Six inmates at Woodbourne Correctional Facility in New York now have the right to view the solar eclipse outdoors on April 8. This comes after they settled a lawsuit in which they challenged a statewide lockdown that would have confined them indoors during the celestial event for safety reasons. The inmates filed suit, arguing that the lockdown would have infringed upon their constitutional right to observe the eclipse in accordance with their sincerely held religious beliefs.
To be clear, Title VII - the Federal law that provides employees with the right to religious accommodations in connection with their employment - is not applicable in this situation. But this case raises interesting questions that employers could face when receiving request for religious accommodations in the workplace.
The six inmates include one Baptist, a Muslim, a Seventh-Day Adventist, two practitioners of Santeria, and an atheist. As a basis for his request, Protestant Baptist states it is vital to his faith to observe the solar eclipse and reflect on what he believes Jesus saw moments before he died on the cross. The Muslim inmate believes that performing a special prayer in view of the solar eclipse inscribed in the Quran is critical in practicing his religion. The atheist inmate states that observing the solar eclipse in the presence of others who have sincerely held religious beliefs is crucial to practicing his own faith “to celebrate common humanity.”
What is considered a “religion” is broadly defined under Title VII and is not limited to traditional, organized religions. According to the EEOC, “it also includes religious beliefs that are new, uncommon, not part of a formal church or sect, or only held by a small number of people” - as well as atheists. Assuming an employee has sufficiently demonstrated that they have a sincerely held religious belief for purposes of Title VII, an employer must provide a reasonable accommodation so the employee can practice their religion, unless doing so would result in undue hardship on the employer. After the Supreme Court’s decision regarding religious accommodations in Groff v. DeJoy last year, employers will need to show more “a substantial increased cost” to establish an undue hardship.
Employers should not take this settlement as guidance to grant all employee requests for a religious accommodation to view the eclipse. This case did not occur in the context of employment law and is not a court decision. However, when faced with similar religious accommodation requests, HR professionals should not immediately reject such requests outright before considering Title VII or similar state laws.
