Undue Hardship Research Articles

Same Words, Different Meanings—Same Courts, Different Leanings: How the Supreme Court’s Latest Religious Accommodation Holding Changes the Law and Affects Employers

The Supreme Court dropped several of its most anxiously awaited and controversial cases during the last week of June 2023. While two of the cases, 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis and Students for Fair Admissions., Inc., v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, received most of the press, a third case will likely be the most consequential of the three for the hospitality industry. In Groff v. DeJoy, Postmaster General, the Supreme Court, in a 9-0 decision, rejected a 25 year+ interpretation of a Supreme Court case defining employers’ obligations to accommodate religion. Because the Court released its Groff decision during the same week as the release of both 303 Creative and the Harvard cases, Groff was lost in the shuffle. However, we argue that Groff’s imprecise but radical change of what constitutes an undue hardship for religious accommodations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 will create confusion, may cause dissention, and will add to an already difficult labor market in hospitality and other industries. To support our proposition, this article examines (a) the development of religious accommodation law before 1977, (b) the 1977 Supreme Court case that the Groff Court rejected, (c) the subsequent precedent of that 1977 case, (d) the passing and development of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and then, (e) the effect of Groff.

Appendices for Ordinary Meaning as Last Resort: The Overlooked Meaning of “Undue Hardship” in Title VII

Appendices for Ordinary Meaning as Last Resort: The Overlooked Meaning of “Undue Hardship” in Title VII

Undue Hardship After Groff

Undue Hardship After Groff

THE ROLE OF SENSE OF PURPOSE IN HEALTH NAVIGATION AMONG MARGINALIZED OLDER ADULTS

Abstract A sense of purpose is a central, self-organizing life aim that guides choices and behaviors . In older adulthood, having a sense of purpose is linked with positive health. Understanding how older adults who identify as socially marginalized (e.g., racially/ ethnically diverse, LGBTQ+) leverage purpose to navigate their health, for example, when setting health values, making health decision, or adapting to health challenges may support development of tailored resources to combat social disparities embedded in healthcare systems.. This study used qualitative thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2012). to explore the role of purpose in marginalized older adults’ current health navigation and including how purpose and health navigation change across adulthood. Nineteen older men and women who identified as socially marginalized (Mage = 66.5) participated in semi-structured interviews Analyses revealed that older adults draw on purpose to guide health by maintaining personally meaningful, health-related (e.g., health education, caregiving) vocations into late life and by modeling positive health behaviors for others . Further, the role of purpose in health navigation changed across their adulthoods: participants described shifts from adversity-driven purpose to wellness-focused purpose, translating early adversity into current health motivation, and finding space for their authentic purpose when health was considered to stabilize. Findings demonstrate that, for marginalize older adults, their relationship with their own health may improve across the lifespan as they overcome adversity and health becomes enmeshed in purpose. Findings support refining health interventions to account for the role of purpose for older adults who have faced undue social hardship.

Recommendations on data sharing in HIV drug resistance research.

• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) drug resistance has implications for antiretroviral treatment strategies and for containing the HIV pandemic because the development of HIV drug resistance leads to the requirement for antiretroviral drugs that may be less effective, less well-tolerated, and more expensive than those used in first-line regimens. • HIV drug resistance studies are designed to determine which HIV mutations are selected by antiretroviral drugs and, in turn, how these mutations affect antiretroviral drug susceptibility and response to future antiretroviral treatment regimens. • Such studies collectively form a vital knowledge base essential for monitoring global HIV drug resistance trends, interpreting HIV genotypic tests, and updating HIV treatment guidelines. • Although HIV drug resistance data are collected in many studies, such data are often not publicly shared, prompting the need to recommend best practices to encourage and standardize HIV drug resistance data sharing. • In contrast to other viruses, sharing HIV sequences from phylogenetic studies of transmission dynamics requires additional precautions as HIV transmission is criminalized in many countries and regions. • Our recommendations are designed to ensure that the data that contribute to HIV drug resistance knowledge will be available without undue hardship to those publishing HIV drug resistance studies and without risk to people living with HIV.

Affordability of household water services across the United States

Households that cannot be able to afford their water bills may lose access to drinking water and wastewater services. This study seeks to quantify how many households may struggle to pay for water services across 787 of the largest drinking water providers located within each state of the United States. Household water affordability is the ability for a household to pay for basic water services without undue hardship. Here, we select 6,000 gallons per month (22.7 m3/mo) as sufficient to meet basic needs and define undue hardship as spending more than 4.6% of household income (one day of labor each month) to pay for water services. Monthly bills are combined with census income data based on service area boundaries to determine how many households are spending more than 4.6% of their income on water services. We find that basic water services are unaffordable for 17% of the households (28.3 million persons) in this study. The median, or representative community, has one in seven households spending more than 4.6% of their income paying for water services. We developed a data visualization tool to allow users to explore how affordability challenges change across different volumes of water usage and levels of financial hardship (https://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/water-affordability/water-affordability-united-states). This research shows that household water unaffordability is not a localized problem but rather is a challenge experienced by households in communities across the nation.

Ramadan fasting and pregnancy: an evidence-based guide for the obstetrician

Pregnant Muslim women may be religiously exempt from fasting during the Islamic month of Ramadan, especially if there is concern for undue hardship or harm to maternal or fetal health. However, several studies demonstrate that most women still choose to fast during pregnancy and avoid discussing fasting with their providers. A targeted literature review of published studies on fasting during Ramadan and pregnancy or maternal and fetal outcomes was performed. We generally found little to no clinically significant effect of fasting on neonatal birthweight or preterm delivery. Conflicting data exist on fasting and mode of delivery. Fasting during Ramadan has been mainly associated with signs and symptoms of maternal fatigue and dehydration, with a minimal decrease in weight gain. There is conflicting data regarding the association with gestational diabetes mellitus and insufficient data on maternal hypertension. Fasting may affect some antenatal fetal testing indices, including nonstress tests, lower amniotic fluid levels, and lower biophysical profile scores. Current literature on the long-term effects of fasting on offspring suggests possible adverse effects, but more data are required. The quality of evidence was negatively impacted by the variation in defining "fasting during Ramadan" in pregnancy, study size and design, and potential confounders. Therefore, in counseling patients, obstetricians should be prepared to discuss the nuances in the existing data while demonstrating cultural and religious awareness and sensitivity to foster a trusting relationship between patient and provider. We provide a framework for obstetricians and other prenatal care providers to aid in that effort and supplemental materials to encourage patients to seek clinical advice on fasting. Providers should engage patients in a shared decision-making process and offer them a nuanced review of the evidence (including limitations) and individualized recommendations based on clinical experience and patient history. Finally, should certain patients choose to fast while pregnant, providers should offer medical recommendations, closer observation, and support to reduce harm and hardship while fasting.

Gaps and Opportunities for Faculty Workload Policies in Pharmacy and Health Professions Education

Faculty workload is difficult to delineate and quantify equitably because of the various factors and diverse roles that define faculty positions. This is especially true in health professions education, including pharmacy. Nonetheless, ensuring fair and transparent distribution of faculty workload is necessary for equity and engagement of the faculty workforce. While it is impossible to develop a uniform policy for all faculty, there can be a guide for how workload is developed and measured, especially for promotion or awarding of tenure, focusing on equity and transparency. Developing clear definitions of workload, setting mutually agreed expectations, and sharing transparent workload assignments and distribution within the institution may be needed. It is imperative to discuss an optimal policy for equitable and transparent workload in each institution and in academic pharmacy as a whole; a lack of this effort can create undue hardship for faculty, decrease productivity, potentially worsen faculty morale, and ultimately impair faculty retention.

Ordinary Meaning as Last Resort: The Meaning of "Undue Hardship" in Title VII

Ordinary Meaning as Last Resort: The Meaning of "Undue Hardship" in Title VII

Religious Accommodation in the Workplace, Undue Hardship, and the Impact on Coworkers

Religious Accommodation in the Workplace, Undue Hardship, and the Impact on Coworkers

Affordable course content: A cross-unit collaboration to develop institution-wide strategies at the University of Maryland

The cost of higher education is a growing concern. Tuition, housing, and other fees have risen more than 160% since 1980. Textbook costs, which contribute to these financial worries, have nearly doubled in the past two decades. A recent national survey found that 65% of student respondents avoided the purchase of a required textbook because of cost. The same study reported instances of students taking fewer courses, not registering for specific courses, earning a poor grade, or dropping a course because of the cost of textbooks. This message of avoiding purchases or suffering undue hardship to buy course materials is echoed again and again throughout the nation: 80% of students at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign report not buying textbooks or access codes due to cost. 66% of students report avoid buying course materials due to cost, significant numbers report working extra hours, skipping meals, or selecting (or avoiding) courses based on course content costs. At the University of Maryland, we see evidence of this problem as well. A campus survey conducted in fall 2021 shows more than 40% of undergraduate and graduate students declined to purchase a textbook in the past year due to cost. Clearly, the price of textbooks and other course resources is influencing student behavior and possibly impacting academic success. Libraries and other campus units have taken steps to address textbook costs, mainly through the promotion of existing resources, open education resources (OER), and inclusive access models. The libraries also have a librarian with responsibilities for OER. However, at Maryland and at many institutions, efforts to gain traction are slow and lack a cohesive, university-wide approach to addressing the problem of affordable course materials.

U.S. small bank failures and the Financial Crisis of 2007–2009

This study utilizes logistic regression to identify annual financial statement and performance ratio factors that influenced the failure rate of U.S. small banks before and after the Financial Crisis identified during December 2007 through June, 2009. The study includes rates of small bank failure before and Financial Crisis spanning the years 2001 through 2014. The aim of the paper is to describe in large increase in U.S. small bank failure after the Financial Crisis. The Financial Crisis created drastic sustained changes of the financial system that were designed for large financial institutions. These changes may have created undue hardship for small banks and elevated the rate of small bank failures in the post-Financial Crisis period. Post-Financial Crisis bank failures had lower capital ratios and increased loan portfolio risk relative to the prior period. The combined effect of expansionist monetary policy, increased regulatory costs, and possession of illiquid real estate assets contributed to the higher rate of failure. The identification of factors that contribute to the increase in small bank failures after the Financial Crisis should assist bank managers, policy analysts, and scholars in developing alternative solutions for the future.

Workplace Discrimination Against People With Mental Disorders and the ADA.

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act bars discrimination in the workplace on the basis of mental disability, the courts have not always been sympathetic to plaintiffs' claims of discriminatory treatment. Judges often side with employers who claim that necessary accommodations would create undue hardship or are otherwise unreasonable or that plaintiffs are not qualified for the job. Although statutory or regulatory changes may be needed to protect workers' rights, mental health professionals can be helpful to their patients who are requesting accommodations by carefully describing their functional limitations and how they can be accommodated.

The Virtue of Mortality

ABSTRACTAs technology's frontiers advance, we acquire the capacity to alleviate the aspects of suffering and sorrow that are caused by our genetic programming, while also inviting unwelcome side consequences. CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats), a bacterial defense system with genome editing capabilities, is now being implemented to startling results. It is being used to correct for harmful mutations by permanently altering genes, promising to eliminate defects in whole species. Advantages notwithstanding, and apart from insufficiently considered dangers precipitated by the well‐intended technology, there are other moral issues to consider. What does existence look like in which humans become resistant to experiencing genetic defects? We can welcome medical innovation's reduction of undue hardship, but is there a threshold past which a permanently improved version of us makes us ineligible to participate in the human condition? This essay offers a theological and Aristotelian critique of using CRISPR for extensive human gene editing, arguing that it is our imperfections, including susceptibility to disease, decline due to aging, and the ephemerality of joy, which make us human.

Pravna zaštita slobode vjere na radnom mjestu u SAD-u / Legal Protection of Freedom of Religion in Workplace in the United States with Practical Examples

This work includes legal sources of protection of religious freedom in the workplace in the United States and the most important legal instruments such as “reasonable accommodation” and “undue hardship”. Here are listed religious aspects that are protected by law, as well as authorities and agencies that have jurisdiction to enforce the law. This paper presents practical examples of violations of the right to freedom of religion, such as the wearing of religious clothing, free time for prayer, beards and long hair, religious tattoos as well as examples of religious harassment in the workplace. In the end, the author presents conclusions on the degree of protection of religious freedom in the United States as well as a brief comparative analysis of European jurisprudence and it’s applicability in BiH.

Learning How to Smartly and Adaptively Manage High Functioning Safety Cultures in US Healthcare Organizations During COVID-19

The increasing complexity of the United States healthcare system has compounded the likelihood of mistakes. As a result, the ability to learn smart and adaptive approaches to management have never been more critical. Medical errors put undue hardship on the economy resulting in the loss of billions of dollars. The current COVID-19 pandemic revealed gaps in public health strategies, medical treatments, comprehensive patient safety, and human resources strategy. Implementing human resources and performance management processes that promote safety, safe decision making, and reduce medical errors is critical. Adopting methods used by high-reliability organizations (HRO) may reduce medical errors and improve patient safety. Qualitative focus groups were used to collect data around creating organizational cultures focused on safety. This research aims to improve performance by providing healthcare leaders ability to learn how to smartly adapt with tools to enhance organizational culture, reduce medical errors, and improve patient safety in the age of COVID 19.

Aantekeninge: Verblyfvergunning is nie outomaties habitatio nie en totale skade omvat skade gely weens inbreuk op die eiser se vervullingsbelang

According to the headnote attached to the most recent decision under discussion, the litigation turned on the quantification of the total loss suffered by M as alleged holder of a right of habitatio after S as reputed owner of the farm revoked the verbal agreement between the parties entitling M to occupy the dwelling ad infinitum on condition that he renovates the dwelling to a habitable state. Notwithstanding the conviction of the judges involved, it is clear that at no stage were any of the requirements for the acquisition or vesting of a limited real right of habitatio complied with. No limited real right was registered against the farm and S as the alleged grantor of the limited real right was at no stage the owner of the property. He could not have been entitled to burden the property of another with such limited real right. A contractual arrangement between the parties, however, did exist granting the claimant an entitlement to occupy the dwelling. The initially friendly relations between the litigants soured abruptly in February 2013 when S evicted M from the farm because of a supposed blasphemous comment by M. This happened after the claimant had already invested significantly in the restoration and modernisation of the old dilapidated dwelling. “The plaintiff regarded this as a repudiation of the contract between him and the defendant, accepted it as such and left the farm, effectively halting the renovation project” (par 14 read with par 5.4 of the 2016-decision). His claim for compensation of the loss suffered was held by the court to be limited to the amounts reflected in the receipts representing the cost of building material when it was acquired. It is submitted that the court should also have taken note of the loss suffered as positive interest, because the claimant forfeited the calculated benefit of life-long free occupation in the restored dwelling. Because of the underlying agreement between the parties to the litigation, the patrimonial benefit that accrued to the estate of the owner of the farm due to the objective rules of accessio cannot be classified as actionable unjustified enrichment. The principles of unjustified enrichment do not apply – the resulting detriment or loss of M was cum causa and not sine causa. The remarks of the court pointing to unjustified enrichment do not convince. Damages should have been calculated to cover the loss in positive interest of the claimant and not merely his negative interest, ie the amounts paid for the building material used in the renovation. The court, however, held: “I’m satisfied that the plaintiff has adduced sufficient evidence to prove his claim for the costs of renovating the farmhouse on a balance of probabilities” (par 23). The last mentioned mode of quantification of the loss suffered would have been more in place where merely a delict was involved, as eg where the damaged motor vehicle should be repaired to the state it was in before the accident occurred. Had the judges in this case done a correct assessment of loss upon cancellation for breach of contract, it would have led to a respect of the rule of law and would not have been to the detriment of the claimant. The legal principles that should have been applied had already been clearly formulated more than a century ago: “The sufferer by such a breach should be placed in the position he would have occupied had the contract been performed, so far as that can be done by the payment of money, and without undue hardship to the defaulting party …” Victoria Falls & Transvaal Power Co Ltd v Consolidated Langlaagte Mines Ltd (1915 AD 1 22).

Covid Vaccine Mandates and Religious Accommodation in Employment.

Many employers are requiring their employees to be vaccinated for Covid‐19 to comply with federal, state, or local laws, or to conform to employers’ policies. Some employees object to vaccination on religious grounds. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in employment based on religion and requires employers to reasonably accommodate employees’ religious beliefs or practices unless doing so would be an undue hardship to the employer’s business. Although a religion need not be an established faith with many followers, philosophical or political objections do not count as religious beliefs. If an employee demonstrates a bona fide religious objection, the issue is whether it can be reasonably accommodated. This will depend on the employer’s business, including whether close contact with coworkers or customers is required.

Litigation on Accommodating Teachers With Disabilities

Qualified employees with disabilities are entitled to reasonable accommodations under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The demanding nature of the teaching profession presents a particularly challenging context for accommodations; therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine litigation on accommodating teachers with disabilities. Authors searched Lexis+ to identify case law on accommodations claims by teachers with disabilities. Results indicated plaintiffs were primarily female. Depression represented the most common disability, followed by respiratory issues and post-traumatic stress disorders. Accommodation claims were adjudicated under the broad categories of failure to meet the essential functions of the position, failure to engage in the interactive process, and undue hardship. Implications for research and practice are also discussed.

Progress in Reducing Inequalities in Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Services in Nepal.

Equity has emerged as a cross-cutting theme in the health sector, and countries across the world are striving to ensure that all people have access to the health services they need without undue financial hardship and educational, social, cultural and geographical barriers. In this context, this analysis has attempted to analyse Nepal's progress in reducing inequalities in reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services based on economic status and place of residence. In this analysis, we have used data available from the web version of the Health Equity Assessment Toolkit, a data visualisation tool developed by the World Health Organisation. We have analysed the inequalities in terms of a composite coverage index which combines eight reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health interventions along the continuum of care. Composite coverage of reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services was 43% in 2001 which increased to 65% in 2016. The absolute difference in composite coverage of the services between the lowest and highest wealth quintiles decreased from 28-percentage points in 2001 to 8-percentage points in 2016. The difference in service coverage between the urban and rural settings reduced from 21-percentage points to six percentage points in the period. Among the eight various services, births attended by skilled birth attendants is the indicator with the highest scope for improvement. Conclusions: Inequalities based on wealth quintiles and residence places have narrowed from 2001 to 2016. Additional efforts in expanding skilled birth attendants and antenatal care service coverage among the poorest quintile and rural residents could further improve the coverage of the indicators at the national level and narrow down the inequalities.