The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously strengthened religious liberty in the workplace Thursday, ruling in favor of a Christian postal worker who lost his job for refusing to work on Sundays.
The Court’s unanimous opinion in Groff v. DeJoy, authored by Justice Samuel Alito, overruled the decision of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, which held that the United States Postal Service (USPS) did not violate the religious accommodation rights of postal worker Gerald Groff under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. 
“This decision will give those religious minorities a fair shot in court and, one would hope, encourage more employers to adopt more inclusive workplace policies so that religious employees won’t have to choose between their livelihood and their faith,” Joshua McDaniel, director of Harvard Law School&#8217;s Religious Liberty Clinic, <a href="https://time.com/6291256/groff-dejoy-religious-freedom-supreme-court/">said</a>.
After clarifying Title VII’s requirements, the Court gave the case back to the Third Circuit to retry the case because of its factual complexity. This means that either Groff or the USPS could eventually prevail, but the USPS — and all employers — must meet a much higher standard to deny a religious accommodation.
Groff, an Evangelical Christian and longtime employee of the USPS, never worked Sundays in line with his religious beliefs and his initial job description. But when the USPS started to deliver packages on Sundays because of a deal with Amazon, the postal service would require him to work on his Sabbath. To avoid conflict, he transferred to a different location. 
His new location started delivering on Sundays, and he claimed that USPS “progressive[ly] discipline[d]” him because he refused to work Sundays. He then resigned and sued the USPS for religious discrimination. The Third Circuit rejected his claim. 
The controversy in this case surrounded a 50-year-old standard from Trans World Airlines v. Hardison. In that case, the Court held that an employer could deny an accommodation if it causes a “more than de minimis cost” — a legal term meaning that anything more than a “very small” cost would be enough for an employer to legally deny any religious accommodation.  
The Court held that Title VII’s “undue hardship” language requires employers to show that the accommodation would impose a burden that “is substantial in the overall context of an employer’s business.” Justice Alito stated that a business proving the accommodation would cause a small cost is not enough “to establish &#8216;undue hardship&#8217; under Title VII.” This means that an employer now needs to show a substantial hardship would be caused by the religious accommodation in order to deny it. 
“[Costs imposed on a business due to a religious accommodation] would have to rise to the level of hardship, and adding &#8230; ‘undue’ means that the &#8230; burden &#8230; or adversity must rise to an ‘excessive&#8217; or ‘unjustifiable’ level,” Alito wrote. “When ‘undue hardship’ is understood in this way, it means something very different from &#8230; something that is ‘very small or trifling.’”
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible" href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://onelink.to/dwapp" data-sk="tooltip_parent">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP</a>
As Justice Alito notes, the low standard from a previous case has been used by lower courts to deny many religious people even the most minor accommodations for firmly-held religious beliefs. According to <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/hardison/#:~:text=45%20years%20ago%2C%20the,protections%20for%20people%20of%20faith.">Becket Law</a>, a religious liberty law firm, 86% of religious accommodation claims under the now-struck-down de minimis test have been denied.
For instance, Muslim women have been <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-174/255821/20230228143330165_2023-02-28%20Groff%20Amicus%20Brief.pdf">discriminated</a> against for wearing a hijab, Apostolic Pentecostal <a href="https://www.mscklaw.com/blog/2016/11/religious-woman-denied-job-for-wearing-long-skirt/">women</a> have been <a href="https://nypost.com/2017/09/29/religious-woman-sues-restaurant-over-employee-dress-code/">denied</a> the ability to wear skirts instead of pants, and Sikh men have been <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-174/238562/20220922133906377_22-174_ACB%20-%20pdfA.pdf">denied</a> the ability to wear turbans and grow out beards.
The decision was supported in briefs by many religious groups, including <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-174/255807/20230228140147824_Groff%20OU%20Amicus%20brief%20FINAL.pdf">Orthodox Jews</a>, Muslims, Sikhs, and <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-174/255875/20230228182814363_22-174%20tsac%20SDA.pdf">Christians</a>. The decision will likely give religious employees more protection for religious accommodations in the workplace going forward.

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script async src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script>
<script async src="https://www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div data-widget-host="revcontent" data-pub-id="165152" data-widget-id="290588"></div><script src="https://delivery.revcontent.com/165152/290588/widget.js"></script>

SCOTUS Unanimously Strengthens Religious Liberty In The Workplace

CONTINUE READING

36,000 Young Christians Gather In St. Louis To Find ‘Purpose & Identity … In God’s Word’

5-Year-Old Who Fatally Shot Infant Brother Was High On Cocaine, Prosecutors Say

Republican Governor Announces He Will Not Run For Re-Election In Swing State

Coffee Could Save You From Alzheimer’s Disease, Study Says

Jayapal Tries To Walk Back ‘Israel Is A Racist State’ Comments

Cycling Organization Bans Trans-Identifying Men From Women’s Bike Races

News

Christianity

Courts

Religious Freedom

Religious Liberty

Samuel Alito

SCOTUS

Supreme Court

U.S.

United States Postal Service (USPS)

USPS

A video goes viral showing a baby being refused his mother by two gay "dads". This is just the tip of the iceberg, which is why we will have an important discussion today about surrogacy. 

Hour 1

The Matt Walsh Show

Ep. 1765 - This Video Is One Of The Worst Things I've Seen In A Long Time 

The Strait of Hormuz officially opens for business (kind of), the Pope makes “shocking” comments on immigration, and President Trump promises UFO disclosure at TPUSA. 


The Michael Knowles Show

Ep. 1956 -  Pope Leo's "SHOCKING" Immigration Comments EXPLAINED

A false miscreed has corrupted our leadership class.


The Andrew Klavan Show

Ep. 1275 - Dumb, Dumber and Progressive

President Trump announces a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, a murder-suicide involving former Democratic Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax shakes Virginia, and France and Britain hold a conference to secure the Strait of Hormuz – after the Iranian conflict ends. Get the facts first with Morning Wire.

- - -

Ep. 2738

- - -

Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3

- - -

Today's Sponsors:

Alliance Defending Freedom - Visit https://JoinADF.com/WIRE or text 'WIRE' to 83848 to learn more.

Pocket Hose - Text MORNING to 64000 to get a FREE pocket pivot and their 10-pattern sprayer with the purchase of ANY size Copper Head hose. Message and data rates may apply.

Morning Wire

U.S. Expands Hormuz Blockade & VA Fairfax Deaths Investigated | 4.17.26

U.S. Expands Hormuz Blockade & VA Fairfax Deaths Investigated | 4.17.26 [Member Exclusive]

A ceasefire goes into effect between Israel and Lebanon, a tragic murder-suicide rocks Virginia, and Dairy Queen deploys AI in the drive-thru. Get the facts first with Evening Wire.
- - -
Ep. 2737
- - -
Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3 
- - -
Today’s Sponsor:

Alliance Defending Freedom - Visit https://JoinADF.com/WIRE or text “WIRE” to 83848 to learn more.


Evening Wire: Lebanon Ceasefire Begins & Murder-Suicide Rocks VA | 4.16.26

The Pendragon Cycle

Menu

— News —

SCOTUS Unanimously Strengthens Religious Liberty In The Workplace