2 Strip casino-hotels settle religious discrimination charges
Two Las Vegas Strip casinos operated by the same parent company settled religious discrimination charges filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency said Thursday.
Aria and Luxor casino-hotels allegedly denied employees religious accommodations to their COVID-19 vaccine mandate policies, according to a news release. The EEOC’s investigation of the allegations found reasonable cause to believe the two resorts violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Aria and Luxor are licensed as individual entities but are both operated by MGM Resorts International. The Las Vegas-based gaming, hospitality and entertainment company declined to comment on the settlement.
The EEOC said Aria and Luxor entered into separate conciliation agreements without admitting any liability. The terms of the agreements were not disclosed.
The two Strip casinos will provide Title VII training to their human resources staff, with a “specific focus on religious accommodations,” the release stated. The federal agency will monitor the resorts’ compliance.
“We commend both the Aria and the Luxor for putting in place training measures that will have a lasting impact on workers seeking religious accommodations in the workplace,” said Michael Mendoza, director of the EEOC’s Las Vegas local office, in a statement. “It is important that all employers understand that federal law requires reasonable religious accommodations, unless such an accommodation would pose an undue hardship that is substantial in the overall context of the employer’s business.”
Earlier this month, The Venetian hotel-casino settled a religious discrimination lawsuit filed by the EEOC. In that matter, The Venetian Las Vegas agreed to pay $850,000 and implement “significant policy changes” to settle the suit.
Contact David Danzis at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0378. Follow @AC2Vegas_Danzis on X.