Trump administration incurs LGBTQ wrath in bid to expand religious protections for contractors

[Right_in_Virginia]

Trump administration incurs LGBTQ wrath in bid to expand religious protections for contractors
Washington Times, Aug 14, 2019

The Trump administration moved Wednesday to expand faith protections for federal contractors, the latest front in the ongoing battle between LGBTQ groups fighting discrimination and employers seeking to operate in accordance with their religious principles.

The proposed rule by the Labor Department Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs would make clear that “religious organizations may make employment decisions consistent with their sincerely held religious tenets and beliefs without fear of sanction by the federal government.”

“The proposal also reaffirms employers’ obligations not to discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or other protected bases and does not exempt or excuse a contractor from complying with any other requirements,” said the agency in a statement.

Vowing to fight the proposed rule was a host of LGBT and civil-rights groups, including the ACLU, the Center for American Progress and the Human Rights Campaign, which accused the Trump administration of handing federal contractors a “license to discriminate.”


More:  https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/aug/14/trump-administration-pushes-religious-protections-/

[Right_in_Virginia]

U.S. Department of Labor
News Release


U.S. Department of Labor Proposes a Rule Clarifying Civil Rights Protections for Religious Organizations

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking intended to clarify the civil rights protections afforded to religious organizations that contract with the federal government. The proposed rule ensures that conscience and religious freedom are given the broadest protection permitted by law. The proposed rule is currently available for public inspection and will be published in the Federal Register tomorrow, August 15, 2019.

[...]

In keeping with that rich history, the proposed rule would clarify that religious organizations may make employment decisions consistent with their sincerely held religious tenets and beliefs without fear of sanction by the federal government. The proposal also reaffirms employers’ obligations not to discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or other protected bases and does not exempt or excuse a contractor from complying with any other requirements.

“Today’s proposed rule helps to ensure the civil rights of religious employers are protected,” Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Patrick Pizzella remarked. “As people of faith with deeply held religious beliefs are making decisions on whether to participate in federal contracting, they deserve clear understanding of their obligations and protections under the law.” 


More:  https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/ofccp/ofccp20190814

[HoustonSam]

Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, accused the department of “bending over backwards to give federal contractors claiming a religious right to discriminate the benefit of the doubt at all turns.”

“If they say they’re religious, they are. If they say their belief is sincerely held, it is,” she said. “And if they say they’re firing someone on the basis of religion, they’re allow it.”

So if someone identifies as religious, they are.