Religious Discrimination

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of l964 prohibits employers from discriminating against individuals - in hiring, firing, and other terms and conditions of employment - because of their religion. Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodation for the religious practices of an employee or prospective employee, unless doing so would create an undue hardship upon the employer. It is the policy of Appalachian to prohibit discrimination of students based on religion or creed. This form of discrimination may be inadvertent or intentional, and it may be obvious or subtle; regardless, it is unacceptable at Appalachian and, in many cases, it is against the law.

Definitions of Religion:

The EEOC defines religious as the "nature of a practice or belief." Further, the Code of Federal Regulations elaborates, "In most cases whether or not a practice or belief is religious is not at issue. However, in those cases in which the issue does exist, the Commission will define religious practices to include moral or ethical beliefs as to what is right and wrong which are sincerely held with the strength of traditional religious views."

The North Carolina Office of State Personnel (link to protected classes) defines religion as, "The expression of one's beliefs in and/or reverence for a superhuman power recognized as the creator and/or governor of the universe; or lack thereof."

Examples of religious discrimination may include:

A supervisor refuses to make a work schedule change for an employee to accommodate his religious beliefs even when the schedule alteration would not impose an undue hardship on the work unit.
A professor imposes her religious beliefs on students.
An administrator refuses to hire individuals of a certain religion because of that administrator's religious beliefs or practices.
An employer permits employees to put down, demean, and ridicule an employee because of his/her religious beliefs or practices.

It is also unlawful to retaliate against an individual for opposing employment practices that discriminate based on religion or for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or litigation under Title VII.

ASU Policies and Procedures Related to Religious Discrimination