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The dos and dont's in federal offices If you work for the federal government, it is OK to lead a religious study group in an empty conference room during your break. It is not OK to require that other employees take part in the discussion. That is according to new guidelines that President Bill Clinton issued last week concerning religious exercise and religious expression for civilian employees in the federal workplace. During a White House ceremony, the president said the guidelines clarify existing laws requiring an employer to reasonably accommodate an employee's religious practices, protect an employee's right of religious expression and guard against religious discrimination. Jewish leaders say these clarifications are badly needed. "The supervisors and even the counselors who represent the different agencies don't know what the law requires," said Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. "I get calls all the time from Jewish workers who had trouble with their supervisors getting off for the Jewish High Holidays," agreed Marc Stern, legal director of the American Jewish Congress and chairman of the committee that drafted the guidelines. But some critics say the guidelines go too far. "These, I think, go way beyond what the Constitution requires and well beyond what the courts require," said Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. Lynn took issue with the guidelines for stating that federal employees can place religious materials, such as Bibles or Korans, on their private desks. He said that can be problematic if the public has access to that space, such as in a post office. The drafters of the guidelines admit they did not list every hypothetical situation, but they say it is clear such forms of religious expression are permitted in private workspaces only. Lynn and others within his organization also said they feared the guidelines would promote proselytization on the job. According to the guidelines, a federal employee can urge a colleague to convert to another faith either verbally or by giving that person religious literature. But if the other employee asks that the conversation or behavior stop, agency heads are supposed to make sure that happens. "It gives legal recognition for the first time to stop listening," Stern said in defense of the guidelines. But Lynn said there is no grievance system in place to deal with that, and he says it is unlikely an employee would invoke that right if the person proselytizing is a supervisor. The guidelines do recommend supervisors "be careful to ensure that their statements and actions are such that employees do not perceive any coercion," a statement Lynn said "has very little meaning." The organized Jewish community appears to be united in support of the guidelines. "All of us were attuned to the problem of unwelcome religious advances," said Stern. He said Jews and other members of minority religions will be most helped by them. Rep. Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.), who helped develop the guidelines, agreed. "This will absolutely help minority religions," he said. "I don't think people have too much trouble getting off for Christmas." Cardin says he has interceded on behalf of several Orthodox constituents who have had trouble with supervisors at their federal jobs. "Not everyone has a congressman who can do that," Cardin said, explaining why he thought the rules needed to be clarified. The coalition of religious and civil liberties groups that lobbied for the guidelines is largely the same group that pushed for the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was a broader law aimed at safeguarding religious practices from government interference on the federal, state and local levels. The law was struck down by the Supreme Court in June. Clinton expressed disappointment over the RFRA decision. But the White House says that ruling did not prompt the president to issue the federal workplace guidelines. The campaign for those began shortly after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission unsuccessfully tried to issue guidelines in 1993 clarifying what constitutes religious harassment in the workplace. "We supported the need for guidelines, but we acknowledged that those could have been more carefully drafted," said Richard Foltin, legislative director and counsel for the American Jewish Committee. "The presidential guidelines now do what I believe EEOC tried to do then," he added. These guidelines go even further by looking "more comprehensively at religion in the workplace," according to Elliot Mincberg, general counsel for People for the American Way. "This is the best way to make clear the proper scope of religion in the workplace," Mincberg added. Some coalition members believe state and local officials and private business owners might begin taking cues from the feds when it comes to this issue. "There is a whole cottage industry of people who tell private employers how to stay out of trouble, and I think these guidelines are going to tell that cottage industry this is what the federal government does, and it thinks it complies with the law. You really ought to do this and you'll be OK," Stern said. Not everyone is convinced the private sector will follow the federal government's lead voluntarily, and most coalition members also are supporting the Workplace Religious Freedom Act. That bill, recently introduced in Congress, would require private-sector employees to accommodate an employee's religious needs unless doing so would be significantly difficult or expensive. The Clinton administration has not taken a position on that legislation. But those who lobbied the White House in support of the new guidelines say it would be consistent for the president also to support the Workplace Religious Freedom Act. |