Michigan : A group of Muslim men in the USA has launched a legal complaint against their former employer after they were allegedly told to choose between their religion and their jobs.

Sixteen former employees of US auto supplier Brose Jefferson in Michigan is reportedly suing the company for religious discrimination after they say they were forced to “involuntarily resign”.

It comes after the Michigan-based company told the men their request for a change in their meal break time during Ramadan could not be accommodated, according to Michigan Radio.

The men reportedly made the request in May to take their meal break at 9 pm, rather than the standard 7 pm.

The people worked a 2 pm to 10 pm shift and asked for the meal break to be pushed to after sundown at 9 p when Muslims are able to break their fast, The Independent reported.

But according to their legal representatives, their employer told them the request would not be accommodated, and they would have to choose whether their religion or their jobs were more important. The men unanimously resigned following the incident.

Cary McGehee, one of the lawyers representing the men, said: “The law is very clear that an employer has an obligation to provide its employees with reasonable accommodation related to their religious beliefs, and [Brose] failed to do so in this case.”

“From our independent investigation and from the discussions with our clients, there was no difference in production needs this year that would make it unduly burdensome for the company to provide this accommodation.”

Brose Jefferson said in a statement it “carefully considers” the needs of its employees and said it would “vigorously defend” any claims brought against the company.

—SM/IINA