One thing that confused me: Almost all workplaces, especially Government ones, have a leave system. You put in a leave form and it gets approved. You can also specify the reason for leave. However, if it not an official Holiday (like the Forth of July), you have to take personal leave. Even for a religious holiday.
If this woman did not follow the official procedure, it is her fault. Presenting a list of holidays by itself is not enough. And I would say this for someone of any religion.
You are correct and I believe there is more to this story than what has been reported. I’ll also add that work is also not a guaranteed right and she has a union if she is a Government employee.
If the article is accurate, she has followed the same procedure for 26 years. There was no indication or directive from her boss beforehand that she should change her approach. It think that her boss had an issue with her and is attempting to use her Passover absence as a excuse to discipline her.
I had an Orthodox Jewish NCO when I was a platoon leader. With a little discussion and preparation beforehand, our First Sergeant ensured that he never had the duty on Saturdays or religious holidays. He pulled his weekend and/or holiday duties on Sundays, Christmas, Easter, etc...
I smell a poor manager/leader as the root cause here.
The official procedure is for the worker to get their direct supervisor’s OK the day before leave. Her direct supervisor, according to the story, was himself on leave on the day in question. So she emailed her second-tier supervisor and got an “Okay” in return.