Accommodating a Pagan employee is rarely difficult or costly. Most of what is needed is a little information and an even hand. This guide is written for managers, supervisors, and human resources staff.
Fourth edition, 2025. Reviewed by the Legal Advisory Panel. This guide is general information about United States law and is not legal advice. Consult your own counsel about specific situations.
The Short Version
- Pagan religions, including Wicca, Druidry, and Heathenry, are religions under federal and state employment law.
- You may not treat an employee or applicant worse because of them.
- You must reasonably accommodate religious practice unless it would cause undue hardship, meaning substantial costs or burdens in relation to the conduct of your business.
- You must act when you know of religious harassment.
- Treat a Pagan employee's request exactly as you would treat the same request from a member of a religion you know well.
Understanding the Employee
Many Pagan employees have never told an employer about their religion and are uneasy about doing so. An employee who asks you for a religious accommodation may be disclosing something that few people know. A calm, businesslike response matters more than you might expect. For background, see What Is Paganism? or the two-minute Paganism at a Glance fact sheet.
Common Requests and How to Handle Them
| Request | Typical accommodation |
|---|---|
| Time off for a festival | Vacation or unpaid leave, a voluntary shift exchange, make-up hours, or a floating holiday. |
| Leaving early on the eve of a festival | Adjusted start and finish times that day. Many observances begin at sunset. |
| Wearing a religious pendant | Permit it wherever other religious jewelry is permitted. Where jewelry is a real safety hazard, allow it under clothing or apply the same rule to everyone. |
| Displaying a small religious item at a desk | Permit it on the same terms as other employees' personal and religious items. |
| Being excused from prayer or religious content at a staff event | Excuse the employee without comment, or make the religious element optional for all. |
| A quiet moment during a break | Use of an empty office or other private space during ordinary break time. |
Responding to a Request
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Acknowledge it promptly
Thank the employee and say when you expect to reply. Do not express surprise or ask what the religion is "really about."
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Do not demand proof
The law protects sincerely held beliefs whether or not they belong to an organized body. Do not ask for a letter from clergy or evidence that the religion is "recognized." If you have a real, objective reason to doubt that a request is religious or sincere, you may ask the employee for a brief explanation.
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Look for a way to say yes
Discuss options with the employee. If the request as made is not workable, propose an alternative that removes the conflict.
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Decide on evidence
A refusal must rest on a real and substantial burden on the business. The discomfort of coworkers or customers with the religion is not a lawful reason.
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Put the answer in writing and keep it confidential
Share the employee's religion only with those who need to know in order to arrange the accommodation.
The Calendar
Most Pagan employees who ask for religious leave ask for one to four days a year. The dates most often requested are:
- Samhain, the evening of October 31 and November 1;
- Yule, the winter solstice, on or about December 21;
- Beltane, May 1;
- the summer solstice, on or about June 21.
Some employees observe all eight festivals of the Wheel of the Year, and some follow a different calendar. Our Holiday Accommodation Calendar lists exact dates each year. A floating-holiday policy, which lets every employee choose which religious or personal days to take, resolves most scheduling questions for all religions at once.
Preventing Harassment
The religious harassment Pagan employees report is usually one of three kinds: mockery ("Where is your broom?"), accusation ("devil worshipper"), and unwelcome efforts to convert them. One remark seldom violates the law. A pattern that management knows of and tolerates can.
- Make sure your anti-harassment policy names religion, and that training includes an example involving a minority religion.
- Act on complaints from Pagan employees as you would on any other complaint.
- Employees may discuss religion with one another. Once a coworker has said that the discussion is unwelcome, it must stop.
- Do not move or isolate the employee who complained as a way of solving the problem.
Hiring and Day-to-Day Management
- Do not ask applicants about religion, and do not draw conclusions from jewelry, tattoos, or personal social media.
- If workplace celebrations have a religious flavor, make attendance voluntary in fact as well as on paper.
- If you offer a diversity calendar or employee resource groups, include Pagan observances and welcome Pagan employees on the same terms as others.
- Customer preference is not a defense. If a customer objects to an employee's pentacle, the answer is the one you would give about any religious symbol.
Frequently Asked by Managers
How do I know the request is real?
The same way you know with any other employee. Sincerity is presumed unless there is a concrete reason to doubt it.
Will I be flooded with requests?
Experience says no. Pagan employees generally ask for less than they are entitled to.
What if other employees object?
Employees are entitled to their own beliefs and are not entitled to a workplace free of coworkers of other religions. Remind them of your policy.
We Can Help
Human resources staff may write to education@paganednet.org with questions, in confidence and without charge. We can provide a staff briefing through the Speakers Bureau and will comment on draft policy language on request. Employees looking for guidance should see Religious Rights in the Workplace.