05/08/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 05/08/2024 11:52
Imagine you manage a busy restaurant, and you are working on the schedule for next week. Saturday is your busiest day, and you need all hands on deck, so you need to schedule everyone for that day. Just when you have the schedule finished, an employee approaches you and says she cannot work Saturdays because her religion prohibits working on Saturdays. Not only does she need this Saturday off, but all Saturdays in the future. What do you do?
The scenario above is becoming more common.
For decades, employees have had the right under federal and state laws to request religious accommodations from employment policies, including schedule changes. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and many state laws, employers must accommodate employee sincerely held religious beliefs, as long as it would not create an undue hardship for the employer.
Although the need to accommodate religious beliefs is not new, religious accommodations have received significant increased attention in recent years. Employers received an unprecedented number of religious accommodations in response to employment policies related to the COVID-19 vaccine. Furthermore, the U.S. Supreme Court in Groff v. DeJoy in 2023 raised the standard of what constitutes an undue hardship under Title VII, from "more than a de minimis" cost on the employer to a "substantial" cost.
Based on these developments, employers need to be prepared to respond to religious accommodation requests, particularly requests to not work a certain day of the week due to sabbath obligations.
Here are some tips to prepare for sabbath day requests:
Restaurant and retailers should be ready to respond to requests for religious accommodations based on sabbath days. If you need assistance, do not hesitate to reach out to a Jackson Lewis attorney.