Legal Question in Employment Law in Florida

Discrimination for paid religious holidays

I am employed by a law firm as a secretary. We are being told that the law firm is considering making a new employment policy wherein clerical employees of the Jewish faith will now be PAID for and given off two additional holidays (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) while non-Jewish clerical employees will be required to work those days. Am I as a Christian being discriminated against because I am now receiving two less paid holidays than any of our Jewish clerical employees? If so, is there any action I am able to take in the State of Florida?


Asked on 10/08/03, 8:54 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Keith Stern Shavitz Law Group

Re: Discrimination for paid religious holidays

Your employer's policy is not illegal because you do not have a religious reason to need those two (2) days off, let those two (2) days off with pay. In a similar regard, because non-Jewish employees typically need time off from work on Christmas and other non-Jewish holidays, it is not unlawful to grant time off to those non-Jewish employees observing those holidays, nor is it illegal to pay them for that time off. Moreover, because Christmas and certain other non-Jewish holidays are, in the United States, days on which most businesses close completely, there is no unlawful conduct if an employer chooses not to close completely on a Jewish holiday while providing Jewish employees with essentially the same benefit on Jewish holidays as is afforded to non-Jewish employees

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Answered on 10/08/03, 12:00 pm


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