"Muslim employees should not see fulfilling their religious requirements as constraints to do their jobs, while employers should adopt some form of flexibility."



As an example, Shamsuddin said, if a Muslim employee had to pray, then the employee should "repay" the time spent praying by working extra, rather than going home back on the dot. Employers, on the other hand, could be more flexible by allowing employees to take their lunch at later times.



"Take for example the Zohor prayers. It can be fulfilled between 1.20 pm and 4 pm, so companies can allow their staff to take their lunch break from 1.20 pm onwards, so that they can pray during their lunch break," said Shamsuddin.



Shamsuddin said in this respect, employees must be fair to employers, adding that it was not right for religious activities to result in loss of productivity at the work place.