Question

KellyMarie Griffin works for the City of Portland, Oregon, as a clerical employee in the Parks and Recreation Department. She complains of conflict with her coworkers. In particular, Therea Lareau, the "lead" clerical employee at the same location, has made comments that are derogatory about or offensive to Griffin’s Christian faith. Ms. Lareau has referred to Griffin as "a wacko" because of her beliefs and, on at least one occasion, told Griffin that God was "a figment of [her] imagin[ation]" and that Griffin was "praying to something that didn’t exist." Griffin also complains that many of her coworkers frequently page 51-42use "God" and "Jesus Christ" as swear words, which she finds offensive due to her religious beliefs. Griffin, however, admits that when she has informed her coworkers about how the swearing offends her, they have made efforts to avoid doing so in her presence—even Lareau. Despite that, things have deteriorated. Recently, Griffin and Lareau found themselves in a particularly tense encounter. While another coworker was gathering her things to leave for lunch, Griffin sneezed loudly. This apparently startled the coworker, because she exclaimed, "Jesus Christ!" The coworker then left for lunch. The exclamation offended Griffin, so she commented to Lareau, the only other clerical worker in the office at the time, "I said that I objected to profanity of God’s name. I said that this type of language is not professional, I find it personally distasteful, and it is in violation of my religious convictions. I said if it didn’t stop, I would make a complaint with management." Lareau responded in a loud, angry voice, "I’m sick of your Christian attitude, your Christian [expletive] all over your desk, and your Christian [expletive] all over the place." She further accused Griffin of using her Christian religion to get "attention." If Griffin files a complaint with the City claiming a violation of her rights under Title VII, how should the City respond to this complaint? Can it avoid liability under Title VII at this point?

Answer 1

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it is illegal to harass someone based on their religion. If KellyMarie Griffin files a complaint, the City should conduct an investigation and take action to address the issue.

Step-by-step explanation:

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it is illegal to harass someone based on their religion. Harassment can include offensive remarks about a person's religious beliefs or practices. In this case, KellyMarie Griffin has been subjected to derogatory comments about her Christian faith by her coworker, Theresa Lareau. Lareau's comments, along with the use of offensive language by other coworkers, have created a hostile work environment for Griffin. If Griffin files a complaint with the City claiming a violation of her rights under Title VII, the City should respond by conducting a thorough investigation into the matter and taking appropriate action to address the issue. The City cannot avoid liability under Title VII at this point because the harassment has created a hostile work environment and Griffin has clearly expressed her objection to the behavior.