Team VADA eViews
The Digital Newsletter of Your Virginia Automobile Dealers Association
July 2008
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Fourth Circuit has issued ruling on weekend work hours
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Court rules that civil rights law requires “reasonable” accommodations, but not total accommodations
The issue of Saturday and Sunday work hours is a major one for car dealers. Saturday is probably the biggest sale day of the week, and Sunday is also an important day for many dealers. Dealers are often faced with claims by employees that they are prohibited from working Saturdays or Sundays. A recent decision by the United States District Court for the Fourth Circuit (the federal Circuit that covers Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia) provides some guidance.
In the suit, a North Carolina lab technician sued his employer for refusing to accommodate his request to not work on Saturday for religious reasons. The technician was first employed in 1994. In 2001 he joined the Living Church of God which bars members from working on many holy days, including Saturdays. As a result of reductions in force and a collective bargaining agreement providing preference for work days to those with seniority, the technician was required to work most Saturdays. The employer gave certain accommodations such as leave and the ability to swap shifts. However, after a number of months, the technician was out of leave, and he was unable to further swap shifts. He was required to report to work on the holy days.
The EEOC took the position that the employer had an absolute duty to avoid requiring the technician from working on holy days.
A federal trial court judge ruled that accommodating the technician’s religious needs created an undue burden for the employer. The court of appeals agreed, finding that civil rights law required only “reasonable” accommodations from employers, not total accommodation.
The appellate court judges noted that religion in the work place must coexist with such “intensely secular” arrangements as collective bargaining agreements and pressures of the market place. Consequently, while employers must make a reasonable accommodation for the religious needs of their workers, a total prohibition of work on Saturdays or Sundays may not be a reasonable accommodation if that will cause an undue burden for the business and its other employees.