In the case of Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison et al., 1976, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Trans World Airlines (TWA). The dispute arose when Larry G. Hardison, an employee at TWA and a member of the Worldwide Church of God, was fired for refusing to work on Saturdays due to his religious beliefs. He filed a lawsuit against TWA and his union claiming they failed to accommodate his religious practices as required by Title VII Civil Rights Act which prohibits employment discrimination based on religion among other things. The court held that employers are not obligated under Title VII to make accommodations for employees' religious practices if doing so would result in more than "de minimis" cost or burden - meaning minimal or negligible - to their business operations. In this case, accommodating Hardison's request would have involved additional costs such as paying premium wages for another worker or violating seniority provisions in collective bargaining agreements with unions; hence it was deemed more than de minimis.

In the dissenting opinion for TRANS WORLD AIRLINES, INC. v. HARDISON et al., Justice Marshall argued that the majority misinterpreted Title VII's requirement of an employer to make reasonable accommodations for an employee's religious practices. He contended that TWA had not made sufficient efforts to accommodate Hardison’s religious needs and instead placed undue hardship on him by requiring him to work on his Sabbath day against his beliefs. The company could have sought volunteers or paid overtime as alternatives but chose not to do so, which according to Marshall was a violation of Title VII provisions. Furthermore, he disagreed with the majority’s interpretation of “undue hardship,” arguing it should be seen in terms of more than just monetary considerations; rather it should also include factors such as impact on co-workers or disruption of operations.