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EEOC v. Alamo - Can't fire Muslim for wearing scarf
June 03, 2006 by Ross Runkel at LawMemo
Alamo Car Rental fired a Muslim employee for refusing to take off her head scarf during the holy month of Ramadan.
Guess what? That violated Title VII, which requires that an employer provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee's religious practices.
- The case: EEOC v Alamo Rent-A-Car (D. Ariz. 05/26/2006)
- EEOC press release describing the case: Alamo Car Rental Guilty of Religious Bias Federal Court Rules in EEOC Lawsuit
EEOC described the case this way:
Prior to being fired, charging party Bilan Nur had worked for Alamo since 1999. EEOC’s lawsuit asserted that the company had permitted her to wear a head covering for religious reasons during Ramadan in 1999 and 2000. However, following the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Alamo refused to permit Ms. Nur to observe this particular religious belief during December of 2001.
Alamo claimed that it told Ms. Nur that the company dress code prohibited wearing of a scarf. Notwithstanding Alamo’s representation, the EEOC found that the company had no such policy. When Ms. Nur refused to remove the religious garment, Alamo disciplined, suspended and terminated her employment following consultation with regional level human resources officials and in-house counsel.
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