Labor Department Seeks To Revoke Trump-Era Expansion Of Religious Exemptions

The Department of Labor announced Monday it will seek to revoke a Trump administration rule that allows for broader religious exemptions to anti-discrimination measures governing federal contractors.

As reported by NBC News, the previous rule, which took effect in January, “broadened the exemption to include employers who ‘hold themselves out to the public as carrying out a religious purpose.’ The exemption previously applied to a more narrowly defined set of religious groups.”

The Department of Labor explained its proposal, stating, “The U.S. Department of Labor has announced a proposal to rescind the final rule ‘Implementing Legal Requirements Regarding the Equal Opportunity Clause’s Religious Exemption.’…Rescinding this rule would have the effect of returning department policy and practice to those that were operative during the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.”

“Executive Order 11246 prohibits federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. The order contains a religious exemption for certain religious corporations, associations, educational institutions and societies with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion,” the department explained.

“The final rule that took effect on Jan. 8, 2021 departed from OFCCP’s long-standing policy and practice of applying Title VII principles and case law to interpret the exemption,” the department noted. 

It added that the proposal by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), the department’s area which enforces the executive order, “would preserve [Executive Order 11246’s]’s religious exemption which would still be available to qualifying contractors.”

Jenny R. Yang, the OFCCP Director, said, “The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ proposed rescission would protect against discrimination and safeguard principles of religious freedom. With this proposal, OFCCP would simply return to our policy and practice of considering the facts of each case and applying Title VII principles and case law and other applicable law.”

“We are proposing a rescission of the religious exemption rule to protect workers from discrimination and safeguard principles of religious freedom,” Yang said, per NBC News.

The OFFCP found the Trump-era move to be “unnecessary and problematic,” Yang said.

“The proposed rescission would also promote economy and efficiency in federal procurement by preventing the exclusion of qualified and talented employees on the basis of protected characteristics,” Yang said. “This ensures that taxpayer funds are not used to discriminate.”

The Federal Register published the proposal on Tuesday and the department will allow comments to be sent in by

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