Employee claims she can't use Microsoft Windows for “Religious Reasons”

https://old.reddit.com/r/AskHR/comments/11fueld/ga_employee_claims_she_cant_use_microsoft_windows/

by ProtoAES256 • 3 years ago

64 57 3 years ago

old.reddit.com

dusted• 3 years ago

Just wipe the laptop and let them install Linux, but make it very clear that it is not supported and they'll have to find out how to do everything themselves.

If they can, great, no problem, if they can't, they can be fired for failing to do the job, not for refusing to use the provided system.

senttoschool• 3 years ago

Definitely shouldn't do this unless the company's IT department already supports Linux. Configuring Linux, securing it, tracking it, managing it, all for one person is a huge effort.

The top comments and I share the same view.

geysersam• 3 years ago

is a huge effort.

Just use a stable distro, install the security updates and eat your spinach.

What "managing and tracking" needs to be done that the default package manager cannot do for you?

bogantech• 3 years ago

No endpoint protection and no management = no access to the network or any proprietary data

jonp888• 3 years ago

It's usually not that simple. At my company, for instance, a device registered as Windows will be blocked from the network if security updates are not installed within a reasonable period of time, so any non-Windows device needs to be registered as such and it's use justified.

amacalac• 3 years ago

Cult of Mac ;)

beardyw• 3 years ago

"her religion does not allow use of Apple or Microsoft owned operating systems"

abudabi123• 3 years ago

Acolyte of the chief GNUisance or demons of BS.

thanatos519• 3 years ago

This is why I always make sure that I confirm that I can use Linux /before/ accepting an offer.

I'm a Stallmanite, but I don't claim religious reasons. I just can't work efficiently or effectively on Windows or MacOS.

voxadam• 3 years ago

Maybe do a thorough background check. I’m unfamiliar with Linux operating system but could it be used to hack and bypass windows based security systems.[0]

That's just plain funny. People like this are why so many view HR as the enemy.

[0] https://old.reddit.com/r/AskHR/comments/11fueld/ga_employee_...

viraptor3• 3 years ago

bypass windows based security systems

This is reasonable in a way. I don't think the person who commented this originally understands why, but still...

Larger companies often use remote device management / monitoring. Not being a part of the system means you won't get the same enforcement on updates, firewall, internal ssl certificates, etc. It's not strictly bypassing, but it's potentially not complying either.

Bilal_io• 3 years ago

Very true, I've seen the same happen with users that get MacBooks. Until recently[0].

0. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/11/apple-introduces-appl...

wkat42423• 3 years ago

Not being a part of the system means you won't get the same enforcement on updates, firewall, internal ssl certificates, etc. It's not strictly bypassing, but it's potentially not complying either

A good company makes sure you can't bypass it.

On our platform if your computer is not managed you're not even getting on the network as it requires an automatically issued certificate for wifi and in most cases for the wired network too.

All the cloud services like MS365 we use will block you from logging in too. If you're managed but stuff is out of date you're rerouted to a mitigation subnet that just offers resources to fix it.

And we're not even a high security company like financial, military tech or healthcare.

We do support PC, Mac and Ubuntu and RedHat Linux though.

xupybd• 3 years ago

I'm Curious as to the religion behind this. Perhaps https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQywV_B...

hulitu2• 3 years ago

The only one true religion: https://subgenius.com/

ChoGGi• 3 years ago

The Subgenus must have slack, but windows is okay too.

https://subgenius.com/fh_pc.html

Qem• 3 years ago

Kopimism. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missionary_Church_of_Kopimis...

tomkarho• 3 years ago

I guess Windows and Mac aren't kosher.

kramerger• 3 years ago

Simple fix: use the winux distro: WSL is your environment, the window compositor comes from Redmond.

(This is a crazy story, I think OP is just trolling)

goosedragons• 3 years ago

Unfortunately she's a tilist so a floating window manager just won't do.

nailer• 3 years ago

Church of the Subgenius?

elkos• 3 years ago

The eclectic order of Saint InGNUtious approves.

hilbert422• 3 years ago

Now, wouldn't it be nice if everyone had Linux as a religion.

ChuckNorris89• 3 years ago

TempleOS

hilbert422• 3 years ago

Actually, I rather like TempleOS, one really has to admire Davis' efforts. It must have been a lot of work. I can't but help feeling sorry that we've lost him.

joeblubaugh• 3 years ago

She’s in Church of the SubGenius. Gotta be.

lern_too_spel• 3 years ago

Church of Emacs

https://stallman.org/saint.html

stephanerangaya• 3 years ago

Update: "We decided to give her a shot" https://old.reddit.com/r/AskHR/comments/11gztsz/updatega_emp...

rcme• 3 years ago

I've been thinking a lot about hiring recently. Friends and acquaintances often tell insane stories about their workplaces, and inevitably the problems all stem from poor hiring. The specific request in TFA is insane and shouldn't be entertained. This doesn't mean the employee in question is bad, but, in general, when you entertain requests like this you're bound to pick up a few bad eggs. When you build a team, you want to ensure that everyone has the right mindset. This means people with little ego who are willing to put aside their personal differences to do what's best for the team. Starting your employment with a bizarre religious exemption to using Windows does not illustrate that in the least.

There is also the related question about why the company needs this employee. What I've seen is that such red flags often come up in hiring. Good managers recognize that there is a potential culture fit and pass without losing any sleep. Bad managers, those who obsessed with increasing their headcount, are willing to ignore such signal. They're willing to sacrifice the quality of the team, its output, and the company at large for their own personal gain.

TheRealDunkirk• 3 years ago

They're willing to sacrifice the quality of the team, its output, and the company at large for their own personal gain.

I could write a book about it over just what I've seen with my own eyes for 30 years. I wish someone would have forced me to see that, when this happens, it's almost always because someone is making a _conscious_ choice to do so, NOT because "they're stupid." It would have saved me an unbelievable amount of time and frustration, trying to "correct" their thinking from a place of naiveté and best intentions. My personality is such that I couldn't conceive that this path would have been chosen, as I thought it would be (in essence) "evil." Really, it's just another strategy for whatever "success" they can achieve, by people who don't have any of the other tools at their disposal. It's sad, but it's a fact of life and the nature of the human race. Once you can understand this, it's easier to recognize it, and just route around it. It took me 20 years to get it. I hope others fare better.

vlan0• 3 years ago

Not surprised. I was forced to move a wireless access point from someone's office because they claimed to HR about the "heath risks."

walmartwagie• 3 years ago

Obvious consequences of cramming the pride flag in the taskbar

znpy• 3 years ago

What religion is this? I want to join

f0ld• 3 years ago

The church with no windows

ramblerman• 3 years ago

I'm highly suspicious of these kind of posts. They remind me of the old "Ask Alice" in the magazines, with all kinds of wild and outlandish questions to which there was always a "perfect" response.

I.e. I think they are made up situations for karma.

willcipriano• 3 years ago

I learned recently that there are services you can hire that will have actors call into your radio show, they even provide plot lines and scripts.

bgirard2• 3 years ago

I agree. This post has so much visibility on Reddit and HN. The manager is openly discussing terminating the employee with strangers online. The situation and the details are so specific. If this is real, the employee is likely to find this post, or the HR department.

How does a qualified manager think this is at all okay?

omniglottal• 3 years ago

Specifically, what is not "ok" (i.e., legal) about this?

nerdawson• 3 years ago

Had the new employee been operating in good faith, surely they’d have mentioned this limitation during the interview stage.

Given the sensitive nature of the topic, I wonder how deeply HR can actually question the request.

simple102• 3 years ago

Just curious... why link to the old reddit subdomain? Is it just a personal layout preference or are there other practical reasons?

bgirard2• 3 years ago

The "new" reddit is much slower when collapsing large comment threads and has annoying/dark patterns like pushing the mobile app download & sign-ins.

simple102• 3 years ago

Ah. Thanks! Good to know. Only cost me a couple downvotes. Lol.

psychphysic• 3 years ago

As well as old loading instantly, it doesn't have pop ups that block access which is surprisingly common on the Reddit website.

em-bee2• 3 years ago

i can't use Microsoft Windows for health reasons. my mental health is severely affected every time i am forced to use Windows. MacOS is not much better though. it used to be ok, but it has gotten much worse lately.

hulitu2• 3 years ago

We, at $Big_Corp really care about your mental health. Just tell us what your problems are and we will help you. /s

(remember how, when the new inmates came to a concentration camp, they were required to take a shower)

IYasha• 3 years ago

Calling this a "religious reason" may be a bit too far, but using an OS of your own choice is pretty normal, right? I was never forced to use any specific OS wherever I worked, so this all looks very wild to me. Why would anyone care? She's not demanding a costly license from Microsoft, isn't she? And the answers on reddit are such bullshit only "micromanagers" can come up with.

freediverx• 3 years ago

I can think of many valid reasons for not wanting to use Windows. Religion ain’t one of them.

Employee claims she can't use Microsoft Windows for “Religious Reasons”

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