A Muslim man who objected to rules requiring him to get rid of his beard if he wanted to become a driver for UPS Inc. was told by a UPS official that “God would understand” if he shaved, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner said in a lawsuit filed Wednesday against the shipping company.
The lawsuit in federal court in Brooklyn alleges that the man was one of several employees—including Rastafarians in Florida—who were victims of religious discrimination in the past decade by the nation’s largest package delivery company. The EEOC wants the court to force the company to comply with Civil Rights Act protections and to award the plaintiffs back pay and unspecified damages.
