Michigan Hospital Settles With EEOC for Denying Religious Exemption

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI – The Michigan-based hospital Trinity Health Grand Rapids, formerly known as Mercy Health St. Mary’s, recently agreed in a consent decree to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which alleged the hospital improperly denied a job applicant’s request for a religious exemption to the flu shot. Trinity Health has since discontinued its mandatory flu shot policy and agreed in the settlement to pay $50,000 in damages. As part of the settlement, the hospital must train its senior leaders and human resources employees on Title VII’s religious protections.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, even though the hospital’s former flu shot policy allowed for a religious exemption, the hospital determined the applicant’s articulated religious beliefs were “insufficient” to grant the exemption and denied it without an explanation. Trinity Health, which had made a conditional job offer to the applicant, then rescinded that job offer and did not give the applicant an opportunity to address the concerns with his request. The lawsuit alleged the hospital violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and committed religious discrimination by “arbitrarily” denying the exemption with “reckless indifference” to the applicant’s protected rights.

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