Refused a job for her clothes? Now this fast-food chain must pay her nearly $50K

A Georgia location of the popular sports bar chain, Buffalo Wild Wings, got itself into some hot sauce when it was accused of refusing to hire a woman based on clothing restrictions her religion imposes. Its parent company, BWW Resources, LLC, has agreed to pay the woman $47,500 to settle a lawsuit for violating Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Additionally, the restaurant chain must regularly report to the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on requests for religious accommodations from job applicants and the location must provide “specialized training” to managers, supervisors and human resources personnel.

Sports bar sued for skirting discrimination laws

The EEOC filed the lawsuit against Buffalo Wild Wings last year after it came to their attention that a location in Douglasville denied a woman a server position because of the clothing restrictions of her religion. The unnamed woman is a Pentecostal Christian who sincerely holds the beliefs and practices of the religion of Free Holiness according to the complaint.

The woman was introduced to the general manager of the Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant by her daughter, who is a server at the location, during a ‘Friendsgiving’ event in November 2022. The daughter explained that her mother was interested in working as a server and had previous experience.

According to the complaint, she explained at the time that her mother was required to wear long skirts, even while working, as part of her religion. The general manager said that wouldn’t be a problem and encouraged her mother to apply. However, she also allegedly mocked the woman’s religion before exiting the conversation, states the complaint according to The Miami Herald.

The woman applied for a serving position but she never heard back from the restaurant. When the daughter enquired about her mother’s application, she was told by the assistant manager that the general manager wouldn’t hire her “because of her religious needs.”

The assistant manager added: “What sports bar have you seen that had servers wearing skirts?”

During the two months following the woman submitting her application, the Douglasville Buffalo Wild Wings location hired five servers.

What is Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act?

Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. The legislation says that, absent undue hardship, employers cannot refuse to hire a job candidate to avoid accommodating them, in this case a religious practice.

Darrell Graham, the director of the EEOC’s Atlanta office said in a statement: “Job applicants have the right to pursue employment without fear of compromising their religious practices, so long as those practices do not cause an undue hardship on prospective employers.”

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