[APD] New U.S. Religious Discrimination Guidelines Aid Sabbath Keepers

[Christian B. Schäffler]

[APD] New U.S. Religious Discrimination Guidelines Aid Sabbath Keepers 

 

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New U.S. Religious Discrimination Guidelines Aid Sabbath Keepers 

Compliance manual section strengthens worker's arguments, Adventist says

 

Washington D.C./USA, 31.07.2008 [AR/ANN/APD] Seventh-day Adventists in the
United States of America will have some support from the federal government
as they seek to observe the biblical Sabbath, a religious liberty leader
said.

 

On July 22, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a
compliance manual on workplace discrimination on the basis of religion.

 

According to an EEOC announcement, the document reviews the relevant
provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the EEOC's
policies regarding religious discrimination, harassment, and accommodation.
The EEOC also issued a companion question-and-answer fact sheet and best
practices booklet. All three documents are available on the agency's Web
site: http://www.eeoc.gov/

 

In the statement, the current head of the commission said that the
information is designed to help employers accommodate the needs of workers.

 

"Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 seeks to ensure that applicants
and employees enjoy the freedom to compete, advance and succeed in the
workplace, irrespective of their religious beliefs," EEOC Chair Naomi C.
Earp said. 

 

The commission said it issued the new guidelines "in response to an increase
in charges of religious discrimination, increased religious diversity in the
U.S.A., and requests for guidance from stakeholders and agency personnel
investigating and litigating claims of religious discrimination."

 

According to the commission, "religious discrimination charge filings with
the EEOC nationwide have risen substantially over the past 15 years,
doubling from 1,388 in Fiscal Year (FY)1992 to a record level of 2,880 in FY
2007."

 

The "best practices" document includes this advice: "Employers should work
with employees who need an adjustment to their work schedule to accommodate
their religious practices," which, by implication, includes the Sabbath.

 

James Standish, legislative affairs director at the Adventist Church world
headquarters, lauded the "specificity" and "examples" provided in the
documents.

 

"These documents are based on legal opinions from across the [federal]
circuit [courts] across the country," Standish told Adventist Review (AR) in
an interview. "Employers don't always understand the requirements" for
accommodation, he added, "but EEOC guidelines say something" they can grasp.

 

Though the EEOC guidelines will be of use to Adventists and others seeking
reasonable accommodation, Standish said the fight to pass the Workplace
Religious Freedom Act, or WRFA, will continue. 

 

"There are many ways to advance the cause," Standish said. However, he
added, "this is an important step. It's a big deal for us."

 

The EEOC was created to help enforce federal laws prohibiting employment
discrimination under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. [Editor: Mark A. Kellner,
Adventist Review for ANN/APD]

 

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