She asked to keep her Saturdays off. The franchise allegedly offered her one way out: a demotion
The EEOC is suing a Texas Chick-fil-A franchise operator, alleging the only accommodation offered to a Sabbath-observing manager was a demotion.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit on May 14, 2026, in the Western District of Texas against Hatch Trick, Inc., which runs the Braker Lane Chick-fil-A franchise in Austin. The complaint says the company denied Fleet Supervisor Laurel Torode a religious accommodation and ended her employment in February 2024.
Torode is a member of the United Church of God. Her Sabbath runs from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, and the EEOC says she sincerely holds a religious belief that she cannot work during that window. The complaint states she raised it during her August 2023 job interview with two restaurant directors, Faye Campbell at the Braker Lane location and Jeremy Jenkins at Parmer Lane, and asked for an accommodation then.
For roughly five months, the arrangement held. From September 2023 until approximately February 2024, the complaint says, the company did not schedule her on Saturdays and did not voice any concerns about it.
Then the company changed course. In early February 2024, according to the EEOC, it told her she would need to start working Saturdays, including during her Sabbath hours. Torode put in a written accommodation request.
On or about February 9, 2024, she met with Campbell and Jenkins. The...
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