[cookiecaper]

If two people are in competition for the same resource (a more desirable shift), someone is going to lose. The company has to choose one of them, making at least one happy, or neither of them, upsetting both. How are they supposed to "not discriminate" here? They are forced to choose which employee should receive the shift.

Bear in mind that if the tables were turned, the other guy would be going all over the internet saying "My employer gave this shift to another guy because they hate children and discriminate against families with kids", and the same responses would be had in the opposite direction.

Making these choices is always going to alienate someone, but they're a fact of life.