Religious Discrimination

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Religious Discrimination

• Kathy Bozenhard
• Mgmt. 610 Dr. Bedell
• 12 March 2003

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Outline of Presentation

• Overview
• Employer Requirements
• Implications
• Cases
• Pros/Cons
• Recommendations

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Overview

• Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII
• Prohibits workplace discrimination (hiring,
  firing, promotion, benefits, training, and job
  duties) based on religion, ethnicity, country of
  origin, race and color.
• Employers must accommodate religious beliefs and
  practices.

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Overview

• Covered individuals include all religious parties
  including atheists. Decision based on whether
  the belief takes the place of religion in the
  employees life.
• Members of the KKK are not included.
• Law affects all employers that have 15 or more
  employees. Most unions and employment agencies
  are also covered.

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What is a religious belief?

• A belief concerning certain religious practices
  that is sincerely held by an individual.
• Courts will typically not second guess an
  individuals religious beliefs. It is not the
  courts duty to determine what is a religious
  belief, but instead determine whether the beliefs
  are sincerely held by an individual.

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Requirements

• Employers must provide a workplace that is free
  of harassment based on religion.
• Employers are liable for harassment by
  supervisors, co-workers or non-employees under
  their control.
• Employers should reasonably accommodate the
  religious practices of an individual, unless
  doing so would create an undue hardship

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Implications

• Compensatory and Punitive Damages
• Depends on the size of the company.
• 15-100 Employees 50,000
• 101-200 Employees 100,000
• 201-500 Employees 200,000
• 500 Employees 300,000
• Back pay, benefits and legal fees.
• Injunctive or declaratory relief.
• Religious Discrimination increased by 21 between
  2001 and 2002.

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Cases

• EEOC vs. Brinks
• Cloutier vs. Costco
• Sattar vs. Motorola, Inc.

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Pros and Cons

• Pros
• Employers are not required to spend a lot of or
  make changes that could pose a threat to the
  business operations.
• Cons
• Must be handled very carefully.
• Gray area in between two extremes.

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Recommendations

• Communicate harassment policy.
• Have clear policies for addressing complaints.
• Train managers on proper and effective responses.
• Document everything
• Form for requesting accommodation.
• Written acknowledgement by employee of request
  response.
• Documentation on why request was not granted.