Venetian settles religious discrimination and retaliation lawsuit
The Venetian Las Vegas has agreed to pay $850,000 and implement significant policy changes via a three-year consent decree to settle a religious discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
The EEOC’s suit charged that the Venetian Resort violated federal law by refusing to accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs of a class of employees, which included a diversity of faiths as outlined in the complaint. The suit further alleged that the Venetian retaliated against employees who opposed these acts of religious discrimination. The suit continues that in some cases, the denial of accommodations led to discipline, denial of promotion opportunities, and discharge or constructive discharge.
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Charges of Discrimination that gave rise to the lawsuit were filed with the EEOC prior to the 2022 sale of the Venetian Resort Las Vegas. The lawsuit, EEOC v. Venetian Las Vegas Gaming, LLC, et al. dba The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, Case No.: 2:25-cv-01148), was filed by the EEOC in U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada following a lengthy voluntary pre-litigation mediation process after a resolution could not be achieved through the agency’s conciliation process.
In addition to monetary relief, the consent decree settling the suit provides for training of all Venetian employees, managers, and supervisors on employee rights and employers’ obligations regarding religious accommodations under Title VII. The decree also requires that the Venetian retain a third-party, independent monitor to assist with review and revision of its religious accommodation policies and complaint procedures, and the tracking of the Venetian’s compliance for the 36-months it is under the consent decree.
EEOC Acting Chair Andrea Lucas said: “The law protects the rights of workers in our pluralistic society to live out their various faiths in the workplace. As this case shows, reasonable accommodation might look like, among other things, allowing certain days off for Sabbatarians or Buddhists and allowing beards for Orthodox Christians. It also means not punishing anyone who speaks out in favor of these rights.”
“We commend the Venetian Resort for their cooperation in the early resolution of this lawsuit and agreeing to implement proactive measures to ensure religious accommodation requests are handled more effectively,” said Anna Park, Regional Attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles District, whose jurisdiction includes Las Vegas. “Employers are reminded of the importance of understanding their obligations under Title VII in accommodating religious beliefs of their employees, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court clarified the standard for granting religious accommodations.”
