Companies that fail to respect their employees’ religious objections can be subject to hefty fines.
That’s the lesson a coal mine in West Virginia learned last month after a federal jury ordered that they pay a former employee $150,000 after he refused to use a biometric scanner because he believed it would imprint him with a sign of the Devil.
The Hand Scanner and the Mark of the Beast
Beverly R. Butcher Jr. was employed by Consol Energy at its coal mine in Mannington, West Virginia. When the company began using biometric hand scanners to track worker attendance, Butcher — an evangelical Christian — refused to comply because he feared the scanner would imprint him with the “Mark of the Beast” referenced in the Bible’s Book of Revelation.
Company officials countered by presenting Butcher with a letter from the scanner’s manufacturer — Recognition Systems Inc., of Campbell, California — that “discussed the vendor’s interpretation of Chapter 13, Verse 16 of the Book of Revelation contained in the Bible. (The company) pointed out that the text of that verse references the Mark of the Beast only on the right hand and forehead and suggests that persons with concerns about taking the Mark of the Best ‘be enrolled’ with their left hand and palm facing up,” according to Butcher’s lawsuit.
Compromise Offer Declined
Butcher offered to keep a written record of his hours or to check in with his supervisor at the beginning and end of his shifts, but the company refused the compromise, which resulted in his early retirement, Butcher claimed.
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission represented Butcher in the case, which was heard in the federal court house in Clarksburg, West Virginia. The agency said it also will seek a permanent injunction against Consol Energy to prevent them from engaging in further religious discrimination, according to published reports.
Federal Jury Sides with Plaintiff
The federal jury agreed that Butcher’s religious beliefs were sincere and that they conflicted with his employer’s requirement that he use the biometric hand scanners. They further found that the company failed to provide “reasonable accommodation” for Butcher’s beliefs, even though it would not have been an undue hardship for the company to do so.
It awarded Butcher $150,000 for “salary, pension and court costs”. The judge in the case will determine whether Butcher is also due any back pay or other compensation for future pay.
Consol Energy has already announced that it is appealing the ruling.
Religious Discrimination Not Allowed
Under federal law, companies are not allowed to discriminate on the basis of religion, sex, race or sexual orientation. If an employee complains that the their employers are violating their sincerely held religious beliefs, the company is required to find a reasonable compromise unless such an accommodation would cause the company undue hardship.
For example, companies with grooming standards — such as requiring male employees to keep their hair trimmed to a certain length — have made exceptions for workers with religious beliefs that don’t allow them to cut their hair.