http://www.azstarnet.com/public/dnews/LA0846.html
Saturday, 18 March 2000
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) - The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit yesterday
on behalf of a Federal Express driver fired for having a beard.
The lawsuit contends FedEx violated Khaleed Abdul-Azeez's religious rights and says
the company is violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with its policy prohibiting
employees in customer-contact positions from wearing beards.
The Federal Express beard policy includes an exception for anyone who needs to have
a beard for medical reasons but not for religious reasons, the lawsuit says.
It says Abdul-Azeez requested an exemption to accommodate his Islamic beliefs, which
require men to have beards, but Federal Express refused to accommodate him.
Abdul-Azeez, hired as a delivery driver in Augusta in November 1998, was placed on
unpaid leave about 10 days later and was told to find a job in a non-customer contact
position, said Steve Tapper, an EEOC attorney in Atlanta. After Abdul-Azeez failed
to find a satisfactory position, he was fired March 1, 1999.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, seeks back pay and punitive and compensatory
damages. It also asks that the company be forced to stop religious discrimination
in employment and hiring.
Officials in FedEx Corp.'s legal and public relations offices did not return calls
seeking comment yesterday. Federal Express is the world's top package transport service,
delivering more than 3 million packages daily.
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