Generac Power Systems has agreed to resolve a charge involving an employee’s request for a religious accommodation related to workplace pronoun usage, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced.
As part of the settlement, Generac will provide monetary relief, update its religious accommodation policies, and conduct training.
The employee asserted that using pronouns inconsistent with a coworker’s biological sex conflicted with his sincerely held religious beliefs. The agency found reasonable cause to believe that the company violated Title VII by denying the request without fully engaging in the accommodation process.
This settlement does not establish that employers must grant any particular accommodation request involving pronoun usage, nor does it require employers to adopt any specific pronoun policy. Instead, it underscores the importance of evaluating religious accommodation requests on an individual basis and engaging in a meaningful dialogue before reaching a decision. It also highlights the EEOC’s focus on protecting religious beliefs concerning sex and gender.
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