The EEOC brought this suit in December 1996 in U.S. District Court, District of Puerto Rico, against the AAA (Autoridad de Acueductos y Alcantarillados, or the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority), Ondeo de Puerto Rico, a private water and sanitation company, and the UIA (Union Independiente Autentica de la AAA) with whom the AAA had a collective bargaining agreement. The suit alleged that the defendants violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act by requiring an employee who was a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church to join the union, even though doing so was contrary to his religious beliefs.

The EEOC moved for summary judgment on the issue of liability, and the UIA filed a cross motion for summary judgment. In December 1998, the district court ruled in favor of the EEOC, holding that the UIA had not adequately accommodated the employee. E.E.O.C. v. UIA, 30 F.Supp.2d 217 (D.Puerto Rico 1998). The UIA appealed, and the Court of Appeals reversed the district court, on the grounds that it was a disputed issue of fact whether the employee had a sincerely held, bona fide religious belief that prevented him from joining the union. E.E.O.C. v. UIA, 279 F.3d 49 (1st Cir. 2002).

After remand to district court, the parties settled, and a consent decree was entered in June 2003. The defendants agreed to reinstate the employee without requiring him to join the union, and the UIA agreed to provide him with $75,000 in back pay. The defendants also promised to revise their EEO policy, to provide EEO training for managers, and to implement procedures for requesting religious accommodations.

Jason Chester - 08/04/2008


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