May we remind readers of our blog of August 14th wherein we talked about a lawsuit just filed by a Muslim hotel restaurant hostess at Disneyland claiming to have been fired by Walt Disney Co. after she refused to take off her headscarf, which allegedly “violated Disney’s ‘look’ policy.”   We recalled a similar “look policy” which Abercrombie & Fitch promulgated to insure a unified "preppy" brand image but which resulted in an adverse jury verdict in favor of a job applicant who was denied hiring when she appeared for an interview wearing a headscarf.

We asked our readers rhetorically – yet again — irrespective of the veracity or merits of this new lawsuit:  When will employers and/or their trusted HR people and advisors learn the law?

Now it comes to light that another Title VII suit has just been filed by the EEOC in a Texas federal court against a Burger King franchise operator on behalf of a female cashier who claims to have been fired for wearing a skirt to work as required by her Pentecostal Christian religion. The EEOC alleges that the employer failed to accommodate the woman’s religious beliefs when she refused to wear uniform pants required by the franchise operator.

We have written much about accommodating employees who are required by their religion to wear certain clothes or other adornments as long as this does not cause an undue hardship to the employer. See our blog on August 8th dealing with the case of a Muslim employee who was required to wear a headscarf, which we entitled “When Will Employers Learn The Law Regarding Religious Dress?”

When will employers and/or their trusted HR people and advisors learn the law?