A Chipotle restaurant in Kansas is facing a lawsuit for religious harassment after a former Muslim employee claims that an assistant manager forcefully removed her hijab. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed the lawsuit on behalf of Areej Saifan, alleging that the assistant manager continuously asked her to remove her hijab and show him her hair, despite her objections. The harassment allegedly began in early July 2021, when Saifan was 19 years old, at a Chipotle location in Lenexa, Kansas.

According to court documents, Saifan explained to the assistant manager that wearing the hijab was a religious practice, and his requests to see her hair were inappropriate. However, the assistant manager persisted, asking Saifan to remove her hijab in front of other employees approximately 10 to 15 times over the course of a month.

The lawsuit claims that Saifan reported the harassment to a shift manager, who asked the assistant manager to stop but failed to report the incidents to higher management, violating Chipotle's policies. The harassment came to a head on August 9, 2021, when the assistant manager allegedly grabbed Saifan's hijab and partially removed it, exposing her hair. The incident was witnessed by the shift manager to whom Saifan had previously complained.

Saifan reported the assistant manager's behavior to the store's field manager and store manager before ultimately resigning the next day due to the harassment and management's failure to address it. Chipotle's Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Laurie Schalow, issued a statement in response to the lawsuit, stating that the company has a "zero-tolerance policy for discrimination of any kind" and that the employee in question has been terminated.

However, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleges that the assistant manager was not fired for the harassment but for engaging in a consensual relationship with another employee, which is against company policy. The assistant manager continued to work at the same location until his termination. Chipotle did not provide a comment regarding the reason for the assistant manager's termination.

The lawsuit also claims that Chipotle retaliated against Saifan by not scheduling her for shifts during her two-week notice period, effectively constructively discharging her due to her religion. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is requesting a jury trial and that Chipotle adopts policies that provide equal employment opportunities for employees of all religions. The federal agency also seeks compensation for Saifan's financial losses and non-financial damages, such as emotional distress, the amount of which will be determined at trial.