Employers that follow the Trump administration in promoting religious expression among workers must exercise caution to avoid claims they’ve created an unlawfully coercive or hostile environment, discrimination attorneys say.
The government unveiled a memo last month that allows agency employees to pray at work and persuade colleagues to adopt “the correctness of their own religious views” during non-working time, as long as it’s not “harassing in nature.”
While the policy applies only to federal workers, employment law scholars and attorneys said it’s possible it could eventually reach the private sector, especially if the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and equivalent state anti-bias agencies adopt similar measures. The EEOC’s Republican acting chair, Andrea Lucas, has repeatedly stressed that religious liberty is a top priority.
However, permitting broad or unchecked religious expression may result in the harassment of other workers, employment law scholars and attorneys said. It’s an issue that’s bound to test how far courts are willing to go in deferring to religious beliefs over competing civil rights interests, they said.
“The biggest problem is going to be balancing the rights of folks who don’t want to be converted, or told that their religious views aren’t correct,” along with safeguarding the rights of LGBTQ+ employees and those of minority religions, said Lynn Kappelman, a partner at management-side firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP.
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