We have the freedom to belong to a particular religion and the ability to change our religious affiliation if we so desire. Federal and New Jersey anti-discrimination laws are intended to protect a person’s private choice from being the subject of hostile or unfair action in the workplace. Unfortunately, the law’s deterrent effect is not always enough to prevent workplace discrimination, but the remedies provided for by the law can offer victims a sense of justice.

A jury recently awarded $5 million to a former employee of Southwestern Bell/AT&T, who had filed a lawsuit claiming that she was the victim of repeated religious discrimination. The woman had been working in the company’s fiber optics department for over half a decade and had received public recognition for her good job performance. But other workers’ attitudes towards her changed dramatically when she converted to Islam during her employment there.

From that point on, she was the target of nearly daily discrimination by fellow employees. The woman wore a hijab, which is a head covering used to express modesty. But according to court documents, co-workers derided her as a “towelhead.” She found excerpts from the Bible placed on her desk, and other employees asked if she was planning on destroying the building.

When internal complaints failed to achieve results, she brought the conduct to the attention of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which began to look into the matter. When other workers discovered that she had involved the EEOC, some expressed their displeasure to her. In one instance, her superior tore her hijab from her head during a meeting.

She asked AT&T to move her or her superior to another department, but the company took no action. The toll of repeated religious discrimination kept her from coming into work, until AT&T fired her. AT&T has announced its intent to appeal the verdict.

Source: Chicago Tribune, “Muslim woman gets huge award in workplace discrimination case,” Mara Rose Williams, May 5, 2012.