It is to be noted, in the first place, that Jumu`ah Prayer is mandatory on every Muslim male who is adult, healthy, and free. Every Muslim should strive hard to perform it on time unless something beyond his capacity disrupts that. Allah says in the Qur’an: “O believers! When the call for the Prayer is heard on Friday, hasten to the remembrance of Allah and cease your trading. That is better for you if you but knew.” (Al-Jumu`ah: 9)
It is clear from this verse that all Muslims who are eligible to attend the Jumu`ah must cease all their activities and respond to the call of the muezzin.
Concerning attendance of the Jumu`ah Prayer, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Whoever leaves three Jumu`ah Prayers consecutively out of neglect on his part, Allah will put a seal on his heart.”
The prominent Muslim scholar Sheikh Muhammad Al-Mukhtar Ash-Shanqiti, director of the Islamic Center of South Plains, Lubbock, Texas, states the following: “There is a tradition in most western countries called “accommodation,” which means that any employer is expected to give his employees time and space to offer their religious services. Any Muslim who works in a company in such western countries that implements this should ask for his or her right in this regard.
Anyway, a Muslim cannot skip the Jumu`ah Prayer in any case, and it is our responsibility to ask for our right.”
Therefore, we conclude that one should ask for time off (during your lunch break, for example) to attend a mosque for Jumu`ah Prayers. If there is not a mosque within a reasonable distance, we arrange to perform Jumu`ah Prayer with other Muslims who work close to where we work.