In a landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has sided with a Pennsylvania postal worker in a case that could reshape how employers handle requests for religious accommodations in the workplace.
The case centered around Gerald Groff, a Christian mail carrier who argued that the U.S. Postal Service violated his rights when it required him to deliver Amazon packages on Sundays — a day he considers sacred and observes as the Sabbath.
Groff, represented by attorney Aaron Streett, asked the Court to overturn a decades-old precedent that made it easier for companies to deny religious accommodations.
A Shift From the 1977 Standard
For nearly 50 years, businesses relied on a 1977 Supreme Court ruling in Trans World Airlines v. Hardison, which allowed employers to reject religious accommodations if they created “more than a de minimis cost” for the business.
