Complaint Review: STAR TRANSPORT MORTONIL - Internet

Article By:                        U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission           posted on:                        Sunday, June 2, 2013   Administrative & Regulatory / Civil Rights / Labor & Employment / Litigation / Trial Practice   7th Circuit (incl. bankruptcy)   Printer-friendly Email this Article Download PDF Reprints & Permissions

Agency Charges Trucking Company Failed to Accommodate and Wrongfully Terminated Two Muslim Employees For Refusal to Deliver Alcohol Due to Religious Beliefs

Star Transport, Inc., a trucking company based in Morton, Ill., violated federal law by failing to accommodate two employees because of their religion, Islam, and discharging them, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

The lawsuit alleged that Star Transport refused to provide two employees with an accommodation of their religious beliefs when it terminated their employment because they refused to deliver alcohol. According to EEOC District Director John P. Rowe, who supervised administrative investigation prior to filing the lawsuit, "Our investigation revealed that Star could have readily avoided assigning these employees to alcohol delivery without any undue hardship, but chose to force the issue despite the employees' Islamic religion."

Failure to accommodate the religious beliefs of employees, when this can be done without undue hardship, violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion. The EEOC filed suit, (EEOC v. Star Transport, Inc., Civil Action No. 13 C 01240-JES-BGC,  U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois in Peoria, assigned to U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid), after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement through its statutory conciliation process.  The agency seeks back pay and compensatory and punitive damages for the fired truck drivers and an order barring future discrimination and other relief.

John Hendrickson, the EEOC Regional Attorney for the Chicago District Office said, "Everyone has a right to observe his or her religious beliefs, and employers don't get to pick and choose which religions and which religious practices they will accommodate.  If an employer can reasonably accommodate an employee's religious practice without an undue hardship, then it must do so. That is a principle which has been memorialized in federal employment law for almost 50 years, and it is why EEOC is in this case." 

The EEOC's Chicago District Office is responsible for processing charges of discrimination, administrative enforcement and the conduct of agency litigation in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and North and South Dakota, with Area Offices in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.

FIRST OF ALL.  I AM NOT ISLAMIC NOR AGREE WITH ISLAM NOR AGREE WITH SHARIA LAW TO BE IMPORTED TO THE USA NOR AGREE WITH THE QURAN WHICH CONTRADICTS ITSELF AND ALSO HAS AREAS WITH BAD STUFF ABOUT JEWS AND CHRISTIANS.   HOWEVER EVEN THAT I DO NOT AGREE WITH THE ISLAMIC PEOPLE IN REGARDS TO WORK IF AN ISLAMIC PERSON, JEHOVAH WITNESS , JEW  OR ANY OTHER GROUP THAT WORSHIPS ON SATURDAYS WANTS TO WORSHIP ON SATURDAYS THAT IS THEIR CHOICE AND SHOULD NOT BE FIRED FROM THEIR JOBS IF THERE IS REASONABLE ACOMODATIONS FOR THEM TO HAVE SUCH DAYS OFF.   ALSO IF A DRIVER FOR PERSONAL BELIEF SUCH AS SOME TYPE OF BELIEF OBJECTS TO HAUL ALCOHOL BY NO MEANS A COMPANY SHOULD FIRE SUCH PERSON  DRIVER FROM THEIR JOB BE COMPANY OR OWNER OPERATOR.     I HAVE ANOTHER ARTICLE TO WRITE ABOUT STAR ONCE MY TIME SOON BECOMES AVAILABLE BESIDES WRITING A REBUTTAL AGAINST STAR AND CONTACTING THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL PLUS LABOR AND INDUSTRIES AND AN ATTORNEY IN REGARDS TO STAR TRANSPORT OF MORTON , ILLINOIS.  DURING THE MEANTIME.  HERE IS SOMETHING THAT WAS JUST FILED AS A LAWSUIT AGAINST STAR TRANSPORT:   

TO ALL THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN STAINED ON HIRE RIGHT BY STAR TRANSPORT A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT NEEDS TO BE STARTED AGAINST THEM.  PLEASE LEAVE YOUR CONTACT INFO AS AN ANSWER TO THIS POSTINGS.

http://www.natlawreview.com/article/equal-employment-opportunity-commission-eeoc-sues-star-transport-inc-religious-discr

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Sues Star Transport, Inc. for Religious Discrimination                           

Article By:                        U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission           posted on:                        Sunday, June 2, 2013   Administrative & Regulatory / Civil Rights / Labor & Employment / Litigation / Trial Practice   7th Circuit (incl. bankruptcy)   Printer-friendly Email this Article Download PDF Reprints & Permissions

Agency Charges Trucking Company Failed to Accommodate and Wrongfully Terminated Two Muslim Employees For Refusal to Deliver Alcohol Due to Religious Beliefs

Star Transport, Inc., a trucking company based in Morton, Ill., violated federal law by failing to accommodate two employees because of their religion, Islam, and discharging them, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

The lawsuit alleged that Star Transport refused to provide two employees with an accommodation of their religious beliefs when it terminated their employment because they refused to deliver alcohol. According to EEOC District Director John P. Rowe, who supervised administrative investigation prior to filing the lawsuit, "Our investigation revealed that Star could have readily avoided assigning these employees to alcohol delivery without any undue hardship, but chose to force the issue despite the employees' Islamic religion."

Failure to accommodate the religious beliefs of employees, when this can be done without undue hardship, violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion. The EEOC filed suit, (EEOC v. Star Transport, Inc., Civil Action No. 13 C 01240-JES-BGC,  U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois in Peoria, assigned to U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid), after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement through its statutory conciliation process.  The agency seeks back pay and compensatory and punitive damages for the fired truck drivers and an order barring future discrimination and other relief.

John Hendrickson, the EEOC Regional Attorney for the Chicago District Office said, "Everyone has a right to observe his or her religious beliefs, and employers don't get to pick and choose which religions and which religious practices they will accommodate.  If an employer can reasonably accommodate an employee's religious practice without an undue hardship, then it must do so. That is a principle which has been memorialized in federal employment law for almost 50 years, and it is why EEOC is in this case." 

The EEOC's Chicago District Office is responsible for processing charges of discrimination, administrative enforcement and the conduct of agency litigation in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and North and South Dakota, with Area Offices in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.

this company will lie on you if you quit by telling other trucking companies that they fired you because of insubordination or company violations.  they lied on me and it kept me from being hired by another company.  they are nothing but liars and will not talk to you if you try to call them to confront them about what they are telling other companies about you  star is a very very very bad company to work for run away fast and dont let them ruin your chances for better employment.  they told a company i was trying to get hired with that they fired me because of company violation when in fact i really just quit my employment with them.  do not trust this company. 

Ok so I retract my earlier statement about this company.  I can't say right now everything that I'm thinking, but trust me, the first posting on this company with the complaints about them isn't even the beginning.  Between broken down time and little to no home time, and dispatchers getting irritated and pissed off when you sit for hours on end waiting for an answer and you finally call in.  I will post more when I can, but yes, STAR=Stop Turn And Run.

I work for Star Transport, and the only problem I've had was with one particular dispatcher.  When I had a truck with NO A/C for a month, the dispatcher kept saying he would do what he could to get me to the yard to get it fixed as an A/C issue is not something they will pay for to have fixed on the road.  When I finally got back to the yard, the safety director was appalled at the situation, and didnt have the truck fixed, but gave me a new truck, and a hotel voucher and told me to rest until I was feeling better, as at that time I felt like I was in heat exhaustion.  Any time from then on that there has been a truck issue, it's gotten fixed.  The fleet dispatcher I have now is absolutely awesome.  The one and only complaint I have now is that we no longer go to a certain state for a certain place we would deliver to, and so hometime is now not WHEN we get you home time, but rather IF we can get you home time.  Last time I was home was end of July, and don't know when I will get a load home.  Best I can do I get a load to the  yard and then fly home on my own money for home time, which I plan to do next month.  Not a big deal, and my wife is going to drive out and meet me in souther Georgia the end of this month,  and then That covers September and October, then November she will drive out and meet me, and then December I will fly home again.  If things havent changed after the first of the year, then I will have to start thinking about other options.  But my wife and I and my dispatcher can work it out for me to have family time, and thats what we're going to do.  The company apparently in the last year or two has turned over a new leaf and is really working things out and trying to turn the company over to be a better company.  I honestly have no BIG complaints, other than using point to point dispatch for miles and delivery dates which doesnt account for anything and you almost always end up late or changing delivery times.  Thats not that bad though, the dispatchers really try.  I guess it's what you make of it.  If you plan to be miserable and think things are going to be bad, they will be.  If you work hard at making it a good experience and stay positive, it will be.

First off you cant call me a liar abt what I reported about star transport. You didnt have the same dispatcher or you dont know when i worked there. It could have been different at the time I worked there and my stuff was in my truck caused i was at home. I wasnt quiting yet. I had a two weeks notice in. So before you wanna call someone out about a company that you dont own,you should check what could have happen and what worked for you may not have worked for others.

I am a former driver for Star Transport.I am responding to your post because this was not my experience with Star Transport.I never had any problem with any safety issue,if anything needed fixed,they did it as soon as possible. They NEVER told me anything against D.O.T. regulations. And,why did they send someone to get your truck?Did you abandon it? If it was my truck,I would take it back and I would not care what was in it.Why is your stuff still in the truck?And when I put in my two weeks notice,they didn't fire me.In fact ,when my truck broke down,they provided me a room for the night and a ride home the next day.And, I don't believe they had to do that. And also,they kept safety a big priority there.I sincerely doubt they would make someone run on bad tires.