The Columbus, Ohio, chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Columbus) announced today that it has reached a settlement in a federal lawsuit with a national retail chain for wrongfully terminating four Muslim women of Somali origin.
In a span of two weeks in 2015 the company terminated seven Muslim women who all worked on the same shift. The women were working as housekeepers for the company and none of them had received any warning or discipline prior to being terminated.
At the time of their termination they were told that “your type of people are not welcome,” and that the supervisor was firing “all these people.”
“Our clients are very pleased that this matter was successfully resolved and that they have received a monetary compensation for the wrongful termination,” said CAIR-Columbus Legal Director Romin Iqbal. “It was clear to us that the company was engaging in direct discrimination by terminating all the Muslim employees on that shift. The law is very clear. Employers cannot take any adverse employment action, including termination, against employees based on religion, race or national origin.”
CAIR-Columbus is currently representing more than 28 Muslims who have been wrongfully terminated from the workplace.
Ohio Muslims who feel that they are victims of discrimination at work are being urged to contact CAIR-Columbus for assistance by filing an incident report online at: https://www.cair-ohio.com/
The CAIR-Ohio Affiliate has three chapters – Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati.
CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.