Posted on 01/26/2011 12:08:34 AM PST by JoeProBono
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- California's attorney general says religious beliefs aren't enough to trump a corrections department ban on prison guards wearing beards - a stance that drew protests Tuesday from civil rights organizations.
Attorney General Kamala Harris argued in a Sacramento County Superior Court filing Jan. 6 that Trilochan Oberoi can't be properly fitted for a gas mask if he keeps the facial hair required by his Sikh religion.
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
deathholds on beards are a number one way of immobilizing a guard - turn him loose in the main yard for an hour and see if he still wants to be a guard with a beard! this guy is an idiot and therefore unfit to be a CO
Damned if they do, damned if they don’t — if the Sikh has to get through a tear-gassed area but can’t because his beard keeps his gas mask from sealing, he’d probably sue over that too.
Still, you’d think someone would have solved the gas mask and beard problem by now (like a unit that seals around the neck).
This looks like a beard too short to grab. I’d wonder more about what’s under that turban.
I'm learning about that from my 5 month old grandson. He's a brute!
The solution is instantly apprehended, and almost as quickly implemented.
I would not want to wear a unit that sealed around my neck. There is active pressure from the mask that would not be good on your carotid artery or airway. It would be an even worse idea for a corrections officer since an inmate could grab the mask from behind and choke him with one hand using the mask.
This guy is out of luck.
Close enough.
“...department policy is to allow beards up to an inch long if a doctor verifies that a guard has a skin disorder or irritation.”
“The 22-page filing by Harris said the exemption applies only to guards who passed the gas mask fitting test before the policy took effect six years ago and later grew their beards.”
This might sink their case. Normally, I would think having a beard might be beyond the expectations of “reasonable accommodation”, given the safety issues involved for a CO. But if they’ve allowed other correctional officers to grow a beard to similar lengths, then the policy is being inconsistently applied.
Be interesting to see how things turn out.
He wouldn’t be allowed to work any where that requires a GM. “make The dirty Captalist develop a solution to this problem”sounds like a bleeding heart Liberal. You can bet your bottom dollar that they wouldn’t be concerned if he were a Christian. Let him work at a drive in grocery if he can’t conform to the Safety rules.
Maybe he should...Sikh a new line of work.
People do not have unconditional rights to any given job. Nearly any given job will have certain physical requirements that must be fulfilled in order to perform the job.
Pilots must have good eyesight. Professional wrestlers must have great strength and good acting ability.
Some jobs have requirements beyond physical requirements such as being willing to work all 7 days of the week; ignoring the religious requirement to keep the Sabbath day holy. Some jobs require uniforms and being clean shaven.
If you can not or will not meet the requirements of the job first if you are aware that you can not fulfill the job requirements do the right thing and do not apply. If after applying and finding that you can not fulfill the requirements accept the fact that you or your convictions preclude you from the job and move on to some other job.
People who think that they are entitled to any job they want regardless of the unreasonable accommodations that would have to be made to permit them to perform the job simply are living in a fantasy land.
They put themselves and their coworkers in danger. The trial judge should laugh in their faces and throw the case out.
"Have you considered driving a taxi?"
Why can’t he just go work at a 7-11 like the rest of them?
That pun is Sikh...
Really, the only issue the state has regarding the issue is...
...wait for it...
...turban or not turban
Beard bans are also common for firefighters. Same rationale.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.