Gay Rights Concerns Over Workplace Act

(Washington) Legislation introduced in the House and Senate could harm LGBT workers the nation's largest gay rights organization warns.

The Workplace Religious Freedom Act which could be used to expand religious rights of some employees while failing to preserve protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, the Human Rights Campaign said.

The bill has bipartisan support including two senators usually at opposite ends of issues: Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA).

"Our nation was founded on the principle of "Freedom of Religion" not freedom from religion," Louisiana Congressman Bobby Jindal (D-La) said at the press conference. "As such, America should be a place where people are not forced to choose between keeping their faith and keeping their job."

The bill would expand the rights of some employees in the workplace under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in a way that would require employers to engage in efforts to accommodate an employee's religious practices and observances at the expense of other employees' civil rights.

In a letter sent to members of Congress, HRC expressed concerns about the ways in which the bill could be used to evade non-discrimination policies.

"The concern here is that employers would have serious difficulty resolving instances where an employee posts a sign reading 'God hates fags' in his office or cubicle; where workers proselytize on the 'sins of the homosexual lifestyle' over lunch and on breaks; where a social worker proffers a religious objection to being the case manager or counselor for a youth who is gay or transgender; or where a truck driver on 24 hour driving shift who gives a religious reason for refusing to drive with an co-driver who is gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender," wrote HRC's Smith and Christopher Labonte, legislative director.

The letter continued, "WRFA would arguably allow health care professionals to refuse to provide basic health care services to a gay or transgender patient."

Sen. Kerry has been pressing for the support of similar legislation for almost a decade. At a news conference Kerry said he realized the need for it after he was contacted by two Catholic who lost their jobs because they couldn't work on Christmas.

"Religious freedom is an ideal we support and it can be ensured without hanging non-discrimination laws out to dry," said HRC Vice President of Policy David Smith.

"We support the goal of securing religious freedom in the workplace, but not without safeguards that should be written into the bill that also ensure it won't be used as a proxy to discriminate against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans, Smith said.

"This bill would leave significant room to disregard state and local non-discrimination laws, as well as employer policies, allowing some employees to create a hostile climate for their GLBT co-workers and clients."

Next Story: Tony Blair Says UK May One Day Have a Gay Prime Minister

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