With religious expression becoming a flashpoint in today’s politically charged workplace, nationally recognized employment attorney and author Steven Mitchell Sack, known as “The Employee’s Lawyer®,” is urging employers to walk a legal and ethical tightrope to protect religious freedom while preventing harassment and division among employees.
Sack, host of the podcast “Know Your Job Rights with Attorney Steven Sack” and author of the bestselling book “FIRED! Protect Your Rights & FIGHT BACK,” says the stakes have never been higher for companies navigating how much religious expression is too much — and when silence becomes discrimination.
His comments follow recent high-profile legal developments, including the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Groff v. DeJoy, which expanded the obligation of employers to accommodate religious practices under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act — unless such accommodation imposes an undue hardship on the business or creates a hostile work environment. Multiple federal appeals courts have agreed: religious rights are not a license to disrupt or intimidate in the workplace.
Under new federal guidelines and in light of increasing polarization around faith in public life, employers are now under pressure to get this right. As debates rage from the boardroom to the breakroom, Sack offers practical, legally sound advice to avoid costly missteps.
“Respecting a worker’s faith is critical,” Sack says. “But when an employee crosses the line — telling others their religion is wrong or threatening eternal damnation — that’s no longer religious freedom. That’s harassment. And employers need to step in before it turns into a lawsuit.”