Should people who don’t celebrate Christmas get to have it off work?

[Username638]

Might be a controversial topic, I’m not sure. I work in a small team and there always has to be at least two people in over Christmas. One of the people does not celebrate Christmas due to their religion. They get a week or two off earlier in the year for Eid. Now that it has come to deciding who is having what time off for Christmas, the colleague who doesn’t celebrate it has said he might go for a trip away. I find this unfair really because he has already had his celebration and his time off work. It was a given, he didn’t need to fight over holidays, he just was granted the time off (which is fine obviously, that’s not the issue. I’m just saying he has already had his celebration and now it’s ours).

I don’t think there should be any rules in place that he can’t have any time off over Xmas because I do think it would be unfair and not right. But I just would’ve hoped that he would make the decision off his own back to work Xmas eve, Xmas day and Boxing Day so that those who celebrate it can have it off. I feel like it’s common decency? I did ask what he is up to for Xmas a few weeks ago and he said nothing as he doesn’t celebrate it. But now he’s decided he might go away for the whole week of Christmas and I just find it selfish tbh.

@Lallydallydune our laws and customs are based on Christianity, therefore the UK IS a christian country.

Exactly right. Our head of state is also head of the church. It is a Christian country and every national holiday and cultursl event is weaved around significant Christian dates. Christmas, Easter, pancake day etc.
Identifying with religion is transient and fluid. At the moment our country is going through a secular stage - it may not remain so. There are still plenty of people that go to church. And plenty of people that do not, but still believe in God.

Like America?

And that can NEVER be changed, right?

(I love that you’ve pulled “pancake day” out as a significant date. Those for whom it has religious significance would call it Shrove Tuesday. You’ve beautifully illustrated the point that for the majority, none of these dates have any religious significance. Most of the things people associate with Xmas and Easter were stolen from the Pagans so your entire argument falls. Well done!)

In Ireland, we call it ‘Pancake Tuesday’. Is that an acceptable compromise? The ‘Pancake’ (which is the star of the show), and the ‘Tuesday’ bringing the important elements together. Denotes it is before the Wednesday when the Lenten fast begins. Everyone, including my church going mother (who certainly liked her Christianity) called it that. The idea supposedly was to use all your perishables such as eggs, cream etc up, before you gave yummy food up for lent). Mind you, we had simple sugar and lemon juice. The bitter stuff, squeezed straight from the lemon.

The conversation seem a bit like changing horses in midstream. I think pointing out that the UK certainly has structures that are Christian, simply recognises the situation. It isn’t really a critical analysis, or a exploration of the rights and wrongs.

There are groups one could join to lobby for the removal of the monarchy, or the removal of the established church if one wished. There would have to be the support in the population for the change though. The simple reality, for the moment at least, is that these exist.

Sounds like you all need to book Eid off next year.

Sorry but it's an important British cultural tradition, one that existed long before Christiantity. It doesn't matter if OP goes to Church, the day is culturally important to her and her family and not her colleague. He should do the decent thing and work Christmas day.

I know the winter solstice seems to have had significance in Neolithic times, but I don’t think actual Christmas (as we know it) existed before Christianity.

Decorating a tree and leaving presents under it seems to be very pagan although I haven’t researched the tradition.

Albert brought the tradition from Germany in the 1840s.

Christmas existed before the decorated evergreen tree, with the pressies under it. Indeed even before the turkey was imported from the US. My mother’s family had goose.

I wonder how they do Christmas in other places around the world? I’m fairly sure you can have different ways of doing Christmas.

Or rather, Christmas as a Christian holy day existed and exists independently of a decorated evergreen tree. These are just trappings. More widespread now as it is quite pretty as a decoration. I imagine the Maronites, Copts and Armenian churches have their own trappings. They mightn’t even have Christmas pudding with custard! The horror! How could they even call themselves Christians!

Oh it is, and it wasn't pretty baubles that were hung on it.

I know the winter solstice seems to have had significance in Neolithic times, but I don’t think actual Christmas (as we know it) existed before Christianity.

A midwinter celebration existed. The accounts in the Bible of shepherds being in the fields doesn't fit with mid winter.

I wonder how they do Christmas in other places around the world? I’m fairly sure you can have different ways of doing Christmas.

In Spain the nativity scene was a man shitting. I am not joking.

Lots of places have the main celebration on Xmas eve, and in many places the day is one of fasting and abstinence so fish is a popular choice.

Although that ends at midnight mass so a buffet isn't uncommon.

As it Christmas is also two bank holidays then no, no one should be prioritised it is the same with Easter

its challenging doing the rota but everyone where I work has to work Christmas Day or Boxing Day at some point unless they have booked the time off (and they has to be shared)

other religious holidays are not bank holidays they have to take that out of annual leave

Possibly not as chilly in the fields come midwinter in Africa to be fair. I’m sure I read somewhere that it’s thought Jesus wasn’t even born in December. Excellent record keepers the Romans. They tweaked it to fit in with existing pagan celebrations. That’s why it’s such an odd mix of traditions that vary from place to place.

In the Netherlands Santa doesn’t have elves his helper is zwart pete. If you are naughty he puts you in his sack and takes you to Spain. Where you meet the shitting man no doubt.

Jesus absolutely wasn’t born in December. Would have been between June and September. But that would have been harder for early Christians to sell to non-Christians, so they commandeered the existing festivals instead and changed the story.

Pagans brought evergreen branches into their homes and lit fires. They socialised and feasted, celebrating the solstice and various goddesses.

Most of what people think of as artefacts of Xmas are pagan in origin (see also bunnies and eggs at Easter). Elf on the shelf is not pagan.

I like the Icelandic approach, where they spend Xmas eve exchanging books and chocolate and stay up reading by candlelight.

Me and several of my colleagues who DO celebrate Christmas have had our annual leave requests rejected, the excuse being that too many people are off. We had all requested them on April first when the new year of annual leave begins. All 20 of the people who were granted leave DON'T celebrate Christmas. They had requested the leave months and months after us. Our job is always extremely busy and we work every day of the year. It's bad enough she is bring do unfair but even worse that she allowed that many people to be on annual leave, she's knows full well how busy we always are. We're far more busy than when she was only a starter/ first level, better know as junior before she became a manager. She has only assigned 5 people to work Christmas day, boxing day, new year's eve and bee year's Day. But we'll get 'scolded' if we don't get an unrealistic amount of work done. She knows that most of us will have to get taxis, how expensive they are, apparently up to triple the normal cost, with companies £40-£60 for me to go just 4.9 miles. She also knows that the NHS have stopped reimbursing staff for the cost. That would b more than we earn in a day, so we'd be going to work for the day to afford the cost of going to work. That doesn't counter productive and backwards. I have very little money after tax, national insurance, pension, rent and bills go out. I can't afford a taxi. I already struggle as it is. This not working will get paid for that annual leave. We don't even get double pay for working those days. It's normal wages on Christmas day. Slight more than normal pay on the other days and even then only because they are bank holidays. Even though any other job will give double pay. It also doesn't help that I get very anxious and nervous being alone in a car with a stranger even with genuine/registered taxis and taxi services. I'm not really sure why.

If Jesus Christ had actually been real his birthday would have been in the summer, not December 25th...

25th December was really the 6th of January as we changed calendars in 1752 and list 11 days

Its why in some places the birth of Christ is celebrated on 6th January

It was a pagan festival date that Christians wanted to oppress with their own celebration

some have said 11 September is the date of Jesus birth and others 6 April

Perhaps they decided to make it more fair and give those who usually have to work Christmas the chance to have it off.

Why have you resurrected a year old post?

Just as people in the UK may celebrate the religious aspects or the secular aspects of Christmas being of Christian culture (not necessarily adherents), people for a Muslim culture mat celebrate the religious or secular aspects of the Eid holiday.