A federal appeals court rejected the case of a former account clerk in
New York
who alleged he was fired for refusing to attend a required
LGBT
training session in 2018.
Raymond Zdunski had worked at Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES for seven years prior to his firing. He sued the organization for what he likened to “unlawful religious discrimination,” seeking reinstatement, back pay, and $10 million in damages.
The Boards of Cooperative Educational Services, or BOCES, is a public organization that was formed in 1948 by the state legislature to provide shared services and educational programs to school districts across New York.
PENCE TEAM RESPONDS TO CALLS FOR APOLOGIES OVER BUTTIGIEG PATERNITY LEAVE COMMENTS
In defending against Zdunski’s lawsuit, BOCES argued that LGBT training was required to prevent any discrimination in the workplace. The training was initiated in 2018 in response to a meeting with a transgender employee who requested accommodations to facilitate a gender transition.
“It just seems like the country is against the Christian way of life, and it’s for everything else,” Zdunski
said
. “We’re not allowed to practice our way of life but anyone else can, it seems.”
A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit backed a lower court’s ruling against Zdunksi and rejected his appeal on Monday,
according
to a summary order.
“Plaintiff’s unsupported assumption that Defendants believe him to be âbigotedâ due to his religious beliefs is insufficient to support an inference of discrimination,” U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford
wrote
in his ruling last year. “In sum, no facts in the record support a finding that Mr. Zdunski was terminated because of his religion; rather, the evidence in the record supports Defendants’ position that his termination was due to repeatedly refusing to attend a mandatory employee training.”
After missing the first training session in February 2018, Zdunski wasn’t reprimanded. He received an email a few months later from a human resources director saying that employees who missed the session needed to attend a makeup session in May.
He replied to the human resources director, asking what the content of the training would overview. He said he was told the topics would include “recognizing the difference between sex and gender, understanding aspects of identity, understanding how beliefs/feelings/values perpetuate oppression,” according to his lawsuit.
Zdunski responded that the training would contradict his sincere religious beliefs but that he “loves all people” and would not discriminate against anyone based on whether they are LGBT. BOCES later denied his request for religious accommodation and was given an ultimatum to attend the session or be fired.
Kristina S. Heuser, the lawyer who represented Zdunski, told Buffalo News his rights were violated “for no other reason than his refusal to be indoctrinated with anti-biblical teaching.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Though the lower courts did not find in his favor, we are not deterred and will seek redress from the U.S. Supreme Court,” Heuser said.
The Washington Examiner contacted Heuser for a response.
