When Randy White began work as a medical supply clerk at the UVA Medical Center (www.virginia.edu/hlth.html) in May of 2005, he was asked by a supervisor to work one weekend per month. White explained to his supervisor that he is a Seventh-day Adventist and does not work from dusk on Friday to dusk on Saturday.
White now claims his supervisor took issue with White’s other Supervisor: White held his job for roughly one month before he was asked to train a replacement for his position in June of 2005. White claims that he asked his supervisor to explain the termination but received a blunt response: “Your last day on the job will be next Thursday.” Though he offered to work extra hours to compensate for his religious obligations, White contends his efforts went unacknowledged.
On Wednesday, December 13, White filed a complaint against the UVA Medical Center and UVA Health System that cites discriminatory hiring, firing and accommodation practices. At press time, counsel for White was out of the country. Peter Jump, director of Public Relations for the UVA Medical Center, says that UVA has not yet received a copy of the complaint and cannot comment on pending litigation.
Fortunately, the official website of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (www.adventist.org) offers a divine perspective on these events. According to Adventist “Guidelines for Employer and Employee Relationships,” available on the website, employees deserve “freedom to uphold and maintain basic religious tenets and practices, such as Sabbath observances.” And if White skips the Sabbath? The site also lists the consequences: “Distortion and eventual destruction of a person’s relationship with God.”
White requests unspecified amounts for backpay, punitive damages and court fees.