A Nebraska-based company accused of refusing to hire an Oklahoma man because of his religious beliefs has settled a discrimination lawsuit in the case.

Voss Lighting agreed to pay $82,500 to former job candidate Edward Wolfe. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says Voss will also institute company wide actions to prevent further religious discrimination.

The EEOC sued the Lincoln company over the allegations last year in federal court in Oklahoma.

The EEOC says Voss appeared to have a corporate culture requiring employees to adhere to certain religious beliefs that had no bearing on the business of selling lighting products.

Voss has denied the accusations and did not acknowledge any wrongdoing in the settlement, saying it wanted to avoid a long, expensive legal fight.

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