Team work dinner scheduled first night of Passover

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would definitely point it out. I feel like if you mention it is the first night of Passover, any reasonable person would say, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize. I would certainly mention it before making any kind of decision about which to prioritize.

This

[Anonymous]

He’s a clueless Gentile so he’s doesn’t realize the length of the Passover season. I was once the same clueless gentile but then married a Jewish woman who set me straight.

Tell him the truth and do it Monday morning. There’s still time to reschedule the dinner, if possible.

[Anonymous]

It is best to start a precedent for yourself so that they don't say "well you came last year." And if I was another Jewish person in your organization I would appreciate you helping create awareness.

Growing up in NY I always had supervisors who knew when the holiday was, or knew enough to check with me, and knew at least the basics of the food restrictions. Here I'm constantly having to educate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

I'm Jewish and when I know Ramadan is coming up, I check the dates so I don't schedule food related events. It's every year. It shouldn't come as a shock!

Every supervisor should be generally aware, or HR should send out a list at the beginning of the year noting dates to look out for or something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

Eh. We're the minority. I don't expect people to remember as it's not important to them. I have one colleague who always goes to church in the morning for Ash Wednesday and it took me a couple years to remember to check for that and not schedule morning meetings that included him on that day. He just politely told me each time until it sank in. Obviously I'm aware of Christmas and Easter but I really don't think about the other Christian holidays or the diverse practices associated with them. I don't even know how most of my colleagues celebrate these holidays; it hasn't come up. So I don't expect them to know mine either. I have no problem being proactive and speaking up for my holidays as needed.

[Anonymous]

I originally planned a team retreat that would have overlapped with the first day of Passover. It was a total oversight and I felt awful when my Jewish colleague pointed it out. I immediately rescheduled.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

I'm Jewish and when I know Ramadan is coming up, I check the dates so I don't schedule food related events. It's every year. It shouldn't come as a shock!

Every supervisor should be generally aware, or HR should send out a list at the beginning of the year noting dates to look out for or something.

100% this.

[Anonymous]

It’s also in the middle of Ramadan. It should be moved until after Passover and Eid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

Eh. We're the minority. I don't expect people to remember as it's not important to them. I have one colleague who always goes to church in the morning for Ash Wednesday and it took me a couple years to remember to check for that and not schedule morning meetings that included him on that day. He just politely told me each time until it sank in. Obviously I'm aware of Christmas and Easter but I really don't think about the other Christian holidays or the diverse practices associated with them. I don't even know how most of my colleagues celebrate these holidays; it hasn't come up. So I don't expect them to know mine either. I have no problem being proactive and speaking up for my holidays as needed.

+1

I have scheduled things by mistake like a 1PM meeting on a Friday when I should have remembered my Muslim colleague was at Friday prayer or over on an Ash Wednesday too early or something. As a religious minority, I don’t expect people to remember these things, but a team related dinner would imply not a ton of people and related to team building. That said, if the manager was in too deep to reschedule but was apologetic about the timing and didn’t hold any sort of angst over it, I’d not hold onto it either. It happens.

[Anonymous]

Say something! I’m not religious at all. I don’t keep track of religious holidays. But I’d hate for a team member to feel like they have to choose between work and not observing a holiday that’s important to them

[Anonymous]

Please say something. It's unreasonable that you (and any other religious minority) should have to choose between your religion and a work event.

[Anonymous]

Our Global GM told managers not to schedule any meetings that end on April 6 because April 7 is Good Friday and he assumes people will be doing family things. Passover appears on our generic Outlook holiday calendar by default and I still had to let my boss know that it is a Holy Week, I have commitments and will not be available for travel or after hours events.

Nobody wants to be the one to raise it, but everyone hopes someone else will. I’m already a middle aged female in a male industry. I may as well be the religious, inflexible one too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re not comfortable, have a colleague send a note pointing out that it’s the first night of Passover. Most non-Jews wouldn’t have put it together. That would give him the opportunity to reschedule. If there isn’t such a person, then decline the dinner on account of Passover.

+1. Most likely an oversight. Most non-Jews probably don’t know the exact dates of Passover off the top of their head.

I hate excuses like this. It’s on every calendar. No one scheduled anything on Christian holidays. It is time to do better.

Not true I got invited to a Steakhouse on Good Friday. I also worked Christmas Day with a Japanese Client. People just book things. Mostly they don’t care if a few can’t make it. I have a family to support so I am sure God down with it

Heck the last supper was a work thing

[Anonymous]

Just because it's on a calendar doesn't mean that:

1) People understand the significance.
2) People know your personal level of adherence.

Also, let's please not pretend that this only happens to religious minorities in the US. The percentage of Americans that can list the Holy Days of Obligation for Catholics must be exceptionally small. We should all maintain broad understanding of other cultures/religions, but it's unreasonable to expect global awareness. It's okay for people to have to advocate for themselves.