanding between colleagues.

Boost morale and productivity - When employees feel recognized and included, morale receives a boost which can increase engagement, motivation and productivity. Celebrating holidays important to staff makes them feel valued.

Attract and retain talent - Inclusive holiday policies communicate that the company is welcoming of candidates from all backgrounds. This expands and diversifies the talent pool when recruiting. It also improves employee retention when staff feel respected.

Reflect customer/client diversity - If a company's own workforce is diverse, acknowledging their holidays and traditions conveys diversity is valued. This allows the business to better reflect and serve the diversity of its customer base.

Uphold legal obligations - Being cognizant of major religious and cultural holidays enables companies to meet EEO, diversity and inclusion legal obligations in their holiday policies and accommodations.

How to Support Inclusive Holidays in Your Organization

Now that we’ve established the benefits of supporting inclusive holiday practices, it’s time to decide what that looks like for your organization. There are many options for encouraging inclusivity in holiday time off and celebrations. With that in mind, let’s explore some of them.

Create a diverse and inclusive holiday calendar

Many companies in the US rely on the federal schedule to create their own holiday calendars. The addition of Juneteenth to the federal holiday list in 2021 was the first change to that list since MLK day was added in 1983. While Juneteenth was a welcome addition, it also highlighted that the US federal holiday schedule is outdated and does not support inclusivity overall.

Organizations have the option of diversifying holidays calendars by adding cultural and religious celebrations that are not included in the federal holiday calendar. Which holidays to include will depend on your company’s bandwidth for PTO allowance, flexibility and the needs and wants of your employees. If you are able to support additional paid holidays, it is best to survey your team to find out which holiday additions would be most impactful.

Provide floating holidays

If you are not able to support the addition of diverse holidays to your company-wide holiday calendar, another option is to provide employees with floating holidays. Floating holidays are given to employees in addition to the standard company holidays. They offer flexibility for your team to chose which unlisted holiday they chose to celebrate. Depending on the details of your policy, you can also allow employees to choose non-holiday days to enjoy their time off, adding additional support to those who may not celebrate holidays at all.

Promote DEIB during workplace holiday celebrations

Giving employees the opportunity to celebrate holidays together is a fantastic way to boost moral and build connection. When planning a celebration for a specific holiday, however, it can become daunting to know what is and is not promoting inclusion. Here are a few tips for planning holiday celebrations in the workplace:

Provide options for employees to share their cultural traditions.
Educate employees about different holidays and traditions.
Incorporate diverse decorations and music in your holiday celebrations.
Be aware of dietary restrictions that may be associated with particular cultural or religious celebrations.
Allow employees to opt in or out of holiday celebrations.
Communicate with your team.

Before initiating any changes, it is important to communicate with and educate your employees. Inclusive holiday celebrations or recognitions are meant to promote belonging, not exclusion. Take the time to explain what inclusive holidays are, and how your organization plans to support them. If you are unsure of which method would be most effective, survey your team to learn more about their preferences for holiday time off, recognition and celebration.

Conclusion

As our society grows increasingly diverse, it is more important than ever for companies to recognize the variety of cultural and religious holidays celebrated by their employees. Offering flexible scheduling, floating holidays, and remote work options shows that companies honor and value all backgrounds. When employees feel respected for their beliefs and identities, they are more engaged and productive at work. Inclusive holiday policies lead to positive, multicultural work environments that attract diverse talent. Companies have a responsibility to accommodate diverse holiday observances rather than make employees choose between their traditions and their jobs. The simple act of recognizing inclusive holidays benefits both employees and employers alike. Our multicultural reality calls for companies to make this small but significant change.

Thank you for tuning in. As always, HENSLEE is so grateful for our community. If you or your company are interested in diversifying your holiday calendar and celebrations, reach out to us here! We look forward to hearing from you and remember to Make Space & Elevate! 🙌