Center for Constitutional Rights and Sikh Coalition File Federal Lawsuit
in Harrington case
Press Conference to be held at 10 AM today at 666 Broadway, 6th floor, New
York, NY
NEW YORK, July 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Five Sikh Station Agents announced their
intention to file discrimination charges against the MTA today. The Sikh
workers charge that a post-9/11 policy requiring them to brand their turbans
with an MTA logo amounts to religious discrimination.
The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the Sikh Coalition filed
discrimination charges on behalf of the men with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission this morning. CCR and the Coalition also filed a
federal lawsuit today on behalf of Kevin Harrington, a Sikh subway train
operator who has been forced to wear an MTA logo on his turban since January.
"The MTA honored me for driving my train in reverse away from the towers
on 9/11 and leading passengers to safety. They called me a 'hero of 9/11,'"
said plaintiff Kevin Harrington. "I didn't have a corporate logo on my turban
then. Why am I being threatened with reassignment in a rail yard unless I wear
one now? I see MTA workers wearing Yankees caps, fashion headwear, and
yarmulkes. Why are they only picking on Sikhs and Muslims?"
A federal Justice Department investigation found over 200 instances of MTA
employees wearing headdress without an MTA logo over the course of three days
in January and February. This included MTA-issued Russian-style winter hats
without a logo. The Justice Department filed its own discrimination suit
against the MTA last September.
"The MTA issues hats to its workers without its corporate logo. It smacks
of discrimination to create special rules for Sikhs and Muslims that don't
apply to anyone else," said Amardeep Singh, Legal Director of the Sikh
Coalition.
"The new MTA policy addresses a nonexistent problem. Kevin led his
passengers to safety during the 9/11 attacks, and no one had problems
recognizing him as an MTA employee then. And no passenger is going to be
confused about whether a station agent sitting in a token booth works for the
MTA, either," said Shayana Kadidal, staff attorney at CCR.
The trouble between the MTA and its Sikh employees began in June 2004 when
the MTA ordered Mr. Harrington to either remove his turban or be reassigned to
an MTA rail yard. Mr. Harrington had worked for the MTA for more than two
decades prior to the new order.
After reconsideration of its policy, the MTA allowed Sikhs to wear turbans
last fall. Nevertheless, its new policy required Sikh and Muslim employees to
brand their religious headdresses with its logo. Mr. Harrington has complied
with the policy under protest and fear of reassignment to an MTA rail yard.
"The decision by the MTA to obstruct the religious practices of its Sikh
employees is wholly unacceptable," said Congressman Anthony Weiner, who
authored the Workplace Religious Freedom Act in the U.S. Congress, which
protects the rights of employees to wear clothing required by their religious
faith. "All New Yorkers deserve the dignity of being able to freely practice
their religion in the workplace."
The MTA expanded the scope of its turban-branding policy in April 2005,
when it issued turbans and logos to five Sikh station agents, Inderjit Singh,
Jatinderpaul Singh Attari, Trilok Singh Arora, Satinder Singh Arora and
Brijinder Singh Gill. Ironically, the MTA issued them on or around April 14,
when Sikhs around the world celebrate Vaisakhi. Sikhism's founders ordered
Sikhs to wear turbans as part of their religious faith on Vaisakhi in the year
1699.
"I have worked as a station agent for more than a decade. I have never
worn a logo on my turban. My turban has never interfered in my work in any
way. I just want to do my job as I have for the past decade," said Inderjit
Singh a Sikh station agent.
New York City Council member David Weprin introduced a bill this past
March that would bar discrimination in city agencies on the basis of religious
headdress. Discrimination at the MTA and New York City Police Department
against Sikh and Muslim workers spurred its introduction. The bill currently
has twenty-two cosponsors.
"We cannot and will not stand for discrimination against certain public
employees in our public agencies," said New York City Council Member David I.
Weprin. "I do not believe it to be unreasonable to ask that the MTA respect
the practices of different religions by not directing that in order for an
employee to retain his or her job, he or she must disrespect a piece of
religious garb."
Suits have also been filed by Muslim bus drivers alleging discrimination.
The MTA would not allow the Muslim bus drivers to return to their regular
public facing positions unless they removed their headscarves.
Started as an effort to educate the greater North American community on
Sikhs and Sikhism, the Sikh Coalition works to safeguard the civil and human
rights of all people and communicate the collective interests of Sikhs to
civil society. The Coalition serves as a resource on Sikhs and Sikh concerns
for governments, organizations and individuals. For more information:
http://www.sikhcoalition.org
The Center for Constitutional Rights is a non-profit legal and educational
organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the rights guaranteed by
the U.S. Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The
Center has worked closely with the South Asian and Sikh communities on
numerous immigration, bias and civil rights issues in the wake of 9/11. For
more information: http://www.ccr-ny.org .
SOURCE Sikh Coalition
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Related links:
http://www.sikhcoalition.org
http://www.sikhcoalition.org/MTA_Sikh.asp
http://www.ccr-ny.org
CONTACT:
Amardeep Singh of Sikh Coalition,
+1-917-628-0091, amar@sikhcoalition.org; Jen Nessel of The Center
for Constitutional Rights, +1-212-614-6449, jnessel@ccr-ny.org
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