Feds file lawsuit in NC Taco Bell haircut dispute

FAYETTEVILLE, NC In the lawsuit filed Thursday, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claims Family Foods Inc. illegally fired Christopher Abbey from a Fayetteville Taco Bell in April 2010.

The complaint says Abbey was told to cut his hair or lose his job. Abbey belongs to an obscure religious group called the Nazirites, whose members cite Old Testament passages as forbidding haircuts.

The EEOC says firing Abbey over his religious beliefs is against the law. The agency wants policy changes at Family Foods along with back pay and damages for Abbey.

No one answered the phone at the company's office Thursday afternoon.

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