![]() If a schedule change would impose an undue hardship, the employer must allow co-workers to voluntarily substitute or swap shifts to accommodate the employee's religious belief or practice. How does an employer determine if a religious accommodation imposes more than a minimal burden on operation of the business (or an "undue hardship")?Įxamples of burdens on business that are more than minimal (or an "undue hardship") include: violating a seniority system causing a lack of necessary staffing jeopardizing security or health or costing the employer more than a minimal amount. an employee needs accommodation of a religious belief that working on his Sabbath is prohibited.Ĥ.an adherent to Native American spiritual beliefs needs unpaid leave to attend a ritual ceremony, or a Muslim employee needs a break schedule that will permit daily prayers at prescribed times.a Christian pharmacy employee needs to be excused from filling birth control prescriptions, or a Jehovah's Witness seeks to change job tasks at a factory so that he will not have to work on producing war weapons.an atheist needs to be excused from the religious invocation offered at the beginning of staff meetings.a Catholic employee needs a schedule change so that he can attend church services on Good Friday.The EEOC has developed a technical assistance document "Religious Garb and Grooming in the Workplace: Rights and Responsibilities" along with a fact sheet explaining these issues due to the frequency of their occurrence. an employee needs an exception to the company's dress and grooming code for a religious practice, e.g., Pentecostal Christian woman who does not wear pants or short skirts a Muslim woman who wears a religious headscarf (hijab) or a Jewish man who wears a skullcap (yarmulke).Examples of common religious accommodations include: Remember that employers may grant these accommodations for religious reasons but still refuse to grant them for secular reasons. What are some common religious accommodations sought in the workplace?Īpplicants and employees may obtain exceptions to rules or policies in order to follow their religious beliefs or practices. Social, political, or economic philosophies, or personal preferences, are not "religious" beliefs under Title VII.ģ. ![]() Under Title VII, a practice is religious if the employee's reason for the practice is religious. One person may not work on Saturday for religious reasons another person may not work on Saturday for family reasons. Some practices are religious for one person, but not religious for another person, such as not working on Saturday or on Sunday. ![]() It also includes religious beliefs that are new, uncommon, not part of a formal church or sect, or only held by a small number of people. It includes traditional, organized religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. ![]() Title VII defines "religion" very broadly. A religious practice may be sincerely held by an individual even if newly adopted, not consistently observed, or different from the commonly followed tenets of the individual's religion.Ģ. This includes refusing to accommodate an employee's sincerely held religious beliefs or practices unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship (more than a minimal burden on operation of the business). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on religion. Are employers required to accommodate the religious beliefs and practices of applicants and employees? For more information about the EEOC’s resources on religious discrimination, please see. The Groff opinion clarified that “showing ‘more than a de minimis cost’…does not suffice to establish undue hardship under Title VII.” Instead, the Supreme Court held that “undue hardship is shown when a burden is substantial in the overall context of an employer’s business,” “tak into account all relevant factors in the case at hand, including the particular accommodations at issue and their practical impact in light of the nature, size and operating cost of an employer.” Groff supersedes any contrary information on this webpage. This document was issued prior to the Supreme Court’s decision in Groff v. Notice Concerning the Undue Hardship Standard in Title VII Religious Accommodation Cases.
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