Reynolds IGA Foodliner to Pay $65,000 in EEOC Religious Discrimination Lawsuit
Piggly Wiggly franchisee settles federal suit charging it denied an employee’s request to observe her Sabbath and then fired her
ATLANTA / September 28, 2026 — Reynolds IGA Foodliner, Inc., owner and operator of a chain of grocery stores, will pay $65,000 and provide other equitable relief to settle a religious discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
According to the suit, shortly after she was hired as a deli clerk at the Piggly Wiggly store in Hazlehurst, Georgia, the employee requested Sundays off to observe her Sabbath. The employee’s supervisor denied the request, claiming that, if the store gave the employee Sundays off, it would have to do the same for all other employees. The employee continued to request the accommodation, and the company fired her in January 2025.
“Employers cannot deny religious accommodation requests simply for fear of upsetting other employees,” said Marcus G. Keegan, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Atlanta District. “The EEOC remains committed to enforcing federal anti-discrimination law and protecting employees’ rights to religious freedom.”
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits religious discrimination and requires employers to reasonably accommodate an employee’s sincerely held religious beliefs or practices unless doing so would cause an undue hardship. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Reynolds IGA Foodliner, Inc., Case No. 2:26-cv-00060) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, Brunswick Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.
Darrell E. Graham, director of the EEOC’s Atlanta District, said, “Employers must thoughtfully consider each request for religious accommodation on an individual, case-by-case basis and otherwise make good-faith efforts to accommodate their employees’ religious beliefs. Employers must be aware of their obligations under federal law to provide reasonable religious accommodations absent undue hardship.”
The two-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit requires Reynolds IGA Foodliner to provide $65,000 to the former employee. In addition to monetary relief, the company will update, clarify and disseminate its religious accommodation procedures; provide specialized training to managers, supervisors and human resources personnel who receive and handle religious accommodation requests; and post a notice in the workplace informing employees of the settlement and of their right to be free from workplace discrimination. Furthermore, the company will provide the EEOC with periodic reports regarding future requests for religious accommodations and reports of religious discrimination, as well as how the company handled those requests and reports.
For more information on religious discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/religious-discrimination.
The EEOC’s Atlanta District Office has jurisdiction over Georgia and the counties of Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Hampton, Jasper and Williamsburg in South Carolina.
The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov.
Source: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC.gov)
