The court ruled 7-2 that courts should defer to religious schools to decide which employees qualify as faith leaders who aren’t covered by certain anti-discrimination laws.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 30: A general view of the U.S. Supreme Court on June 30, 2020 in Washington, DC. The court is expected to release a ruling determining whether President Trump can block the release of his financial records.
Wednesday’s ruling didn’t involve LGBTQ employees, but it’s the type of decision that civil rights groups are worried about after the Supreme Court’s, the court ruled that federal laws against sex discrimination also protect LGBTQ employees. But the court made clear that their decision didn’t resolve whether employers could successfully claim religious grounds for workplace discrimination in the future.
Conservatives and religious organizations heralded the decision as an important win for religious freedom protections under the First Amendment. The latest cases tested how widely that principle could apply to religious school employees. The two teachers, backed by civil liberties organizations and Democratic state attorneys general, argued for a narrower interpretation.
“In a country with the religious diversity of the United States, judges cannot be expected to have a complete understanding and appreciation of the role played by every person who performs a particular role in every religious tradition,” Alito wrote. “A religious institution’s explanation of the role of such employees in the life of the religion in question is important.”
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