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Religious Dress vs Safety

diaramdiaram 1 Post
in HR & Employment Law Vote Up0Vote Down
I have associates that work in a manufacturing facility and a few associates want to wear their religious clothes which are very loose. Our policy says :

Don't wear loose clothing that could bevome entangled in rotating machinery
wearing jewlry is not allowed while working in the plant

Is this enough to keep me from any legal issues?

Thanks!
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Comments

  • 2 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • NaeNae55NaeNae55 3,243 Posts
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    As long as their religious garb is truly a safety issue, you can deny the request. Safety issues are an exception to religious discrimination. Be very sure though. It is easy to fall into a trap of deciding a group of items aren't safe, when actually one or two of them meet safety standards.
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  • joanniejoannie 2,294 Posts
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    :welcome: Welcome to the forum.

    I did a quick search on the OSHA website. The only two religious exemption items I was able to find were hard hats and respirators, which would lead me to believe, as Nae said, if the manner of dress is truly a safety hazard, you would be justified in prohibiting it in certain areas.
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