Cleone Food and Head Scarves: A Debate on Religious Symbolism

Head Scarves Debate

We were delighted to be interviewed recently on Sky TV. This was in regard to the proposed ban on the wearing of head scarves as religious symbolic clothing, at work.

As a business that’s widely-recognised in the Midlands, we’re often asked for our opinion about important social and political issues. Last year, we contributed to a debate on Brexit, and this time, it was about the headwear.

Multi-cultural Workplace

This is always going to be a controversial issue within a workplace, as religious sensibilities clash with internal company rules and with health & safety issues too. However, our MD Wade Lyn was delighted to be interviewed, as Cleone Foods is a fantastic example of a company with good multi-cultural relations. Indeed – you’ve only to see our selection of IIP (Investors In People) awards to see how important this is to us! We believe that a large mix of different ethnicities can enrich the working environment. Therefore, we were more than happy to invite the cameras in to give our opinion.

The resulting footage was fantastic – not only allowing viewers to see us in our working environment, but also to show that sometimes, workplace issues are just not black and white. There’s a whole host of other things to consider, from many different angles.

Headscarves Health & Safety

For our part, there’s a higher driver beyond our control on this particular one. As a food business, we adhere to food safety regulations. This means we cover all hair, including beards. We also remove or cover all loose clothing with overalls. Headscarves pose a risk as the loose cloth around the neck can get caught in machinery or contaminate food during packing.

For any employers facing such difficulties, we’d recommend looking at gaining accreditation like the IIP awards. This demonstrates that the company actively looks for ways to promote a harmonious and productive working environment. This will make employees feel more valued, and stand any company in good stead when heated debates arise around ethnicity, religion or working practices in general.