OutSolve’s EEO colleague, Toni Ahl, is an occasional contributor to our blog. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to Toni and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of OutSolve or its employees. 

A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the accommodation of religious beliefs of employees, except when it would impose an “undue hardship on the employer’s business,” brings Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the forefront. The case of Groff v. Dejoy highlights the court’s definitions of an employer’s burden when it comes to determining reasonable accommodation. 

When we talk about reasonable accommodation in relation to statutes enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), we may be talking about charges filed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, (ADAAA) and now the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). All three of these statutes refer to reasonable accommodation and granting it (unless doing so would cause an undue hardship for the employer). 

Under Title VII, an employer must accommodate an employee or prospective employee’s religious observance or practice unless the employer demonstrates the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer’s business. Since a Supreme Court case in 1977, Trans World Airlines v. Hardison, 432 U.S. 63 (1977), many lower courts have held that employers could deny a requested religious accommodation if providing it would result in “more than a de minimis cost.” For years, critics have argued that the de minimis cost test does not appear anywhere in the language of Title VII. 

The specific issue in the Hardison case was whether Trans World Airlines (TWA) had to accommodate an employee’s observance of the Sabbath on Saturdays in a department that operated 24 hours a day throughout the year in connection with a large airplane maintenance and overhaul base. The Supreme Court reasoned that requiring TWA to incur additional costs to accommodate an employee’s religious observance would result in unequal treatment of employees on the basis of their religion. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled that requiring TWA to bear more than a de minimis cost to give Hardison Saturdays off constituted an undue hardship under Title VII.  

Last week, the Supreme Court issued a opinion about a case filed by a postal service employee, Groff v. Dejoy, about reasonable accommodation under Title VII based on religion. Although remanding the case of the postal worker, the opinion did set out how undue hardship should be determined by an employer in cases alleging denial of reasonable accommodation because of religion. In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court said federal law requires an employer to show that “the burden of granting an accommodation would result in substantial increased costs in relation to the conduct of its particular business.”  

Both the ADAAA and PWFA state employees as well as perspective employees should be provided reasonable accommodation if they are determined to be qualified individuals. Employers have an affirmative defense to deny reasonable accommodation if they can establish reasonable accommodation would result in an undue hardship. Factors considered by employers to determine undue hardship in furnishing reasonable accommodation are:

• the nature of the accommodation;
• the net cost of the accommodation; the overall resources of the employer;
• and the impact of the accommodation on the employer’s operation.

One point to remember about reasonable accommodation is that the employer can offer an accommodation other than the one the employee requested as long as it is effective. And, in some cases, several accommodations may be tried before the correct and effective accommodation is found. It is important the employer make a good faith effort to determine the reasonable accommodation.

Stay tuned for additional guidance on reasonable accommodation and undue hardship. If you have questions, feel free to contact Toni Ahl at (502) 553-7648 or eeoadvantage@gmail.com.