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I live in the Okanagan, which is one of the most conservative places in Canada (Stockwell Day parachuted here for a reason), but it also has one of the highest percentage of atheists in Canada. We talk about religion vs. political views, and from my time in Vancouver and my time in Kelowna, I'd say that the average atheist in Kelowna is more conservative than the average Christian in Vancouver.
It is also interesting that after BC, Alberta has the most number of atheists in Canada (I'm using the term atheist as a synonym for "no religion" for brevity - though it's not an entirely accurate translation). Similarly, the average atheist in Alberta is likely more conservative than the average Christian in Quebec or even Ontario, though I'm only speculating here.
The faster growing religious group in Canada for 20 years running are Muslims, which is followed by Buddhists at number 2, and atheists at number 3. At the current rate, atheists will be the largest "religious group" long before the year 2050, but will bow the Muslims by 2100.
I've always gotten a weird vibe from Kelowna. What you say makes sense about Kelowna at least.
... It is also interesting that after BC, Alberta has the most number of atheists in Canada (I'm using the term atheist as a synonym for "no religion" for brevity - though it's not an entirely accurate translation). Similarly, the average atheist in Alberta is likely more conservative than the average Christian in Quebec or even Ontario, though I'm only speculating here.
On your first point, I would suggest that it depends on where in Alberta you are.
I'm in southern Alberta, where Mormons and Christian Fundamentalists abound. I'm neither, but there is no disagreeing with the local influence that they have. Certain communities are "dry," owing to local option; and some companies only hire those who go to their church. All us locals know this, but in spite of human rights laws regarding religion, there is the "you don't crap where you eat" philosophy at work; and if we non-Mormons and non-Fundies want to work, we don't make waves.
There may be a lot of atheism in northern Alberta, but there is little to none here in southern Alberta. Not if you want to have a job, anyway.
On your first point, I would suggest that it depends on where in Alberta you are.
I'm in southern Alberta, where Mormons and Christian Fundamentalists abound. I'm neither, but there is no disagreeing with the local influence that they have. Certain communities are "dry," owing to local option; and some companies only hire those who go to their church. All us locals know this, but in spite of human rights laws regarding religion, there is the "you don't crap where you eat" philosophy at work; and if we non-Mormons and non-Fundies want to work, we don't make waves.
There may be a lot of atheism in northern Alberta, but there is little to none here in southern Alberta. Not if you want to have a job, anyway.
Nope. I mean listed. Church affiliation has nothing to do with a job unless one is wanting to be a church secretary or something. And there are enough people here who seem to think that a religious affiliation is better than actual work experience. The business owners I speak of are at best agnostic so as I said, it's a kind of silent protest to just chuck resumes that list church affiliation. Which doesn't mean that they do not hire religious people. Just not those silly enough to think it belongs on a resume.
That is just as bad as not hiring atheists. I don't understand how one is considered acceptable, but not the other. What the heck is so wrong about being open about your religion?
That is just as bad as not hiring atheists. I don't understand how one is considered acceptable, but not the other. What the heck is so wrong about being open about your religion?
How is not hiring someone whose primary skill is church attendance worse than hiring someone primarily because they belong to your church or any church?
As Chevy said in his post, in some conservative communities, people are hired based on church affiliations. I have myself, years ago in my teens, been asked what church I went to in a job interview, which was against the law, but it didn't matter - I was asked it anyway. People are still asked it today in this area. And I have no church affiliation at all and of course, I was not hired. It was not a job that had anything to do with anything religious so it shouldn't matter if I howl at the full moon once a month in my private time.
The people I spoke of have religious people working for them - they are just not people who think their church affiliation has a thing to do with the jobs they were applying for. They don't make their church attendance prominent on their job resumes. Church attendance and religion usually don't have any relevance to your work skills.
ETA: I am religious. I don't go to church. But it would not occur to me to go around talking about my personal views on religion in a work place, or pretty much any other place. If people know me long enough, they will usually get a sense of my views on everything, including my religious beliefs.
That is wrong, but so is throwing out applications just because they have a religion listed. Some people may be used to environments like yours where their church affiliation improves their chances of employment (not justifying this kind of discrimination). It makes me wonder if the person you are referring to is some sort of anti-theist doing a "silent protest" of their own. What they are doing is unacceptable in my view.
That is wrong, but so is throwing out applications just because they have a religion listed. Some people may be used to environments like yours where their church affiliation improves their chances of employment (not justifying this kind of discrimination). It makes me wonder if the person you are referring to is some sort of anti-theist doing a "silent protest" of their own. What they are doing is unacceptable in my view.
I said in my post that these people are doing a silent protest by throwing out resumes where people emphasize their religion. Absolutely. Is it right? I'm not sure if it is wrong in an area where your chances of getting a job can be based purely on church attendance. Lets put it this way - people who are asked about their religious affiliations could file a human rights complaint but because they don't want to make a fuss, they go away quietly. And even if they did, they would never, ever find a job around here again although the reason would never be stated. So there a one or two people who actually favour those whose resumes are based on work experience. And I'm actually glad for that, rightly or wrongly.
If the people I was speaking of was rejecting and refusing qualified people because of their faith alone, it would be a different story. But that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about unqualified people who think they are entitled to jobs on the basis of their faith over qualified but 'unchurched' as the church people here apparently call people like me, applicants. People who make a big to-do on their resumes about their church activities never seem to be qualified for anything for some strange reason.
ETA: There wouldn't be an application where there is a space for religion. I'm talking about the resumes that people write up themselves.
Another ETA: I think we may be talking about two different things. I don't see why anyone would list their religion on a resume unless it pertained to the job, but I'm actually not even talking about those who would simply list their religion on their resume. Your area may be different - I am in a Mennonite area with quite a few American style churches. There are a lot of people from both types of churches that make their resume almost like a 'witness.' It isn't a simple case of listing their faith in one word. I would toss them in a second if I were a business owner. Resumes get tossed for a lot of reasons - font types, people who want their resumes to be overly unique and maybe put pictures or smiley faces in them.
It would be discriminatory for an employer in an interview to ask an applicant about their religion or lack of it. When people put stuff of their own volition into their resumes, anything that doesn't pertain to the job itself is a potential reason to get that resume tossed in the garbage can.
Here's my perspective. Think about if a woman's name was Patricia, but put Pat on her job application. She is given the job, her employer thinking she was a man. Then another person named Patricia puts her full name on their job application, and isn't hired because her employer is sexist. I feel it's the same thing with a religion. Church activities often involve benevolent volunteer work, so I'm not really following why this would be out of place on an application. Sometimes people use certificates of baptism as a means of identification, or use their parish as a means of providing the location of their residence. I also feel that following societal expectations, as irrational as they may be, is not something to hold against a specific person, but rather the society they live in itself.
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