Apple to Pay $150,000 After Jewish Employee Was Fired Over Shabbos
Apple has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that the company discriminated against a Jewish employee after he requested accommodations to observe Shabbos • Read More
Apple has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that the company discriminated against a Jewish employee after he requested accommodations to observe Shabbos.
The settlement, announced this week in federal court in Virginia, resolves claims brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against Apple over the treatment of Tyler Steele, a longtime employee at the company’s Reston, Virginia, store. Apple denied wrongdoing in court filings.
Steele had worked for Apple since 2007 as an Apple Genius, providing technical support and assistance to customers. He converted to Judaism in 2023 and subsequently requested an accommodation allowing him to avoid working on Fridays and Saturdays in order to observe Shabbos which begins Friday evening and ends Saturday evening.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a new store manager rejected the request, saying Apple’s scheduling policy did not allow employees to have both Friday and Saturday off. Steele ultimately worked during Shabbat despite his religious beliefs, according to the agency.
The EEOC further alleged that Steele was subjected to disciplinary action after requesting the accommodation and was ultimately fired in January 2024, shortly after refusing a manager’s request that he work on a Friday. The agency also accused the manager of making offensive remarks and warning Steele not to discuss the October 2023 Hamas attack with coworkers.
The EEOC filed suit in September 2025, alleging violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which requires employers to accommodate employees’ sincerely held religious practices unless doing so would create an undue hardship, and prohibits retaliation for raising discrimination concerns.
Under the settlement, Apple will pay $150,000. The agreement resolves the EEOC’s claims without a finding that Apple admitted wrongdoing. The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia as EEOC v. Apple, Inc., No. 1:25-cv-01637.
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