Judge Rules Company had Right to Fire Transgender Employee
A federal judge rules a Michigan funeral home did nothing wrong by firing a transgender employee on religious grounds.
A federal judge says a Metro Detroit funeral home did nothing illegal when it fired a transgender employee who sought to work while dressed as a woman.
The ruling stems from a complaint filed in 2014 by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Home in Garden City.
The home fired a funeral director and embalmer who had worked there for half-a-dozen years after the employee informed ownership that he planned to transition to a woman and would soon begin wearing women’s business attire at work.
The company argued that would violate their requirement that employees dress in a way that is sensitive to grieving family members. They said it would also violate the religious beliefs of the owners.
Now a federal judge has agreed with the company, ruling that the owners have a legal right to practice their faith as they see fit.
It’s not clear whether the ruling will be appealed.
