Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, EEOC NEWS—Religious accommodation and sex-based hiring practices targeted, (May 20, 2026)

By George Basharis, J.D.

Employers are accused of denying religious accommodations, excluding female truck drivers from employment, and unlawfully terminating workers who sought exemptions from COVID-19 vaccine mandates, with nearly $10 million in monetary relief secured or pursued.

The EEOC has separately announced a new religious discrimination lawsuit against a Texas-based Chick-fil-A franchise operator and two major settlements resolving allegations of sex discrimination and unlawful denials of religious and disability accommodations. The cases allege violations of Title VII and the ADA, with employers agreeing to pay or facing claims totaling nearly $9.75 million in monetary relief.

Sabbath accommodation. Chick-fil-A franchisee Hatch Trick, Inc. violated Title VII by refusing to accommodate an employee’s request not to work Saturdays in observance of her Sabbath and then terminating her employment, according to a lawsuit filed by the EEOC in federal court in Texas. According to the agency, the employee managed delivery drivers at one of the company’s Austin-area restaurants and belonged to the United Church of God denomination, which observes a Saturday Sabbath. The EEOC alleged that she disclosed her need for Saturdays off during the hiring process and that the company initially honored the arrangement for several months before requiring her to work Saturdays.

The lawsuit further alleges that the employee repeatedly sought accommodation and proposed alternatives that would have allowed her to remain in her management role while observing her Sabbath. The company allegedly rejected those proposals and instead told her she would need to accept a lower-paying delivery driver position with reduced benefits and fewer hours. When she declined the reassignment, the company terminated her employment, according to the EEOC.

“The duty under federal law to provide reasonable accommodation of religion reflects an acknowledgement by our society of the importance of faith in workers’ everyday lives and an abiding respect for those who observe religious practices as an expression of that faith,” acting EEOC Dallas Regional Attorney Ronald L. Phillips said in a statement. “Just as adherence to the dictates of one’s own conscience is not optional, so too an employer’s duty under Title VII is obligatory, and the EEOC stands ready to enforce that legal duty.” EEOC San Antonio Field Office Director Norma Guzman added that employers must provide reasonable accommodations for sincerely held religious beliefs and that “no employee’s livelihood should come at the expense of their religious convictions.”

The EEOC filed the case in the Western District of Texas; the case is No. 1:26-cv-01275.

Sex-based hiring practices. In a separate matter, Central Transport, LLC agreed to pay $5.5 million to resolve a nationwide sex discrimination lawsuit alleging that the trucking company systematically refused to hire qualified female truck drivers for at least a decade. The EEOC alleged that Central Transport repeatedly selected male applicants over qualified women, including instances in which less-qualified male drivers allegedly received positions instead. The agency further claimed that female applicants were subjected to different hiring procedures and that some women witnessed company personnel discarding their applications at truck terminals.

According to the EEOC, some terminals, including locations in Phoenix and El Paso, allegedly hired no female truck drivers for years despite receiving applications from women. The suit also alleged that a dispatcher at a Dunbar, West Virginia terminal told a female applicant that corporate offices had instructed him not to hire female truck drivers. The agency said it received reports of alleged discrimination at terminals in Georgia, Tennessee, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, West Virginia, Mississippi, Ohio, Arizona, and Oregon. “Unfortunately, sex discrimination in hiring continues to be a problem in some industries,” EEOC Phoenix Regional Attorney Mary Jo O’Neill said in a statement announcing the settlement. “It is illegal for employers to refuse to hire women because of their sex.”

Under the consent decree, Central Transport must provide monetary relief to four original complainants and a class of female applicants who allegedly were denied employment because of their sex. The decree also requires the company to retain an outside consultant to review hiring practices, conduct anti-discrimination and recordkeeping training, appoint a compliance monitor, and implement measures intended to ensure equal hiring opportunities going forward.

The EEOC filed the case in the District of Arizona; the case is No. 2:26-cv-02201-JJT.

COVID-19 vaccine mandate settlement. Meanwhile, A G Equipment Company agreed to pay $4.25 million to resolve allegations that it unlawfully denied religious and disability accommodations in connection with a COVID-19 vaccination mandate imposed during 2021. According to the EEOC, the Oklahoma-based compressor packaging manufacturer implemented a policy requiring all employees to receive COVID-19 vaccinations and informed workers that no exemptions would be permitted. Several employees requested religious accommodations, and one worker submitted a physician’s note seeking a medical exemption due to a health condition. The EEOC alleged that the company refused to engage in any discussion regarding accommodation requests and terminated all employees who failed to provide proof of vaccination in October 2021.

“When these workers asked for a simple religious accommodation, the company didn’t pause to listen or even consider the impact,” EEOC trial attorney Patrick J. Holman said in a statement. “It fired every one of them outright, without a conversation and without any real inquiry into whether granting an accommodation would have caused the business any hardship at all.” EEOC Chair Andrea R. Lucas added that the pandemic did not exempt employers from compliance with Title VII and the ADA and said the agency would continue pursuing vaccine mandate-related accommodation claims where appropriate.

In addition to the monetary relief for 43 workers, the three-year consent decree prohibits future discrimination based on religion or disability and requires A G Equipment to train managers on Title VII and ADA compliance, notify employees of their accommodation rights, and report future accommodation requests to the EEOC.

The EEOC filed the action in the Northern District of Oklahoma; the case is No. 24-cv-00403-SEH.

Companies: A G Equipment Company; Central Transport, LLC; Hatch Trick, Inc.; Chick-fil-A

News: AgencyNews Discrimination ReligiousDiscrimination RemediesDamages SexDiscrimination LitigationNewsTrends DisabilityDiscrimination