Resolving Conflict Between Religious Expression and the Civil Rights of Others

In light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling as well as an announcement by the new Chair of the EEOC, we expect an emphasis in the current administration on the enforcement of rules on religious discrimination, particularly the right to be accommodated for religious activities that do not cause the employer undue hardship. 

The U.S. Supreme Court has increased the burden on an employer to show “undue hardship” by changing the rule from more than a de minimis cost, to a substantial harm to the business as a whole. Increasingly, these issues are arising in common situations where an employee wants time off to attend to religious observances or activities, requiring the employer to bring in others to do that absent worker’s job on overtime. In the past, this type extra cost for the employer was deemed to constitute an undue hardship, but the result is likely to be different under current law. In addition, there are religious objections made by employees to COVID tests and “pronoun” names for transgender workers. There is also the issue of proselytizing the workplace that may annoy others.

These are just a sample of the issues raised by recent developments, the subject of this webinar. It will be conducted by Elizabeth Dorminey and Jim Hughes.