The former employee’s constructive discharge claim extends from the possibility they may now have to work on a religious holy day due to the new schedule changes. The employee feels as if they were being push out of employment and forced to make a decision between their religion and work. The former employee will be required in court to prove that their “working conditions would have been so difficult or unpleasant that a reasonable person in the employee's shoes would have felt compelled to resign”. (PENA, 1983) Research into constructive discharge claims turned up a few states that have additional requirements for making a claim.
In Arizona for instance, in order to make a constructive discharge claim it is required employees “notify an appropriate representative of the employer in writing that a working condition exists that the employee believes is intolerable, that will compel the employee to resign or that constitutes a constructive discharge.” (EMPLOYMENT PROTECTION ACT, 2013) Employers must be given a chance to respond to the working conditions claimed and provided time to correct deficiencies.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects employees from discrimination due to their race, color and religion. The Act “requires employers to make a reasonable accommodation of employees’ religious observances and practices, unless doing so would cause undue hardship to the employer.” (United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, 2007) In 2007 a similar case to ours was mediated by Rena J. Comisac, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, she stated “The law requires employers to undertake reasonable efforts to accommodate employees’ religious needs”. (United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, 2007)
There is an exception group to the Act and many employers are not covered under its rules. Generally if a