Religious Discrimination and Accommodations in the U.S. Military: Best Practices for Leaders
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Religious accommodation issues are becoming increasingly important in the U.S. workplace. Although religious discrimination claims are far outpaced by race and gender claims, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC, 2013) [...] The current study investigates the experiences of religious minorities in the United States (U.S.) Military. Specifically, we predicted that Muslim and Jewish individuals in the military would perceive higher levels of religious discrimination than Christians. Furthermore, we predicted that those religious minorities would be more likely than Christians to experience negative workplace outcomes. Results indicate that Muslim and Jewish individuals are more likely than Christians to experience religious discrimination. Muslim and Jewish individuals are also more likely to report lower job satisfaction and lower organizational commitment than Christians. Finally, we found that experiencing religious discrimination negatively affects workplace outcomes regardless of one's religious affiliation, although that discrimination was particularly detrimental to the job satisfaction for Muslim individuals. We conclude with recommendations for commanders, including the recommendation that military leaders increase their knowledge of Equal Opportunity (EO) policies and directives, expand support for diverse religious needs, search for and implement tried-and-true policies for dealing with religious discrimination, and use methods other than religion to help promote personal growth in their subordinates. Keywords: Religion, Accommodations, EO, Discrimination, Diversity, Military.