On March 1, 2023, the Department of Labor issued its guidance on Religious Exemption Final Rule Frequently Asked Questions. The DOL’s Guidance dovetails very tightly with the Freeman Law Insights blog published on February 28, 2023, The Righteous Stand Bold Like a Lion: Bostock, Religious Organization Employers, and Title VII. In part, the DOL notes:
[T]he overwhelming weight of Title VII case law confirms—consistently with the views of the EEOC and DOJ—that qualifying religious employers generally may make decisions about whether to employ individuals based on acceptance of and adherence to religious tenets, but may not insist on compliance with such tenets to the extent it would result in violation of the other nondiscrimination provisions, e.g., the prohibitions on discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and sexual orientation, and the prohibition on retaliating against employees because they have asserted their legal rights.
Insights
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