Firing workers for not complying with dress code could be religious bias
By
Two employees recently voiced concerns about an employer-mandated dress code, and the EEOC backed up their religious bias claims.
Here’s how a uniform requirement resulted in two firings and a lawsuit.
Requested an accommodation
Two employees at a Kroger grocery store in Arkansas were informed they’d need to wear an embroidered rainbow heart logo on their uniforms.
The workers, believing the rainbow heart represented support for the LGBTQ community, refused to comply with the dress code.
They cited their sincerely held religious beliefs that homosexuality is a sin.
The employees requested a religious accommodation, wanting to cover the rainbow heart with a name tag.
Kroger refused to accommodate the employees, and when they still wouldn’t wear the logo, the workers were fired.
The EEOC filed a suit against Kroger on the employees’ behalf, citing a violation of the Civil Rights Act. The case is pending.
The EEOC’s complaint calls for the company to provide compensation for the fired employees, for “emotional pain and suffering, humiliation and inconvenience.”
Cite: EEOC v. The Kroger Co., 9/14/20.
Further Reading
FMLA Intermittent Leave: 8 Questions HR Asks Most
Partial days, doctor’s notes, late arrivals. If intermittent FMLA leave keeps you guessing, these eight answers can help clear things up for HR.
Unpaid Pre-Shift Work Costs New Jersey Employer $725K
A New Jersey drywall installer must pay $725,000 after failing to pay 48 workers overtime for pre-shift work performed while they waited for transportation to job sites. The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division found P & B Partitions Inc. violated the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime rules. The company also refused […]
Connecticut Joins States Regulating Workplace AI: 7 Compliance Steps
Connecticut is putting employers on notice over workplace AI. Effective Oct. 1, 2026, SB 5 clarifies that Connecticut employers facing a discrimination claim can’t blame the artificial intelligence (AI) tools they use to make hiring, promotion, discipline or termination decisions. Other changes that kicked in the same day: And there’s more coming. The law’s second […]
USCIS Plans to Abolish 60-Day Grace Period for Certain Nonimmigrant Workers
On Sept. 11, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that, if adopted, would eliminate the 60-day grace period currently granted to most nonimmigrant workers in H-1B, H-1B1, E-1, E-2, E-3, L-1, O-1 or TN status who abruptly lose their positions. The grace period has been in place since […]
Pa. Court Sets 3-Year Deadline for Minimum Wage Act Claims
Pennsylvania employers face a three-year window for employees to sue over unpaid minimum wages or overtime under state law, rather than the six years a trial court previously allowed. The ruling came in a case involving 20 pharmacy employees seeking overtime for work done from 2017 to 2019. The employers argued the claims were filed […]
Hidden Payroll Rounding Risk: Unpaid Pre-Shift Time Under Scrutiny
Required pre-shift tasks – and whether employees are paid for them – are at the center of a former hospital nurse’s wage dispute. Chestnut Hill Hospital required nurses to change into surgical scrubs by 7 a.m. for a morning huddle. Pamela McBride sued under the Fair Labor Standards Act, alleging the hospital didn’t pay her […]