Adapting to Differences

Today in class we had to think about some scenarios and what we should do if we encountered them. In one of them, we had to create a set of rules to the use of a refrigerator in the office. When we were deciding on the rules, we were asked what to do if there were vegans or orthodox Jews in the office, and they couldn't accept having meat and non-meat products on the same fridge.

That got me thinking. Do we have to make changes to accommodate people with any sorts of belief? I mean, I don't mind if someone at his or hers on house owns two fridges, each in a different kitchen, it doesn't have anything to do with me. But in this same example, should someone who runs a company spend extra money to buy another fridge just because of that? I mean, if there are many workers, and there would be a need to multiple fridges anyway, then I don't see a reason not to comply and have different rules to each of them. However if just one would suffice, then buying two would mean we are just taking the problem off the people who have these special needs and putting it on the ones who have to make the decision and decide the expenses. I reckon it's somewhat similar to what David Cameron said in a video presented a few seminars ago; maybe, by trying to be understanding of other cultures, we end up doing or accepting things that hurt ourselves.

Of course, I'm not saying that going out of our way to do something that conforms to other cultures is wrong. It's a good thing to do. What I'm questioning is if we need to do so.

The answer to that probably varies depending on the situation. Is it viable to do so?How significant is the quantity of people with the different custom in question? And are there types of differences that we should try harder to provide support to than others? For example, in the case of buying another fridge to make either vegans and orthodox Jews happy; I think I would be more inclined to accept such a request from Jews than from vegans, after all, religion is something that's usually inherited, while being a vegan is a personal choice, so a vegan would normally be much more used to people who don't follow the same ways as himself.

It's good to try and make everybody comfortable, but it's not always possible.