A Jewish woman has won a £16,000 payout from a travel agent that rejected her for a job because she is unable to work on Saturdays.

Aurelie Fhima, 23, sent her CV to Travel Jigsaw in Manchester and secured an interview.

But her application was turned down when it revealed she observes Shabbat – the Jewish day of rest which lasts from sundown on Friday until sunset on Saturday - and prevents work of any kind.

Bosses at Travel Jigsaw sent her a letter after the interview in May last year which said: ' After careful consideration we cannot offer you a position at this time. We are still looking for people who are flexible enough to work Saturdays. '

Travel Jigsaw is based inside Sunlight House (pictured) on Quay Street in Manchester - they turned down Aurelie Fhima from a job because she could not work on Saturdays for religious reasons

LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF SABBATH Every week religious Jews observe the Sabbath, the Jewish holy day, and keep its laws and customs. The Sabbath begins at nightfall on Friday and lasts until nightfall on Saturday. In order to avoid work and to ensure that the Sabbath is special, all chores like shopping, cleaning, and cooking for the Sabbath must be finished before sunset on Friday. Religious Jews must also refrain from writing, carrying out business transactions, driving or riding in cars, using the telephone, turning on or off anything which uses electricity such as lights, the television, computers and alarm clocks, cooking and gardening. Under Jewish law, every Jew must eat three meals on the Sabbath. One of the meals must include bread. Advertisement

Ms Fhima, from Salford, asked the car firm hire to review its decision. But when it refused she launched legal action – claiming indirect discrimination on grounds of religion.

Employment tribunal judges found in her favour – awarding almost £8,000 for loss of earnings, £7,500 for injury to feelings and £1,200 in fees.

The 23-year-old told MailOnline: 'It was unfair and they didn't look at my situation. They (Travel Jigsaw) could have accommodated me and tried to work round it but they said it was too complicated. They could have helped me out but chose not to.

'It is a 24 hour operation that is open seven days a week and I said I would be willing to work every Sunday instead. I also said I could change shifts with somebody.

'I also said I could work from 5pm to midnight on Saturdays in the winter as Sabbath lasts until nightfall on the Saturday .

'I tried to accommodate them as much as I could. I understand it is a business, but I said I could change shifts and work round it. But they said I was not flexible and were not prepared to play around with the hours. '

She added: ' I have now found a job working in a very small company with four members of staff. When I told them I couldn't work on Saturdays, they said it wasn't a problem.

'So how can a big company that employs thousands of people say that it was too complicated?'

Kevin McKenna, head of employment at Kuits Solicitors who were acting on Ms Fhima's behalf, said: 'This case serves as an important reminder to employers of the obligations they have to job applicants – not just their employees. It also shows that many large employers still fail to understand the law surrounding discrimination. '

At the tribunal, the firm claimed French-speaking Ms Fhima lied about her ability to work Saturdays during the phone conversation and confessed to the lie during the face-to-face interview.

Ms Fhima denied this and said the way the company acted was 'devastating'.

A spokesman for the business said: 'The company is extremely disappointed with the judgement in this case that was brought by an unsuccessful job applicant, and in the way in which the case was presented to the tribunal.