The American Hindu Jewish Congress (AHJC) filed an amicus brief in Petersen v. Snohomish Regional Fire and Rescue, urging the Supreme Court to reverse a Ninth Circuit decision that allowed unvaccinated firefighters to be disciplined. The brief argues that the appellate court ignored actual workplace evidence in favor of speculation, violated the “substantial increased costs” standard set by the Supreme Court in Groff v. DeJoy, and failed to apply proper summary judgment standards.
The brief argues that allowing generalized safety fears to override the standard set by Grof v. DeJoy causes disproportionate harm to minority faiths and forces workers into a “Hobson’s choice” between faith and employment.
Emphasizing that the ruling enables “speculative discrimination” and improperly denies workers the right to maintain personal religious conscience, the attorneys at Foley & Lardner representing AHJC, are widely recognized for shifting the focus to civil rights, securing a deadline extension, and building a broad coalition of supporting organizations.