DURHAM , N.C. – Measurement, Inc., a Durham-based educational company, allegedly discriminated against a former employee by failing to accommodate her religious beliefs and then discharging her because of her religion, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit.
According to the EEOC’s complaint, Jacqueline Dukes, who worked as a team leader in the scanning department at the company's Durham facility, is a member of a Christian denomination called Children of Yisrael. As such, Dukes observes her Sabbath from sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday. The complaint alleges that in September 2008, Measurement told Dukes that starting in October, she would have to work on Saturdays on a new project. Dukes, who had previously informed the company that she could not work Saturdays because of her Sabbath, reminded Measurement officials that she observed her Sabbath on Saturday, and therefore could not work on Saturdays as requested. Around October 24, 2008, Measurement discharged Dukes.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires employers to attempt to make reasonable accommodations to sincerely held religious beliefs of employees as long as this poses no undue hardship. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, Durham Division (EEOC v. Measurement, Inc., Civil Action No. 1:10-cv-00623 ) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC seeks back pay, reinstatement, compensatory damages and punitive damages for Dukes, as well as injunctive relief.
Measurement, Inc., headquartered in Durham, North Carolina is a full-service educational company that provides achievement tests and scoring services for state and local departments of education as well as private businesses. It has 13 offices in nine states and employs over 300 full-time employees and over 3,000 seasonal employees.
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