Case study of hiring policy implementation

Hiring Policy

Facts of the Case

It would seem at the outset of a project such as Matthew and Thomas are launching -- a manufacturing facility -- that they would simply hire the most qualified individuals to work for them, candidates with the most experience and aptitude for this kind of employment. But the attempt to hire only evangelical Christians raises questions and appears to go against the law albeit it is legal according to 702 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Is such a policy legal? Answer: Yes, with a qualification

According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 employers -- when making employment decisions -- are barred from discriminating on the basis of sex, religion, age, ethnicity and disability. However, there is a statutory defense that allows employers to sidestep the Title VII requirements. It is known as the Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ), and according to Chapter 13 (Civil rights and Employment Discrimination) an employer may "…lawfully hire an individual on the basis of religion, sex, or national origin" (485). The BFOQ can be used if the employer can prove that the discrimination is "reasonably necessary to the normal operation of that particular business" (485).

The BFOQ defense is not intended when the issue involves race or color. And moreover, because it is an affirmative defense, the burden of proof is on the shoulders of the employer to show a "reasonable basis for believing that the category of persons" (in this case, people of a certain religious faith) "excluded from a particular job" were not able to perform the work on that job.

In this case, the employer is discriminating against people who aren't evangelical Christians, which is an interesting twist to employment. The BFOQ exception is permitted under the Section 703 of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 -- and though it is an available exception for both religious and gender issues Katie Manley explains that it is most frequently used for gender discrimination issues.

From a Great Commission perspective, would this policy be advisable? Answer: This would not be advisable.

In looking closely at the Great Commission -- following Jesus Christ's death and resurrection he urged his followers to go and baptize all nations -- it is hard to see why a company wanting to hire only evangelicals for a factory would apply. Yes, Christ was making a demand, not a suggestion, when he said to "…teach them to obey everything I have commanded you" but how could this apply to fairness in employment in 2012? "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Fairchild, 2008); and hence, his words become commandments.

Indeed, the Great Commission has been the "foundation for evangelism and cross-cultural missions work in Christian theology" (Fairchild) but on the other hand, in the Beatitudes Christ preached fairness and grace. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God" (Bible.org). Those who hire workers based not on their religious affiliation but on their competence and honesty, their experience and aptitude, it seems are the peacemakers. Those who don't hire someone because he is a Jew, or a Hindu, are not peacemakers.

If the two decided to open a school could they discriminate against those that are not evangelical? The section 702 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows this to happen. Stacey Brandenburg at the New York University Law School explains that it is the prerogative of religiously affiliated schools to discriminate. Albeit, Brandenburg argues that "Unfortunately, despite [good] intentions, 702 has placed greater burdens on individual religious expression" and in fact has opened the door for religious schools to engage in "racial and gender discrimination."