A Tulsa federal judge ruled Wednesday in favor of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in its lawsuit against Abercrombie & Fitch for not hiring a Muslim teenager who wore a religiously mandated headscarf.
U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell found that the company did not show that it would have sustained any significant “undue hardship” if it had accommodated the religious beliefs of Samantha Elauf, who in June 2008 applied to work in a sales position at the Abercrombie Kids store in Tulsa’s Woodland Hills Mall.
Frizzell’s decision means a jury will determine what, if any, damages should be awarded. The trial is tentatively scheduled to start July 18.
Update: See “Oklahoman gets $20,000 in lawsuit against retailer”, Associated Press, 21 July 2013