(CP) – A municipal council in Sweden passed a new guideline banning employees at its schools, offices and other local government buildings from praying during work hours. The policy was passed in the Bromölla, a coastal municipality in southern Sweden, according to the regional newspaper Kristianstadsbladet. The local council is controlled by politicians belonging to the conservative Sweden Democrats Party. The policy passed last week. “In the regulation, we have cut out everything which could be interpreted as saying that you can take time off to pray during work time,”

Chairman Eric Berntsson, who also chairs the local chapter of the Sweden Democrats, told The Local. “Both we and the Moderates and the Christian Democrats thought that the regulations should be more precise,” Berntsson argued that the rule is similar to policies that ban employees from taking cigarette breaks while on the clock. He added that the ban is universal and applies to adherents of all religions. In addition to schools, the rule will also reportedly apply to nursing homes and council offices. The ban does not apply to employees’ official break periods. READ MORE


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