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When will CIPD stop wishing me a Happy Christmas and start wishing me Happy Holidays?

Debbie Aarons

I have been a member of CIPD for over 20 years and every year the organization sends me an email to wish me a Merry Christmas.  For the past 5 years, I have sent a message directly to CIPD to ask that this message be changed to a more inclusive holiday greeting.  Clearly, this wish is not respected.

As an HR professional, I encourage employers to practice inclusive work practices.  Wishing people a Happy Holidays is inclusive as is Seasons Greetings.  Not all employees celebrate Christmas and I'm sure that this applies to CIPD members too.

I do not take offence each time someone wishes me a Merry Christmas as I appreciate that this is a message of goodwill.  However, this does apply to a professional body such as CIPD.  I see little value in writing about the value of inclusivity if you are not willing to practice this yourself.

Wishing all members of CIPD a peaceful and happy holiday season.

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  • in reply to David

    And a Happy Winter Solstice to you David.... Oh Sorry, that is a pagan festival, as well as a Jewish one, and a Druidic one (which is where the Christian-festival mistletoe association comes from, adopted in the same way that the Yule Log and Fir-tree were from other non-Christian religions....) 

    So I suppose, thinking about it, that since the Christian Church has adopted, plagiarised or conveniently "absorbed" traditions from across the religious divide (as did the Romans, who they probably pinched the idea from) it seems that "Happy Christmas" is pretty inclusive after all!

    I do not have to believe in God, Gods, Christ or the tooth-fairy, to accept goodwill from others, and I hope that those offering it, in any language or from any theological or philosophical background, will not need a holiday to promote their goodwill toward me; as I do not need a paid holiday to offer mine to them. What I would find offensive is for anyone to be prevented from expressing their joy in whatever event, emotion, or belief, enhances their goodwill at whatever time. Birth, birthday. weekend, new week: Happy Monday! Happy Hanukah! Happy Yule! Happy first day of the rest of my life! Happy Christmas! Does it matter? Can the expression of honest goodwill ever be intended to offend, whatever its stimulus? Or is it seeking to judgementally exclude supress and punish the expression of goodwill, as a demonstration of personal, non-detrimental, belief or for any other cause, that should be considered the real cause of detriment, and offence?

    So: Happy five-past-nine, because I BELIEVE it is! :-)

    P