Navigating Scylla and Charybdis: For-Profit, Religious Businesses and Religious Exceptions to Title VII
ABSTRACT
In Bostock v. Clayton County, the United States Supreme Court added sexual orientation and gender identity to the definition of a protected class under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Because Title VII prevents employment discrimination against protected classes such, religious businesses holding sincere religious objections to sexual orientation and gender identity are now required to comply with this new interpretation of federal employment law at the expense of their beliefs. This note evaluates the efficacy of applying exceptions to Title VII in order to empower religious businesses to retain their religious beliefs and remain in the market. This note proposes that traditional exceptions to Title VII, such as the religious organization or bona fide occupational qualification exceptions, are not viable strategies for profit-oriented businesses. Instead, religious businesses should present claims under either the Religious Freedom Restoration Act or the new Fulton v. City of Philadelphia paradigm to protect the free exercise of their closely-held religious beliefs, even in a for-profit business environment.