575 U.S. 768 (2015)
The Supreme Court case of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc.
Does an employer violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by making employment decisions based on an applicant's religious practice without specific knowledge but with only fear or assumption of the religious practice?
Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, an employer cannot make employment decisions based on an applicant's religious observance or practice, unless it can demonstrate that it is unable to reasonably accommodate an employee's religious observance or practice without undue hardship on the conduct of its business.
The Supreme Court held that the employer's duty not to discriminate based on religious practice under Title VII is not limited to cases where the employer has actual knowledge of a need for accommodation; rather, if an applicant's or employee's need for accommodation was a motivating factor in employer's decision, it violates Title VII.
This case is pivotal for several reasons. It underscores the broader interpretation of what constitutes religious discrimination under Title VII, emphasizing a focus on discriminatory motives rather than mere knowledge of an applicant's religious practices. It places an important duty on employers to ensure that employment policies accommodate religious practices if they are central to an employee's faith, solidifying employees' rights to religious expression in the workplace without the need to prove explicit discrimination.