Quiz #101 Satisfying the "undue hardship" test of Title VII religious accommodations

True or False: An employer can satisfy Title VII’s “undue hardship” test by assessing the reasonableness of a particular accommodation and determining that such a request is unreasonable and would create an undue hardship for the employer. 

 

(Scroll down for the answer)

 

Answer:  FALSE.  Title VII requires an employer to reasonably accommodate an employee’s religious practice rather than just the employer assessing the reasonableness of the requested accommodation.  Here is what the Supreme Court said:

 

Second, as the Solicitor General's authorities underscore, Title VII requires that an employer reasonably accommodate an employee's practice of religion, not merely that it assess the reasonableness of a particular possible accommodation or accommodations. See Adeyeye, 721 F.3d at 455; see also Brief for United States 30, 33, 39. This distinction matters. Faced with an accommodation request like Groff ’s, it would not be enough for an employer to conclude that forcing other employees to work overtime would constitute an undue hardship. Consideration of other options, such as voluntary shift swapping, would also be necessary.

Groff v. DeJoy, 143 S. Ct. 2279, 2296–97, 216 L. Ed. 2d 1041 (2023) (emphasis added). 

 

Disclaimer: The Religion Law Quizzes are provided as a service to you. They are intended only for educational purposes. Nothing in the Quizzes is intended to be legal advice and they should not be relied upon as conclusive on any issue discussed therein.

 

HERE IS AN AI GENERATED SUMMARY OF TODAY’S PODCAST

Our latest episode of the Religion Law Podcast offers a fresh insight into the complicated world of religious freedom and the law. Hosted by Michael Fielding, this specific episode, titled "Religion Law Quiz 101: Understanding Title VII and Religious Accommodations," dives into the important Supreme Court decision Graffi DeJoy, which pertains to Title VII and the provision of religious accommodations for employees.

The episode sets the stage with a true or false question about whether an employer can satisfy Title VII's undue hardship test by simply assessing the reasonableness of a particular accommodation. The Supreme Court ruling, dissected in this episode, declares the question false - Title VII requires an employer not just to assess the reasonableness of a given accommodation, but to reasonably accommodate an employee's religious practice itself.

Fielding relates this Supreme Court decision to the real-world case of an evangelical Christian working for the Postal Service who requested religious accommodation for Sabbath day observance. This scenario is used to unravel the legal complexities of the 'undue hardship' concept and discuss the integral distinction Title VII enforces for employers when accommodating the practices of their employees

While this podcast provides essential educational content, it does not replace legal advice. This episode encourages listeners to understand their rights and responsibilities under the law, and invites further action should a listener confront legal challenges related to religion and employment.

Religion Law Podcast delivers valuable knowledge regarding religious freedoms and legal responsibilities, making it indispensable for everyone interested in the law of religious freedom.

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
Welcome to another episode of the Religion Law Podcast, where you learn about
religious freedom and other religion law-related topics through a short question-and-answer format.
I'm your host, Michael Fielding.
Let's see how you do on today's quiz.
Welcome to Religion Law Quiz number 101. one, numero cien, ciento uno.

(00:25):
I hope I'm getting my Espanol correct right there. I guess if I'm not,
somebody might correct me. All right.
Today's the last little segment where we're talking about the 2023 Graffi DeJoy
decision from the Supreme Court, which was talking about Title VII and religious
accommodations for employees.
So we're going to keep it easy. True or false question Question today,

(00:48):
true or false, an employer can satisfy Title VII's undue hardship test by assessing
the reasonableness of a particular accommodation and determining that such a
request is unreasonable and would create an undue hardship for the employer. What do you think?
Can an employer satisfy this undue hardship test by assessing the reasonableness

(01:12):
of a particular accommodation and then determining that such a request is unreasonable
and would create an undue hardship for the employer?
What do you think? True or false? Well, the Supreme Court says it's false.
Title VII requires an employer to reasonably accommodate an employee's religious
practice rather than just the employer assessing the reasonableness of the requested accommodation.

(01:39):
Here's what the Supreme Court said. I'll have the specific citation in the show note.
And the Supreme Court said, quote, as the solicitor general authorities underscore
title seven requires that an employer reasonably accommodate an employee's practice of religion,
not merely that it assess the reasonableness of a particular accommodation or accommodations.

(02:02):
The distinction matters.
Faced with an accommodation request like Groff's, it would not be enough for
an employer to conclude that forcing other employees to work overtime would
constitute an undue hardship.
Consideration of other options such as voluntary shift swapping would also be

(02:26):
necessary. Close quote.
Now, we see here on the end of this quote a reference to what was going on here.
As you recall, in Graffi de Joy, you had an evangelical Christian who worked for the Postal Service.
The Postal Service was saying, hey, we have this contract where we have to deliver
items on Sunday, and guess what?

(02:48):
You have to work. And the evangelical Christian is saying, hey,
Sabbath day observance is super important to me.
And I don't want to work on Sunday.
Please give me an accommodation.
And that was the big fight. It was more than a de minimis burden for the postal
service, at least according to it.

(03:09):
And the question went up. And, you know, we get into the whole fight or discussion
about is this an undue hardship? That's what the whole graphy de joy decision is about.
And then what the Supreme Court is saying here is that Title VII requires that
an employer reasonably accommodate an employee's practice of religion, not merely that it, i.e.
The employer, assess the reasonableness of a particular possible accommodation or accommodations.

(03:36):
And that's an important distinction. It sounds like a fine line,
and you can get where the Supreme Court's going here.
Because put yourself in the shoes of an employer. And this is just really human
nature here, what I'm about to say.
Anytime somebody comes to you and says, hey, can I do this or do that?

(03:59):
And let's assume that you're the person running the show.
And if you've ever had to manage several different people all at once,
you know that that can be a bit of a juggle at times.
And it may be that you're juggling everything and you've got your system down
and you think things are working just right.
And then it's just life.

(04:22):
Something always comes up. And so you're managing all these people.
And then suddenly somebody comes and says, hey, I need you to make an accommodation
for me. and there's like this natural human knee-jerk reaction like,
which is, whoa, that's hard for me. You know, I just got my little system working.
Everything was working just fine. And now you're just coming in and asking for

(04:43):
an accommodation and it's disrupting everything.
And that's inconvenient to me. Well, yeah, it is, you know, it is,
it is a little bit of a disruption to you where you're managing it.
But what the law is saying here is the simple fact that you may view that as
a bit of a disruption, that's not going to be the litmus test.
The question here is the law requires that the employer has to reasonably accommodate

(05:10):
the employee's practice of religion unless it's going to be an undue burden for the employer.
And the simple fact that it might be an inconvenience doesn't,
and even if the employer views it as an inconvenience, doesn't mean that it is, in fact, going to be.
An undue burden for the employer. So, all right, again, I'm not an employment attorney.

(05:36):
I don't profess to practice in the employment world.
I just know that this Groff v. DeJoy decision is a pretty important one when it comes to Title VII.
And the whole point of these religion law quizzes is not to give legal advice.
And that's what we have at the end of the outro as you listen to each episode.

(05:58):
But the whole point of these quizzes is to provide education and then spur you,
you know, because you've learned something to further action.
And if you think you have a legal issue, then you go talk to a labor and employment
attorney, and they can give you proper guidance, knowing the full parameters of law.

(06:18):
Again, we're just talking about some education here, just empowering,
educating you, so then you can, you know, move forward in a more educated manner
as you confront the challenges of life.
Okay, that's all I have for today. I will see you on the next Religion Law Quiz.

(06:38):
Thank you for listening to today's episode. Remember, Religion Law Quizzes are
for educational purposes only and are not intended to be relied upon as legal advice.
If you have found this episode to be helpful, please share it and leave a review.
Until we meet again, keep being an influence for you.
Music.