The Michigan Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations is accusing McDonald’s of religious and ethnic discrimination.
CAIR has filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint against a McDonald’s Restaurant in Rochester Hills. The complaint was filed on behalf of a Muslim woman who applied for a job at the restaurant.
During the interview, she says that one of the restaurant managers informed her that wearing an Islamic head scarf, or hijab, would be a problem.
In 2008, the EEOC issued new guidelines on accommodating religious beliefs and practices in the workplace.
The guidelines offer protection for workers who wear religious attire such as a headscarf.
“We urge McDonald’s to take immediate action to bring its hiring policies into compliance with long-established legal guidelines on reasonable religious accommodation in the workplace,” said CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid.
Walid noted that in 2008, CAIR-MI raised concerns with McDonald’s regarding two similar incidents in which Muslim women alleged being denied employment because of hijab.
CAIR, America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization, offers a booklet called “An Employer’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices” to help corporate managers gain a better understanding of Islam and Muslims. Download/view it HERE (.pdf format).