This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

A Christian pancake maker who declined to work on Sundays in order to attend church services has been awarded $40,000 from his former employer, who fired him.

According to the Christian Institute's report on the fight, Eddie Moton Jr. was fired from his position as a cook at International House of Pancakes for declining to work on Sundays.

When he was hired in 2021, he was granted a religious accommodation to his schedule, but, the report said, "when a new manager required him to work two Sundays, Moton was fired for refusing to do so again."

The franchise owner, Suncakes, also will provide annual training to managers on religious liberty, tell employees of the case, and change its policies to protect religious accommodations.

"The manager reportedly told other employees that 'religion should not take precedence' over the workplace and that Moton 'thinks it is more important to go to church than to pay his bills,'" the report said.

Taittiona Miles, a lawyer on the case, explained, "Employers must respect all sincerely held religious beliefs, which includes providing reasonable accommodations when no undue hardship exists."

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said the Suncakes restaurant is in Charlotte, N.C., and the "new manager" was the one who "expressed hostility" toward the accommodation initially given Moton.

The EEOC explained, "Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which provides for religious accommodations in the workplace and protects individuals from religious discrimination and retaliation. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Suncakes NC, LLC and Suncakes, LLC, d/b/a IHOP, Civil Action No.: 3:23-cv-00274) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its voluntary conciliation process."

Melinda C. Dugas, regional attorney for the EEOC's Charlotte District, said, "Requesting an accommodation for a religious observation is protected activity under federal law. And employers are prohibited from taking adverse employment action against an employee for exercising that right."