Legal Question in Employment Law in New York
deceptive hiring
I was hired as a manager for a retail corporation two weeks ago. The company recruited me through an online headhunter service, however, no where in the job description did it stipulate working mandatory weekends. Two weeks later they are now telling me that I have to work weekends. I am a seventhday adventist (I worship on saturdays) and will make no compromise regarding my religion. What are my rights in this situation? do they have legal grounds to fire me if they so choose?
Furthermore, the point of the issue is that the information that am now receiving as part of the job description was never discussed (not from me or them). Since I've worked in retail before and had no qualms about this issue, I assumed (I told my boss I can't work saturdays) it would be fine.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: deceptive hiring
The religious issues involved in your situation seem to be in your favor, and against your current employer. An employer can not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, or religious denomination, and you may have a strong Civil Rights Act Title VII case.
A relevant passage from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is as follows:
SEC. 2000e-2. [Section 703]
(a) It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer - (1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or (2) to limit, segregate, or classify his employees or applicants for employment in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his
status as an employee, because of such individual's race, color, religion,
sex, or national origin.
I hope this was helpful. Please call the office at (212) 618-1830 to discuss your case further.
Re: deceptive hiring
If your employer fires you or takes other adverse action, sounds like you have a valid cause of action against it.
-- Kenneth J. Ashman; www.AshmanLawOffices.com
This communication is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship, which, under the policies of Ashman Law Offices, LLC, can only be created by execution of a formal retention agreement.