The Dept. of Labor issues a rule allowing for-profit companies to discriminate against job applicants who are LGBTQ+ or whose identity is in any way unaligned with the employer’s religious beliefs. The rule previously only applied to faith-based nonprofit organizations.
The DOL cites recent, less severe court cases that prioritized religion over legal and moral obligations and uses language to dogwhistle that Christians face more discrimination than LGBTQ+ Americans.
These cases show the need for updating the rule because “government at times has been callous in its treatment of religious persons,” the rule states.
“Religious organizations should not have to fear that acceptance of a federal contract or subcontract will require them to abandon their religious character or identity,” Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia said in a press release. (Scalia is the son of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, well known for his anti-LGBTQ+ views.)
Advocate
In addition to LGBTQ+ people, the new rule allows for employment discrimination against “single parents, people seeking contraceptive services, or members of different faiths (or none at all).”
Sources
https://www.advocate.com/politics/2020/12/07/trump-issues-expanded-anti-lgbtq-license-discriminate-rule
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/religious-exemption
https://www.govexec.com/management/2020/12/trump-administration-finalizes-rule-protect-religion-based-federal-contractors/170543/
Photo: Teddy Osterblom