An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 3 – Hiring

A school may not use pre-employment inquiries regarding an applicant’s availability for work on weekends or evenings as a pretext for determining his or her religious creed, or to evade the requirement of reasonable accommodation. 344 A school may, however, inquire into availability for work on weekends or evenings where it is reasonably related to the normal business requirements of the job in question. 345 Examples of religious accommodations that may be required once a school hires an individual include job restructuring, job reassignment, modification of work practices, or allowing time off in an amount equal to the amount of non-regularly scheduled time the employee has worked in order to avoid a conflict with his or her religious observances. 346 A school must consider the following factors in determining whether a religious accommodation causes “undue hardship” to the school:  The size of the relevant establishment or facility with respect to the number of employees, the size of the budget, and other similar matters;

 The overall size of the employer or other covered entity with respect to the number of employees, number and type of facilities, and size of budget;  The type of the establishment’s or facility’s operation, including the composition and structure of the workforce or membership;  The type of the employer, including the composition and structure of the workforce or membership;  The nature and cost of the accommodation involved;  Reasonable notice to the employer or other covered entity of the need for accommodation; and  Any available reasonable alternative means of accommodation. 347

Religious schools may restrict hiring and promotions based on the religion of the applicant and employee. 348

LCW Practice Advisor

D OCUMENTATION A T T IME O F H IRE

Section 11

A. E MPLOYMENT E LIGIBILITY V ERIFICATION A ND T HE F ORM I-9 A school must verify and record each employee’s identity and authorization to work in the United States pursuant to the IRCA. 349 The Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”, formerly Immigration and Naturalization Service, or “INS”) created Form I-9 for employers to use in complying with the Act’s requirements. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published a revised version of

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 98