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EMPLOYER CLIENT ALERT: February 2009 Understanding the New EEOC Guidelines on Addressing Requests for Religious Accommodations The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) which enforces Title VII of the Federal Civil Rights Act recently released guidelines to help Employers meet their legal obligation to accommodate an employee’s sincerely held religious beliefs. In short, when an employee asks for a religious accommodation, the employer must talk to the employee about the request and discuss alternatives if the requested accommodation would cause an undue burden on the employer. For example, if an employee asks for a shift change to attend a religious service, the employer may ask about the time and length of the service to determine if it would impose more than “de mininimus [minimal] cost or burden” on the employer. This simple dialogue is known as an “interactive process.” If you deny an accommodation based on hardship, you must be able to show actual, not potential, hardship, i.e. how much the accommodation would cost or how much it would interfere with your business. Courts have found undue hardship when the accommodation (1) diminishes efficiency in other jobs; (2) infringes on other employees’ job rights or benefits; (3) impairs workplace safety; or (4) causes coworkers to carry the accommodated employee’s share of potentially hazardous or burdensome work. As a result of changing demographics, employers are facing difficult challenges when they try to meld traditional workplace rules with the particular needs of Christian, Muslim, Jewish and other employees. The challenge is evidenced by the increase in religion-based workplace discrimination claims which are up 15 percent over 2006. The Wall Street Journal reported the increase includes complaints by practicing Muslims who request that shift breaks coincide with prayer times and paid holidays coincide with holy days. These requests can be tricky. For example, a request that assembly-line stoppages coincide with sunset in order to accommodate Muslim prayer times is complicated by other factors such as sunset changing from day to day and conflicts with union rules. Employers Beware: Anticipate the way workplace issues involving religion can arise in your workplace and be prepared to address requests for religious accommodation when they occur by following these guidelines: (1) Assume an employee’s religious beliefs are protected; (2) engage in the interactive process if a request for religious accommodation is received; (3) when denying a request, be able to objectively demonstrate actual not potential hardship; and (4) explore alternatives. If you have any questions about any of the issues raised in this
Employer Alert, or any employment and labor issue or concern, please
call Thomas Ryan, Esq. or Linda Day, Esq. of Laddey, Clark & Ryan’s
Employment and Labor Practice Group at (973) 729-1880. If you do not
wish to receive updates concerning developments in the law which could
affect your business in the future, please indicate your preference
below, and we will take you off our e-mail list. The Employment and Labor Practice Group
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