Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores
Background
In 2008, Samantha Elauf, then aged 17, sought employment at an Abercrombie & Fitch store located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At the time of her interview, she wore a hijab (headscarf) but did not disclose the reason for wearing it.[1] Heather Cooke, the interviewer, found Elauf to be a strong candidate yet expressed concern regarding her headscarf.[2] Cooke informed the store manager that she believed Elauf’s scarf was worn for religious purposes; however, the manager replied that the store policy prohibited employees from wearing hats and consequently declined to hire her.[3]
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against Abercrombie & Fitch in 2009 on behalf of Elauf.[4] This initiated legal proceedings in federal district court that ultimately awarded Elauf $20,000 in damages.[5][6] Nevertheless, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned this ruling, siding with Abercrombie & Fitch on the grounds that Elauf had not explicitly informed the employer of her need for religious accommodation.[7][6]
Opinion of the Court
On June 1, 2015, the Supreme Court decided in an 8–1 vote in favor of Elauf. The Court's opinion, authored by Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, determined that Elauf was not required to explicitly ask for an accommodation to receive protection under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which forbids religious discrimination in employment decisions.
Justice Samuel Alito issued a concurring opinion agreeing with the judgment, emphasizing that Abercrombie's awareness of Elauf's religious observance provided sufficient basis for ruling against the company. Justice Clarence Thomas partially concurred and partially dissented. While Thomas agreed with the majority’s view that Title VII guards against "intentional discrimination" targeting a specific religion, he believed Abercrombie’s dress code was a neutral policy applied uniformly to all applicants and therefore did not constitute intentional religious discrimination. This verdict reinstated the lawsuit Elauf had initiated against Abercrombie & Fitch.
References
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namednytimes - ↑ "US Supreme Court appears in favour of headscarf claim". BBC News. 25 February 2015. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ Glenza, Jessica (2 October 2014). "Supreme court to rule on Abercrombie & Fitch 'religious bias' over hijab". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ Gregory, Sean (23 September 2009). "Abercrombie Faces a Muslim-Headscarf Lawsuit". Time. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ Hurley, Lawrence (1 June 2015). "U.S. top court backs Muslim woman denied job over head scarf". Reuters. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Naylor, Brian (1 June 2015). "Supreme Court Rules For Woman Denied Abercrombie & Fitch Job Over Headscarf". NPR. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ Template:Cite court