In a recent decision in the case Bergin v. New York State Unified Court System, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals explicitly confirmed a new three-part test for determining whether a plaintiff has stated a prima facie case for failure to accommodate a religious belief or practice under Title VII. The new test zeroes in on whether the employer acted out of a desire to avoid providing a religious accommodation, rather than simply whether the employer had knowledge of the employee’s religious belief.
The Old Test’s Focus on Employer Knowledge
For decades, the Second Circuit has used the three-part test from cases such as Knight v. Conn. Dep’t of Pub. Health to determine whether a plaintiff has stated a claim for failure to accommodate. This old test focused on whether the employer had knowledge of the employee’s sincerely held religious belief. Specifically, courts would consider whether: (1) the plaintiff had a bona fide religious belief conflicting with a work requirement; (2) the plaintiff informed the employer of that belief; and (3) the plaintiff suffered discipline for noncompliance.
The New Test’s Focus on Employer Motive
In Bergin, however, the Second Circuit considered the Supreme Court’s decision in EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc. and confirmed that the Abercrombie decision abrogates decades of precedent by refocusing the analysis of whether the desire to avoid providing a religious accommodation motivated the employer’s decision making. The new...
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