Compliance Stuff

KEY TAKEAWAYS: A recent federal court case provides guidance on how to address an employee’s request for an accommodation based upon a sincerely held religious belief Employers must offer reasonable accommodations for the sincerely held religious beliefs of employees who seek exemptions from certain mandates and policies In addressing the request for a reasonable accommodation, employers should not address the validity or plausibility of the employee’s belief Employers may consider if the sincerely held religious belief is based upon secular beliefs by evaluating how the employee frames their request, but still, employers should do so cautiously A recent federal court case heard by Chief Judge Matthew Brann for the Middle District of Pennsylvania provides employers with guidance on how to address an employee’s request for an accommodation based upon a sincerely held religious belief. In  Rackovan v. The Pennsylvania State University , the employee sought to be exempted from the uni...

At a Glance The Second Circuit clarifies an employee’s burden is minimal, but not non-existent, to establish the employee held a sincere religious belief in conflict with an employer’s policy. The EEOC provides a framework for employers in determining whether a proposed accommodation is “reasonable” and what amounts to an undue hardship. Since vaccines became available in response to COVID-19, courts have dealt with an onslaught of litigation involving religious accommodation in the workplace. Most recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit weighed in on when an employee’s accommodation request to be exempt from a vaccination requirement amounts to a sincerely held religious belief under Title VII. The case is  Gardner-Alfred v. Federal Reserve Bank of New York , 143 F.4th 51 (2d Cir. 2025).  The EEOC also recently weighed in with opinions that emphasize that an employer must face a significant hardship before it can show that the religious accommodation reque...