BOERNE — Daniel A. Lorenz regularly wore a collared shirt to work, but it clearly wasn't the type expected in the Wal-Mart Supercenter's dress code.
He says he was fired last week upon reporting for duty in his priest's shirt with Roman collar, an Arab headdress and six crosses.
Supervisors had warned Lorenz that his job was at risk over his appearance, which they said violated dress codes and upset customers and fellow workers, particularly Catholics.
But Lorenz, 20, ignored requests to shed the shirt and collar — the main bones of contention — claiming they reflect his unique spiritual beliefs.
"I told them that would be like turning my back on God, and I couldn't do that," said the Pipe Creek man whose religious fervor was fueled by a 2001 trip to Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Egypt.
There, Lorenz first donned a kaffiyeh, an Arab headdress of folded cloth that's held on by a cord. Rounding out his unorthodox look are patches on his hip pack bearing the anarchy symbol and the words "vampire" and "ninja."
Armed with secretly recorded tapes of counseling sessions with his bosses, Lorenz has filed a complaint over his March 1 dismissal by Wal-Mart with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
"I believe I have been discriminated against because of my religion, universal belief," he said in a sworn affidavit filed with the agency Tuesday
story from MySa.com
He says he was fired last week upon reporting for duty in his priest's shirt with Roman collar, an Arab headdress and six crosses.
Supervisors had warned Lorenz that his job was at risk over his appearance, which they said violated dress codes and upset customers and fellow workers, particularly Catholics.
But Lorenz, 20, ignored requests to shed the shirt and collar — the main bones of contention — claiming they reflect his unique spiritual beliefs.
"I told them that would be like turning my back on God, and I couldn't do that," said the Pipe Creek man whose religious fervor was fueled by a 2001 trip to Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Egypt.
There, Lorenz first donned a kaffiyeh, an Arab headdress of folded cloth that's held on by a cord. Rounding out his unorthodox look are patches on his hip pack bearing the anarchy symbol and the words "vampire" and "ninja."
Armed with secretly recorded tapes of counseling sessions with his bosses, Lorenz has filed a complaint over his March 1 dismissal by Wal-Mart with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
"I believe I have been discriminated against because of my religion, universal belief," he said in a sworn affidavit filed with the agency Tuesday
story from MySa.com