In
Dockery v. Maryville Academy, (ND IL, March 29, 2019), an Illinois federal district court dismissed an employee's Title VII failure to accommodate and religious discrimination claims. Plaintiff, a youth care worker at a child welfare agency, wanted Fridays and Saturdays off for religious reasons. According to the court:
It remains unclear to the Court what religion Plaintiff claims to belong. Some evidence indicates that Plaintiff is Jewish. Plaintiff identified himself as a “Jew” on his employee information sheet. Plaintiff refereed to his culture as Judaism during his deposition. Yet Plaintiff also testified that his culture believes that Jesus Christ is the savior.... Still, the Court recognizes that “sincerity rather than orthodoxy is the touchstone” for determining whether a belief is sincerely held.
The court concluded however:
Defendant had an objective basis for questioning whether Plaintiff sincerely believed that it was against his religion to work during the sabbath. Plaintiff’s failure to provide more information to his employer as requested is grounds for granting summary judgment.
