Join Brian Grim and Byron Johnson as they discuss the Halo Effect at the annual Q conference.

April 26, 2017, Nashville, TN.

Forty-six percent of Americans believe religion is part of the problem in our society. Yet faith is the motivation for many of the critical social services and programs that benefit the most vulnerable populations.

Congregations, faith-based businesses, and charities lift people up in times of need in ways that few other institutions or government programs can.

In this conversation, you will see the important role faith-based organizations play in renewing civil society.

NO TOPIC IS OFF LIMITS
 EVERYONE HAS A VOICE

From the ideas and current issues shaping society, to the truth that transforms the world, you will be informed and gain confidence that God is at work in his mission to renew all things. Education by thought leaders and stories from change-makers will inspire a hopeful way forward. Join us to be equipped for the difficult conversations and extraordinary opportunities that lay ahead.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT

At Q you will experience thirty curated 9 or 18 minute talks, featuring the state of American culture and ways Christians can navigate the complexity of our changing society. With dedicated space for constructive debate, expert interaction and lively experiences, Q will be an investment.

BIOGRAPHY

Byron Johnson is Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University. He is the founding director of the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion (ISR) as well as director of the Program on Prosocial Behavior.

Brian J. Grim, Ph. D., is president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF) and a leading expert on international religious demography and the socio-economic impact of restrictions on religious freedom. Brian recently served as chair of the World Economic Forum’s global agenda council on the role of faith.

Brian Grim will address 50 emerging global leaders on the economic benefits of freedom of religion and belief on July 23, 2017. The event is held at Cumberland Lodge, Windsor, and sponsored by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

The Emerging International Leaders Programme on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) will equip future leaders and opinion formers with the skills and insight necessary to drive debate, influence policy and build a powerful global network.

It responds to the fact that around three-quarters of the world’s population lives in countries that restrict such freedoms or fail to protect them. It aims to empower scholars to become advocates of human rights in their universities and home countries.

The programme is open to postgraduate students who are scholars on the Commonwealth Scholarship Scheme and the Chevening Scholarship Scheme. Each year, 50 high-potential candidates will be selected and supported with  gaining an in-depth understanding of the importance of the freedom of religion or belief. Applications for 2017 have now closed.

Key themes

We will be addressing the following key questions:

• – Why is freedom of religion or belief important?
• – How does freedom of religion or belief intersect with other freedoms?
• – What are the successes/failings of existing national and international policies on freedom of religion or belief?
• – How can existing human rights frameworks be supplemented, supported and implemented?

The programme will involve:

• – Residential Retreats at Cumberland Lodge, Windsor Great Park (see dates below)
• – Multi-disciplinary discussion with academics, advocates, policy-makers, and activists
• – Lectures, workshops, and peer-to-peer learning
• – An exploration of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the role and position of religion in the public sphere, religious literacy, and inter-faith dialogue
• – Analysis of practical responses to violations of FoRB worldwide.

Participants will look at Freedom of Religion or Belief in a contemporary, global context and have the opportunity to engage in a multi-disciplinary discussion with academics, advocates, policy makers, activists, and their peers.

Residential retreats

Cumberland Lodge’s residential retreats will encompass lectures, workshops, and peer-to-peer learning and will consider the significance of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights. They will also examine the role of religion in the public sphere, religious literacy and inter-faith dialogue, and practical responses to violations of Freedom of Religion or Belief, worldwide.

Brian Grim will discuss the cost of freedom denied on April 20 at “Under Caesar’s Sword,” a one-day symposium on contemporary Christian responses to persecution. National Press Club, Washington DC.

“Under Caesar’s Sword” is a three-year, collaborative global research project that investigates how Christian communities respond when their religious freedom is severely violated. Research will be centered around three core questions:

• How do Christian communities respond to repression?
• Why do they choose the responses that they do?
• What are the results of these responses?

The Templeton Religion Trust awarded a grant of $1.1 million to the University of Notre Dame and the Religious Freedom Project at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University to carry out the research.

“Under Caesar’s Sword” is an effort to discover and draw attention to the ways in which Christian communities around the world respond to the severe violation of their religious freedom. These strategies vary widely, ranging from nonviolent protest movements of the kind that Pope John Paul II led in communist Poland, to the complex diplomacy of Christian churches in China, to simply fleeing from persecution en masse, as Christians have in Iraq. Further, the project aims to raise solidarity with persecuted Christians worldwide and to help them respond justly and effectively in ways that build up religious freedom for all.

The team of 14 scholars, representing the world’s leading scholars of Christianity in their respective regions, will travel around the world to study some 100 beleaguered Christian communities in over 30 countries including China, Indonesia, Nigeria, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan, and India.

One of the project’s signature features is its extensive efforts to disseminate its findings. This is part and parcel of its efforts to raise awareness of and be in solidarity with persecuted Christians. The scholars’ cumulative findings about Christian responses to repression are publicized through a wide range of media:

• A major international conference in Rome held in December 2015 on the fiftieth anniversary of the Second Vatican Council’s declaration on religious freedom, Dignitatis Humanae
• An edited volume of essays in which the scholars present their findings in their full academic rigor
• A report that presents the findings in an easily accessible and visually attractive way and will be translated into four languages and distributed around the world
• A public symposium in Washington, DC, on April 20, 2017 (including launch of the report)
• A web page that distributes the findings through an interactive format
• A short documentary film
• Educational resources for schools, churches, and other organizations

Leaders often promise much yet fail to deliver, sometimes because of global events beyond their control. The people often become disillusioned, without hope. How may we develop trust, faith and togetherness to enable progress that can absorb economic, political and spiritual surprises originating locally or globally?

Join Brian Grim, president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, at a plenary presentation of the 2017 Horasis Global Meeting (28-29 May), Cascais, Portugal to see how several top leaders answer this question at an audience composed of some of the world’s leading thinkers and business leaders. This is the second time Grim has led a panel at the Horasis Global Meeting, the first being in Liverpool in 2016.

Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Minister of Economy, Portugal Horasis will convene the 2017 Horasis Global Meeting in Cascais, Portugal on 28-29 May. The annual Horasis Global Meeting is one of the world’s foremost gatherings of business leaders who interact with key government officials and eminent thought leaders. The Horasis community of more than 300 selected world leaders from 70 countries will gather for an unparalleled experience advancing solutions to the most critical challenges facing corporations and societies today.

Speakers (pictured above, clockwise from top left) on the “Developing Trust” panel with Brian Grim include:

• Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson | Prefect, Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and Past President, Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Vatican City

• Canon Sarah Snyder | Archbishop of Canterbury’s Adviser for Reconciliation, United Kingdom

• Hamid Karzai | Former President of Afghanistan, Afghanistan

• Elder Neil L. Andersen | Member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, USA

Participants will share insights and innovations on how to best navigate the future. Under the theme ‘Building Togetherness’, participants will share insights on the current state of the world which seems to become more fragile and fractious. Citizens around the world are less trusting of their governments, institutions and neighbours. We need to build a new togetherness, to raise our belief in our inventiveness and in our ability to overcome oppression. This meeting shall devise novel ideas to sustain and nurture our development in the future.

Cascais is conveniently located 20min from Lisbon Airport and – with its enchanting location right on the Atlantic – is one of Europe’s truly legendary resorts. The 2017 Horasis Global Meeting is already the third Horasis leadership event held in Cascais, after the 2015 Horasis China Meeting and the 2016 Horasis India Meeting. The 2017 Horasis Global Meeting is held in partnership with the City of Cascais, the Portuguese Government and the Estoril Conferences, a biannual series of events held in Cascais to discuss the challenges of globalization. The co-chairs are:

• – Princess Basmah Bint Saud Al-Saud, Chairwoman, GURA – Global United Centre for Research and Analysis, Saudi Arabia
• – Issam Alzahid, Chairman, Alzahid Group Holding, Saudi Arabia
• – Barbara Barrett, Chairman, Aerospace Corporation, USA
• – Vijay Eswaran, Chairman, QI Group, Malaysia
• – CP Gurnani, Chief Executive Officer, Tech Mahindra, India
• – Alan Hassenfeld, Chairman, Hasbro, USA
• – Pansy Ho, Chairperson, Shun Tak Holdings, Hong Kong
• – Werner Hoyer, President, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg
• – Kevin G. Lynch, Vice Chairman, BMO Financial Group, Canada
• – Strive Masiwia, Founder and Chairman, Econet Wireless, South Africa
• – António Mexia, Chief Executive Officer, EDP, Portugal
• – Kenneth S. Rogoff, Professor of Economics, Harvard University, USA
• – Shirley Yeung, Founder & Managing Partner, Dragonrise Capital, China
• –  William Y. Zhang, Chairman, EU-China Municipal Development Commission, China

About Horasis: Horasis – a global visions community committed to enact visions for a sustainable future – provides a unique platform for companies from emerging and developed markets to globalize their organisations. In addition to the Horasis Global Meeting, Horasis hosts summits with a focus on China, India, South East Asia, Russia and the Arab world. About the Estoril Conferences: The Estoril Conferences are a one-week series of events held in Cascais in May 2017. Held since 2009, the conferences are a meeting place of thinkers and other renowned personalities to discuss the most pressing issues related to globalization. The 2017 Horasis Global Meeting marks the inaugural event of the conference week.

Positive Peace: Concepts and Practice

What role does business play in promoting interfaith understanding, religious freedom and peace? Join Brian Grim, president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, at Oxford University on May 5th to find out.

Saturday 6th May 2017, OxPeace annual Day-Conference: 09.30 -17.30  at St John’s College, Oxford. With Conference Dinner on Friday, 5th May at Rewley House.

Speakers include: Lord Alderdice (Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict, Harris Manchester College, Oxford), Mark Segal (DFID, on peace and the SDGs), Phil Vernon (Programme Director, International Alert, on positive peacebuilding), James Smith (Aegis Trust, on peace education), Mieke Lopes Cardozo (UNICEF, peace education), John Curtis (Iran Heritage Foundation, on the role of cultural preservation in building positive peace) and breakouts on peacebuilding in Colombia, extremists’ concepts of peace, etc.

Open to all, coffee and sandwich lunch on Saturday included, minimal fee of £5 students, £10 non-students.

For further details and registration form please contact Conference Organiser Jeremy Cunningham: Cunningham.jeremy@gmail.com 

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I’ve just returned from visiting Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon. The scale and depth of the tragedy is hard to comprehend: millions facing little or no chance of employment, education or mobility.

Amidst this great need, there are reasons for hope:

→ In Beirut I had positive meetings exploring how the resources from RFBF’s Empowerment+ initiative might help the work of NGOs in Lebanon and the Arab-speaking world. Indeed, Lebanon itself offers many reasons for hope.

→The Middle East Women’s Leadership Network is partnering with RFBF to launch a global religious freedom film competition, challenging women filmmakers around the world to create short films that showcase how religious freedom leads to innovation, peace, security, entrepreneurship, and human flourishing in communities.

You can read the details below.

Brian Grim, RFBF President

Refugee Camps

Official estimates put the number of refugees from Syria at 1.5 million, but most agree that the number is certainly higher.

Some have been on the run for four or more years, finding themselves in foreign lands with limited resources to receive them.

In one makeshift camp we met with a family who have only seen a UN worker once in the two years they’ve been in the camp.

Suspicions also are present in the camps, with neighbors not knowing which side of the conflict landed each other in the same camp. Some were well off, others not. All now share a day -to-day existence that our team could drive away from, but they were left facing little or no chance of employment, education or mobility.

In one small camp, the refugees created a makeshift school with almost no support or resources.

As we gathered in the school building with windows painted on the outside and then in one of their homes, they shared with us the loss of husbands, fathers, and the life that once was. Their greatest concern was that their children would become a generation lost to the opportunities education provides.

A distant hope many have is that a spot opens for them to immigrate to a Western nation.

At the same time, they hear stories of how life in the West is not easy either, especially for foreigners with different religions and separated by languages.

In our Empowerment+ program in Manchester, UK, we have been working with a Syrian refugee family. The woman pictured with two of her children recoded a video message to take to the family in the UK. As with all the parents we spoke to, the depravation of education for her children was the greatest concern.

Just being able to speak to the world beyond brought smiles despite the tremendous hardships.

Countries like Lebanon are in an especially tough bind. For a country of about 4.5 million, hosting nearly 2 million additional refugees is unfathomable. That would be like the United States receiving more than 100 million refugees.

The U.S. admitted 84,995 refugees (0.085 million) in the fiscal year ending in September 2016.

Despite the challenges, efforts in Lebanon are truly heroic.

NGOs

There are hundreds of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in Lebanon, addressing the needs in varying degrees. Two leading NGOs we spent time with are the Makhzoumi and Adyan Foundations, both of which I’ve known for a number of years.

We are exploring how the interfaith Empowerment+ resources might be useful to the missions of both these foundation.

Pictured with me are staff at the Makhzoumi Foundation with our delegation, including Fr. Tim Byron, SJ, from Manchester, and Sandra Chaoul who works with Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) in the Middle East and North Africa.

Following the violent events in Syria from 2011 onwards, JRS now provides emergency relief to Syrians both inside Syria, and in neighboring countries, including Lebanon.

The Relief and Humanitarian Unit of Makhzoumi Foundation works with several United Nations Agencies, International NGOs and local partners to provide services to beneficiaries of all nationalities in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, including the Palestinian camps in Beirut. The unit’s overall objective is to ensure assistance and humanitarian protection to refugees, displaced people and vulnerable host communities.

In support of our initiative, May Makhzoumi, president of the foundation, and Samer El Safah, General Manager, met together with us and the British Ambassador to Lebanon and senior staff to explore possibilities of bringing our made-in-Manchester Empowerment+ to Lebanon.

We also had meetings with Adyan Foundation director Fr. Fadi Daou (pictured on the left with Pope Francis).

Adyan was founded on 6 August 2006 by members from Christian and Muslim denominations. Adyan works on valuing cultural and religious diversity in its conceptual and practical dimensions, and on promoting coexistence and diversity management among individuals and communities, on the social, political, educational and spiritual levels.

Adyan envisions a world where diversity between individuals and communities is enriching; and it generates mutual understanding, intercultural citizenship, creative development, sustainable peace and spiritual solidarity.

Lebanon’s Rainbow

Within a few minutes of the Syrian border is an amazing beacon of hope. This interfaith enterprise has won UN and World Economic Forum awards. Here’s the rainbow story.

In French, archenciel means rainbow. Pictured with me are part of the Lebanese rainbow – handicapped workers of different faiths and national backgrounds – making wheelchairs in NGO Arcenciel’s workshop in the Beqaa Valley.

Each had a story of how being given work was the key to turning disabilities into abilities, and bridging differences. For them, differences were non-existent as they engaged in a common enterprise that served others and paid them a salary.

Arcenciel is a Lebanese based non-profit NGO, which supports Lebanon’s most underprivileged and marginalized communities, regardless of religion, political affiliation or nationality.

One notable aspect of Arcenciel’s program is that they have multiple business enterprises that not only empower the needy but that these enterprises help put Arcenciel itself on the road to self reliance. As shown in the chart, 65% of their funding comes from sales of their products, ranging from food produced on their farm to products from factories.

Another notable aspect of Arcenciel’s program is that they now operate a farm owned by the Jesuits in the Beqaa Valley that serves as a model for sustainable development. Not only environmentally and economically sustainable, but – from my observation – also spiritually sustainable. 

On Arcenciel’s Farm

The sign in the photo below on Arcenciel’s farm contains verses from the Bible and the Quran speaking of the Virgin Mary, who is revered as the Mother of Jesus (Isa) the Messiah by Muslims and Christians alike.

Indeed, in the Middle East such bridges between people and religions are a key for sustainable development. With interfaith understanding, however, bridges can be built where conflict is less likely. Where there is peace there is development. And where there is development, there is peace.

The sign is located by a statue of the Virgin Mary.

In this Holy Week for Christians around the world, it is worth remembering that after the birth of Jesus, Joseph and Mary were forced to flee with Jesus as a refugee family into Egypt.

I imagine that the Virgin Mary has a special concern for the many families forced into exile throughout the Middle East today.

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Beneath Big Ben, a lone terrorist carried out a deadly daylight attack at the British Parliament this Wednesday. ISIS claimed responsibility.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby offered prayers and characterized the terrorist as “perverted, nihilistic, despairing,” contrasting him with the devotion shown by those who cared for the injured. Indeed, the Muslim Council of Britain condemned the attack as a perversion and offered prayers for the victims.

The Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Nichols, also offered prayers for the victims, which included a constable, a mother on her way to pick up her children from a local Catholic school, and an American visitor from Utah celebrating his 25th wedding anniversary.

Cardinal Nichols also issued a plea, which points to how terror becomes a threat to the religious freedoms of all, not just our Muslim neighbors:

“Let our voice be one of prayer, of compassionate solidarity, and of calm. All who believe in God, Creator and Father of every person, will echo this voice, for faith in God is not a problem to be solved, but a strength and a foundation on which to depend.” 

As terror represents one man’s “perverted, nihilistic, despairing” version of religion, secular societies might conclude that religion itself is the problem.

Read below for what the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation is doing in Britain and worldwide to address this challenge to religious freedom posed by terror.

Brian, RFBF President

Religious Freedom & Business Foundation initiatives in Britain that directly address the challenge posed by terror to religious freedom, include: (1) dissemination of research on the value of faith; (2) interfaith action to build social cohesion; (3) recognition of champions of interfaith understanding, religious freedom and peace; and (4) interfaith dialogue at the highest levels.

Research: Value of Faith

The Guardian’s story on our research was shared 18,500 times. By contrast, its headline story announcing that Donald Trump wins presidential election was shared about 17,100 times.

Interfaith Action

We are piloting a social cohesion and enterprise initiative that builds bridges between young adults of different faith backgrounds. Sir Alex Ferguson (of Manchester United) recently helped us celebrate!

Champions of Peace

At the UK Parliament, site of the recent terror attack, we celebrated the significant contributions to religious freedom & peace of Baroness Nicholson and Lebanese industrialist Dr. Fouad Makhzoumi.

High Level Dialogue

RFBF is facilitating high level dialogue in London and Washington DC for interfaith leaders from Indonesia to introduce what they argue is a model of moderate Islam.

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

As you read this I’m en route to Vietnam, Indonesia and South Korea, promoting the foundation’s research, campaigns and practical initiatives on how religious freedom is good for business and its flip side – how business is good for religious freedom.

You can have access to RFBF’s thinking and what we’re doing through the links below …. stay tuned for a trip report.

Brian, RFBF President

Thinking

From how much a religious congregation adds to a local economy to projecting how the world’s wealth will change based on religion, there’s a lot to explore!

Campaigning

The FoRB Pledge: (1) You can work here without changing who you are; and (2) the company respects all employees and will not favor certain employees over others.

Doing

Empowerment+ puts religious freedom to practice as young adults build bridges across faith lines to help each other develop core spiritual values, find better jobs and start new businesses. Piloting in Manchester for global rollout in 2018.

by Brian Grim

It just makes sense. If people are able to bring their “full selves” into the workplace without fear of being ridiculed or discriminated against for who they are or what they believe, then that’s good for business.

The most successful businesses encourage an environment in which employees can bring their “full self” to work. Employees need to feel comfortable being who they are in the workplace, including being true to their core identity and beliefs. That includes recognizing and respecting an employee’s religion and its practice.

This has a very clear action item for businesses. Companies need to be religiously literate if they hope to recruit and retain top talent. 

In today’s increasingly more competitive business environment, companies will need to draw upon the talent and experience of every employee. They can’t afford to leave anyone out. If they exclude or alienate someone for reasons having nothing to do with a person’s ability to do the job, they might also be excluding the next great business solution or the next great product idea. The very thing a company might need for its success. At the very least, they’ll be missing out on lots of really great talent.

And as companies become increasingly more global, they’ll need employees who reflect the increasing diversity of their customers. They’ll need employees who can relate to the daily experience of customers and who can see the customer point of view. For potentially billions of customers, religious belief and practice are a part of daily life. Having employees who understand that will not only help companies avoid costly missteps, it will also help companies develop products and services better tailed to customer needs. That’s an essential part of being competitive.

Indeed, companies that support religious diversity and freedom in the workplace sends two clear messages to current and prospective employees: (1) You can work here without changing who you are; and (2) the company respects all employees and will not favor certain employees over others, and that’s good for the business of all.

Here are some statistics that demonstrate the need for a company to have religious literacy.

Statistic 1: Religion is Really, Really Growing

For most of the world, religion is a key identifier. In an award-winning article in Demographic Research, my colleagues and I recently demonstrated that not only is the vast majority of the world religions, but their numbers are projected to outgrow the religiously unaffiliated population by a factor of 23 over the coming decades.

This research is based on an analysis of more than 2,500 data sources.

The study and its connected Pew Research Center report show that between 2010 and 2050, the growth of religious populations worldwide is projected to be 23 times larger than the growth of religiously unaffiliated populations.

During this period, the number of people affiliated with a religion is expected to grow by 2.3 billion, from 5.8 billion in 2010 to 8.1 billion in 2050.

By contrast, the number of people unaffiliated with any religion (including those who say their religion is “nothing in particular” as well as self-identifying agnostics and atheists) is projected to increase by only 0.1 billion, from 1.13 billion in 2010 to 1.23 billion in 2050.

The median age of religiously affiliated women is six years younger than unaffiliated women. The 2010-15 Total Fertility Rate for those with a religious affiliation is 2.59 children per woman, nearly a full child higher than the rate for the unaffiliated (1.65 children per woman).

Conclusion: The religiously unaffiliated are projected to decline as a share of the world’s population in the decades ahead because their net growth through religious switching will be more than offset by higher childbearing among the younger affiliated population.

Of course, all projections of future trends must be taken with a note of caution. Indeed, unforeseen events will yield unpredictable consequences. With this caution in mind, we believe that demographic projections are of particular value because, as Voltaire observed, “the present is [literally] pregnant with the future.”

Statistic 2: Religion is Tied to Economic Changes Business Must Keep Up With

Dramatic religious and economic shifts will impact our planet in the decades ahead, according to a 2015 study by the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, Changing religion, changing economies. The study provides insights into the global marketplace’s growing religious diversity by linking the best available demographic and economic data.

The growth of religious populations has implications for how the world’s wealth will be spread about. The economic transformations of China and India are common knowledge. But, what is less well known is that the five leading economies of 2050 are projected to represent one of the most religiously diverse groupings in recent memory. For instance, today, seven of the G8 nations have Christian-majority populations. But by 2050 only one of the five leading economies is projected to have a majority Christian population – the United States. The other mega economies in 2050 are projected to include a country with a Hindu majority (India), a Muslim majority (Indonesia), and two with exceptionally high levels of religious diversity (China and Japan).

As religious diversity and religious populations grow, so does their potential impact, creating new challenges and opportunities for societies, governments and economies. This report is part of a “toolkit” developed by members of the Global Agenda Council on the Role of Faith, and we thank the members for their input. The 2014-2016 Role of Faith Global Agenda Council sought to increase “religious literacy” – including awareness and understanding of the positive impact of the role of faith in various sectors – in our complex world.

Statistic 3: Surveys Show Religious Majorities and Minorities Feel Excluded

A 2013 Tanenbaum Survey of American Workers and Religion concluded that religion is highly relevant in the workplace. The issues include not only whether a person feels unfairly treated on the basis of his or her beliefs – whether religious or non-religious – but also tensions around religion and religious misunderstandings in our diversifying global workplaces.

The survey found that people of all faiths, including those who belong to the “majority,” have religious needs that need to be addressed in the workplace. The survey concludes that “the accommodation mindset can be just as important to the man who is a white evangelical Protestant as it is to the woman who is Muslim or to others who follow a minority belief tradition …” Main findings from the study include:

• • One-third of respondents have seen incidents of religious bias in their workplaces or have personally experienced them.
• • Half of non-Christians say that their employers are ignoring their religious needs.
• • More than half of American workers believe that there is a lot of discrimination against Muslims.
• • Nearly 6-in-10 atheists believe that people look down on their beliefs, as do nearly one-third of white evangelical Protestants and non-Christian religious workers.

The survey also concludes that when employers adopt an accommodation mindset and implement policies addressing religious diversity of all kinds, their employees experience higher job satisfaction than workers whose employers do not. Findings include

• • Employees at companies that provide flexible hours for religious observance are more than twice as likely to say that they look forward to coming to work.
• • 4-in-10 employees at companies without clear processes for handling employee complaints are looking for a new job, compared to 2-in-10 employees at companies with these processes.
• • When companies have policies on religious discrimination, their employees are less likely to be looking for a new job.
• • Regardless of a company’s size, workers whose companies offer education programs about religious diversity and flexibility for religious practice report higher job satisfaction than workers in companies that do not.

Both the survey and Tanenbaum’s ongoing benchmarking research show that while it is important to have policies, it is equally important to communicate those policies to your workforce.