EEOC Sues Oklahoma Company for Religious and Disability Discrimination – Newstalk KZRG

TULSA, Okla. – AG Equipment Company, a Broken Arrow, Okla., compressor packaging manufacturer, violated federal law when it fired 10 employees for not receiving the COVID-19 vaccination because of their religious beliefs or medical restrictions, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of the US (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed on August 30

According to the EEOC lawsuit, in the fall of 2021, AG Equipment mandated that all employees receive a COVID-19 vaccination and told workers that no exceptions would be allowed for any reason. However, 10 employees submitted written applications seeking exemptions based on their religious beliefs or medical conditions. The company declined to discuss the employees’ requests or explore possible accommodations and fired the 10 people on October 15, 2021, along with 77 other unvaccinated workers.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibit discrimination based on religion and disability. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. AG Equipment Company, Case No. 24-cv-00403-CDL) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

“Although the law does not require employers to grant every request for a religious or disability accommodation, they generally must do so when the accommodation can be reasonably and safely provided,” said Andrea G. Baran, attorney regional for the district of St. Louis of the EEOC. “Title VII requires employers to take workers’ religious beliefs seriously and to communicate with employees to determine whether effective reasonable accommodations are available.”

David Davis, director of the St. Louis of the EEOC, said, “Workers are not required to set aside their religious beliefs when they walk in the door to the workplace. Employers must work with employees when accommodations are requested and explore whether adjustments are possible and reasonable.”

For more information on religious and disability discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/religious-discrimination and https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc-disability resources.

The St. Louis District Office of the EEOC has jurisdiction over Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and part of southern Illinois.