The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) marked 200 days of defending religious freedom in the workplace under the Trump administration, highlighting a series of recent victories in an Aug. 18 press release.
EEOC Acting Chair Andrea Lucas said in the release the agency is focusing on religious freedom as a top priority under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employment discrimination based on religion.
She contrasted the Trump administration’s approach with what she described as neglect under the Biden administration.
“During the previous administration, workers’ religious protections too often took a backseat to woke policies,” Lucas said. “Under my leadership, the EEOC is restoring evenhanded enforcement of Title VII — ensuring that workers are not forced to choose between their paycheck and their faith.”
The agency pointed to several high-profile settlements in recent months, many involving workers fired after refusing COVID-19 vaccines on religious grounds.
On Aug. 13, it announced a $1 million settlement with Mercyhealth, which included reinstatement offers for employees terminated over COVID-19 vaccine mandates. On July 31, the agency reached similar settlements with Las Vegas resorts Aria and Luzor, and on May 20, it announced a settlement with Infinity Rehab.
It secured an $850,000 settlement July 2 with The Venetian Resort Las Vegas over claims it denied religious accommodations to its employees and a $61,000 settlement Aug. 4 with a North Carolina dental clinic that fired an employee who asked to wear a scrub skirt for religious reasons.
On July 25, the EEOC announced the agency’s largest employment discrimination resolution in nearly two decades in a $21 million settlement with Columbia University. The suit resolved claims of antisemitism and religious bias on campus, according to the release.
The EEOC also spotlighted recent lawsuits filed against multiple industries.
Most recently, the commission sued Silver Cross Hospital and the Mayo Clinic Aug. 1 for rejecting workers’ religious requests for vaccine exemptions.
In May, it announced a lawsuit against Marriott timeshare companies for allegedly refusing to allow Sabbath observance and a May 4 suit against CEMEX Construction Materials Florida. The construction company allegedly forced a Christian woman to choose between her job or wearing a skirt over her work pants for religious reasons.
Within the federal workforce, the commission issued new rulings defending workers Aug. 13. It found the Department of Veterans Affairs violated the rights of a Muslim physician seeking weekly prayer breaks and said that the Federal Reserve Board wrongly denied a Christian police officer’s vaccine exemption.
The release also noted its participation in the White House task force aimed at eradicating anti-Christian bias in the government.
Lucas said many of the agency’s efforts remain confidential but called the highlighted cases “a glimpse of our ongoing efforts to protect religious liberty in every American workplace.”
>> Trump administration affirms right to share faith in federal workplaces <<
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Author: Elise Winland
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