US Clothing Giant Faces Religious Discrimination Lawsuit

September 17, 2009

US clothing giant Abercrombie & Fitch is facing religious discrimination lawsuit for allegedly not hiring a Muslim teenager for wearing hijab which is a religious head cover.

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a federal agency that enforces anti-discriminatory laws in employment, filed the lawsuit against the clothing store before a District Court in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

In a court-affidavit, Samantha Elauf, 17, applied to Abercrombie Kids in Woodland Hills Mall as a salesperson in June 2008. The store manager allegedly told her that the headscarf was not appropriate with the store’s image.

The store did not accommodate Elauf’s religious beliefs by making an exception to its “Look Policy”, the lawsuit added.

According to media reports, Elauf reported the incident to the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Oklahoma which assisted her in filing a complaint before EEOC’s local office.

In a press release, EEOC said that employers are legally liable, cited in the Civil Rights Act, to reasonably accommodate any religious practice of workers unless doing this will create “undue” hardship to the company.

“It is unlawful for any employer to treat applicants or employees with unfairness just because of their religion”, EEOC added.

In 2004, Abercrombie & Fitch paid $50 million settlement over discrimination lawsuit for its unfair labor practices that target women and members of ethnic minorities.