Employee A wants to post religious pictures of Passion of the Christ and other religious icons on the outside of her office door and on the walls of the hallway near her office.

Additionally, Employee A asked Employee B to pray for someone during work hours. Employee B states she was afraid to say no and prayed with Employee A. Employee B subsequently reported the incident to her supervisor. Employee A admits to praying during work hours, not on her break and claims she has the right to practice her religion at work and to solicit prayer from her co-workers.

Employee A was told to take the pictures down because they were not suitable for a children's facility and that she could not solicit prayer from her co-workers. Employee A is now threatening to file a lawsuit for religious discrimination.

Rita Risser replies:

An employer can dictate what types of pictures are allowed and where. If you believe the pictures are not suitable for an area where there are children, you have a right to prohibit them. You also could say pictures only in her office, not on the door or in hallways, or you could say nobody can have any personal pictures. If you do allow personal pictures, you have to allow religious ones but, again, you can regulate them by size and content.

Employee A asking B to pray during work hours, if the request was made repeatedly, day after day, could be illegal religious harassment of B by A. The employer has the right to nip this in the bud and stop the requests, especially since you received a complaint.

Employee A praying during working hours, as long as it is not disruptive and as long as she is getting her work done, is not something the employer should be concerned about. If it is too loud or she is not getting work done, counsel on that, not on the praying itself.

In sum, Employee A does not appear to have a valid claim for religious discrimination.

Good luck.