EEOC Sues AutoZone On Behalf of Sikh Employee

The EEOC announced yesterday that it has filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Massachusetts against AutoZone, Inc. on behalf of a Sikh employee.  The suit alleges that AutoZone refused to allow employee Frank Mahoney-Burroughs wear a turban and kara (religious bracelet). The suit also alleges a hostile work environment in which Mahoney-Burroughs' manager asked him if he was a terrorist and had joined al-Qaeda, and in which Auto Zone failed to intervene when customers made terrorist jokes and referred to Mahoney-Burroughs as Bin-Laden. The suit alleges that Mahoney-Burroughs was fired because of his religion and in retaliation for complaining about discrimination.