However, this doesn’t sound like he was asked to perform a religious act or engage in a religious practice. It sounds to me like he was asked to do a reasonable (albeit unusual) job duty. Even if he wasn’t enthused about it, I doubt he has a case based on religious discrimination here.

Besides, Wal-mart is non-union and job descriptions have no legal weight in a non-contract/non-union employment.

1. work the cash register. (OK, maybe?)
2. pick up the bosses dry cleaning. (er… pushing it?)
3. clean toilets?
4. give his boss massages?

What if a Walmart employee was a devout Christian but found the idea of dressing in a costume embarrassing, or maybe they didn’t like kids?

There is a classic situation in movies and TV sitcoms where some character is forced to wear a silly costume for their job. (Like a hot dog or some promotional animal character.) Maybe some minimum wage high school student can’t say no to that without being fired, but what if you had a higher status?

Where do we draw the line between specific job responsibilities you were hired for, and extra jobs that go beyond that?

Maybe Nolan was embarrassed and/or hates kids and just used his atheism as an excuse. Who knows?

It seems pretty clear to me that his boss railroaded him, for whatever reason, with the Santa thing as an excuse. You don’t fire a person inside of an hour for a little thing like that unless someone wants him gone

I would guess he was targeted because he was outspoken in the part about his lack of belief. BUT I have trouble seeing how dressing up as Santa would be such a hardship for him, IF he really wanted to keep his job. I think both sides got into a staring match and neither one would back down. It is freaking Santa not a religious figure.

His peers obviously knew he was atheist, and that asking him to wear the suit and let kids sit on his lap, was against what he believes or doesn’t believe in.

Wearing a Santa suit is against his beliefs? Allowing children to sit on his lap is against his beliefs? What do these things have to do with a lack of belief in god? Should I turn in my atheist card because I wear a Santa cap and let children sit on me?

I have a feeling this confrontation between him and the supervisor is about more than a Santa suit.

As for asking a Jew or Muslim to dress as Santa I have to ask “Why not?”. They choose not to celebrate Christmas and presumably don’t believe that the celebrations hold any meaning other than rampant consumerism. Dressing in a red suit and pretending to like children isn’t the worst way to earn a living. It’s not as if you’re asking a them to demonstrate a toaster by cooking and eating grilled cheese and ham all day. That would be contradicting their beliefs.

Having said that if a Jew, Muslim or atheist explained to me that they could not dress as Santa because it offended them and really wasn’t part of their job anyway then I’d consider choosing someone else in my employ. Similarly I’d probably allow the vegetarian to stock the fruit and veg section rather than the meat counter but that’s just people management and has little to do with religion.

I’m curious though. If a pastafarian refused to work in a store except near the pasta and meatball section would that be grounds for dismissal?

However in this case it seems that the employee is untrained in dealing with people as he worked building bikes in a stockroom. Asking someone to do a job that they are not trained in is certainly grounds for refusal.

As if Santa Claus had anything to do with religion anyway!

Exactly!

Santa Claus is one of the good parts of Christmas, anyway. If it was up to me, everyone would be invited to celebrate Christmas as a secular holiday; but, I would de-emphasize consumerism and stress being with friends and family a lot more.

Yes, it’s Walmart, but the reason he was fired, and it’s clearly written on his dismissal form, is because he refused to dress up as Santa.
Would they have forced a Jew or Muslim to do this?
Nolan worked in the stockroom building bicycles, not on the floor stocking shelves, not at a register ringing out customers, but in the stockroom.

It doesn’t matter if he said he doesn’t believe in Christmas, he was a stockroom clerk who built bicycles. He was a known atheist at his place of employment, and was asked in front of his peers to play Santa and allow young children to sit on his lap. His peers laughed out loud when he was asked. His peers obviously knew he was atheist, and that asking him to wear the suit and let kids sit on his lap, was against what he believes or doesn’t believe in.

He said no, not thinking it would get him fired. His dismissal papers were seen by the news reporter, and it states that this is the sole reason for his dismissal from Walmart.
If they had many other reasons as some of you are assuming, they would have written them on the form.
Anyone who has had an exit interview knows that all the reasons you are being fired are written on that paper. All of your past write ups are written on it. If you’ve ever been spoken to, written up for being 5 minutes late, the exit paper will state how many write ups the employee has had.
Refusing to play Santa was the only reason written on it.

As Hemant asked, would they have asked a Jew or Muslim employee to play Santa? If either of those said no, do you think they would have been fired for saying no?
I doubt it.

Dennis asks if he refused to work easter or halloween. That doesn’t even come close to dressing up as Santa and allowing children to sit on your lap.
Working in a stockroom building bicycles with no customer interaction, does not even come close to donning a Santa suit.
It doesn’t matter if the store caters to people who do believe in Santa, he didn’t, and was clearly and solely, fired for refusing to wear a suit that a Jew or Muslim employee would have never even been asked to wear, and certainly not fired for refusing.

this “situational atheist” has a sense of entitlement and wants to get a free ride.

You don’t know that. Unless you have some source beyond what’s here? It could be that he just didn’t want to dress up in a costume and have (possibly shreiking and/or incontinent) small children in his lap. Or he’s sensitive about his overlarge Santa-like stomach.

Seriously, is someone who works assembling bicycles (ie not working with people) your first choice to dress up as Santa? What part of his job description is that?

It seems pretty clear to me that his boss railroaded him, for whatever reason, with the Santa thing as an excuse. You don’t fire a person inside of an hour for a little thing like that unless someone wants him gone.

Of course, I don’t know that for sure either, but it fits the facts better.