Hotel Equities Group, a hotel management company, violated federal law when it failed to provide pregnancy accommodations to one employee and religious accommodations to another at an Illinois property, he U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, in 2023, a pregnant front desk clerk at the company’s Hilton-branded hotel in Oak Lawn, Illinois requested the ability to sit at the front desk rather than stand due to medical needs related to her pregnancy. Although a coworker initially provided her with a suitable chair, company management later took it away, replaced it with a small, backless stool, and discouraged her from using it. Shortly thereafter, the company discharged her in retaliation for requesting an accommodation, according to the suit.
The lawsuit also charged that in 2023 at the same hotel, a second front desk clerk, who was also an assistant pastor at a Baptist church, requested not to be scheduled for Saturday overnight shifts because it interfered with his ability to attend and sometimes lead services at his church on Sunday mornings…