Author Archives: RFBF

Photo: WASHINGTON, DC – OCT. 8, 2019 – Rally for LGBTQ rights outside Supreme Court as Justices hear oral arguments in three cases dealing with discrimination in the workplace because of sexual orientation.

by Brian J. Grim

The Supreme Court decided on Monday that U.S. civil rights law prohibits employers from discriminating against workers on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. The 6-3 decision extends federal workplace protections to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees nationwide.

As reported in the WSJ, only 22 states have passed laws that protect LGBT employees from workplace discrimination. For workers in the states with no such laws, the ruling could make a big difference.

The ruling leaves unanswered the full impact on faith-based employers in the US and creates a need for more legal clarity on religious protections. However, as I explain below, data suggest that this new ruling need not undermine religious freedom but could result in higher religious freedom.

The concern for more clarity and reinforced protections for religious freedom is expressed eloquently by Hal Boyd and Robert Snyder is how to balance the areas where certain religious beliefs run counter to the law of the land:

As Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority today in its 6-3 ruling protecting LGBTQ workers, “the promise of the free exercise of religion … lies at the heart of our pluralistic society.” This promise, however, requires concerted vigilance as new majorities and minorities emerge. For religious individuals and employers in this country, a number of questions remain.

Though well-intentioned, the ruling may unleash potential legal problems for faith-based organizations, including schools and universities. Its reasoning also raises substantial questions about entirely benign separations of sexes at work, such as with restrooms, locker rooms and so forth.

Truth, the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard once observed, “always rests with the minority, and the minority is always stronger than the majority, because the minority is generally formed by those who really have an opinion.” But soon, Kierkegaard wrote, the strength of the minority view captures the majority.

The Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance responded as follows:

The U.S. Supreme Court today extended federal employment protection to LGBT employees in a decision that affirms that important issues remain, including uncertainties for religious employers. The Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance affirms extending federal protections to LGBT employees. Congress should act to resolve the uncertainties for religious employers by adopting H.R. 5331, known as the Fairness for All Act.

For reactions to the various legislation seeking to resolve the uncertainties, see here, and for a discussion of the institutional religious freedom concerns, see here.

Three bits of data can help in providing some perspective on these concerns.

First, it is a false dichotomy to put religious people on one side and LGBT people on the other side of the issue. The Pew Research Center’s data show that while LGBT people are not as religious as the general population, nearly one-in-two identify as Christian (see chart below). And further, and additional 11 percent identify with other faiths, meaning about 6-in-10 LGBT people identify with a religious faith.

While the Pew data are a bit dated now, a more recent survey of LGBT people had similar findings.

Second, by way of perspective, although the Supreme Court decision for the first time extends federal workplace protections to LGBT employees nationwide, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) has already been interpreting the foundational Civil Rights law to include sexual orientation:

“Under the laws enforced by EEOC, it is illegal to discriminate against someone (applicant or employee) because of that person’s race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.” – EEOC Prohibited Employment Policies/Practices [bolded to highlight]

In fact, the EEOC has been tracking complaints of workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation since 2013, a practice that has continued during the Trump administration. And despite much attention being paid by corporate America to combat LGBT workplace discrimination, cases of LGBT discrimination have been on the rise.

But an important part of this context is that the EEOC also consistently tracks complaints of workplace discrimination on the basis of religion.  In FY 2019 there were 2,725 reported cases of religious discrimination compared with 1,868 reported cases of LGBT-based discrimination, as shown in the chart.

While complaints of religious discrimination outnumber those of sexual orientation, the trends are important to note. As the EEOC has paid attention to LGBT bias, the number of religiously biased cases has decreased, also as shown in the chart. This is an indication that concern over one form of discrimination may translate into an overall less discriminatory environment for other protected classes.

Third, there is evidence globally that this pattern of attention paid to LGBT discrimination coincides with decreased religious discrimination.

In 2019, as a social scientist studying the economic value of religious freedom worldwide (see my latest report), I took note of a new study showing that the economies of countries did better when they protected the rights of LGBT people to live openly without discrimination and enjoy equal rights, personal autonomy, and freedom of expression and association. That raised a question: If both are positively correlated with global economic growth, what is their relationship to each other?

The answer found by the study surprised many. When religious freedom is protected, LGBT people fare better, and vice versa: when LGBT people are protected, religious freedom increases.

It was surprising because “religious freedom” (in the U.S. at least) has become a divisive issue in, mostly centered on issues related to sexuality and marriage. One side sees religious freedom as a protection against having to accommodate things they cannot conscientiously support, e.g., same-sex marriage. The other side sees that argument as discriminatory and a violation of civil rights law especially now that same-sex marriage is legal throughout the US.

You can find the complete study here. The main findings are: First, countries with higher levels of religious freedom have higher levels of LGBT rights. Or put another way, religious freedom fosters a positive environment for LGBT people. Second, support for LGBT rights is increasing in countries with higher levels of religious freedom. Third, religious freedom is likewise higher in countries where there is higher support for LGBT rights. And fourth, countries with low levels of social hostilities involving religion have higher support for LGBT rights.

While some may see the Supreme Court decision as threat to religious freedom, the data show the opposite: where one community is protected, both are better protected.

Being Religiously Inclusive Promotes Racial and Broader Inclusion

As part of the initial launch of the Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index, the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF) analyzed the level of attention Fortune 100 companies place not only on religion, but also the following categories: race/ethnicity, women/gender, sexual orientation, veterans/military, dis/ability, age, and family (see “Topline for Diversity Other Than Religion“). RFBF calculated scores for each category by summing the mentions of each topic on the companies’ diversity and inclusion pages along with the weighted score for the number and diversity of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) related to each category.

We then calculate the average score for each category among the 48 companies that do not acknowledge religion on their diversity and inclusion or ERGs landing pages as well as for the 53 companies that have some acknowledgement of religion (including images or videos) on their diversity and inclusion or ERGs landing pages. This allows us to then calculate a “religion dividend” (an indication of the positive association of acknowledging religion with the company’s commitment to the other categories of diversity) by subtracting the average category score for the 48 companies not acknowledging religion from the average score for the 53 companies that have some acknowledgement of religion, as shown in the table below. Note that the range of diversity category scores reflect the amount of attention companies pay to each. Therefore, the better gauge of the religion dividend is the percentage increase in the category score.

The level of focus companies place on each of the seven diversity categories is higher among companies that acknowledge religion than among companies that do not. We refer to this positive association between companies that place focus on religious inclusion and their commitment to the other categories of diversity as a “religion dividend.” For example, companies focusing on religion score 69% higher on age inclusion, 63% higher on veterans/military inclusion, 60% higher on dis/ability inclusion, and 47% higher on race/ethnicity inclusion. Sizable “religion dividends” include companies acknowledging religion scoring 35% higher for women/gender inclusion and 31% higher on family inclusion. While the smallest religion dividend is for sexual orientation (scoring 4% higher), it is still notable that the relationship is positive. This also coincides with global RFBF research showing that religious freedom fosters a positive environment for LGBT people, and that LGBT rights are increasing in countries with higher levels of religious freedom.

Also see Racial Justice Requires Religious Freedom.

Photo: Washington, DC, USA – June 5 2020: Street sign at the newly designated Black Lives Matter Plaza, with the steeple of St. John’s Episcopal Church in the background

by Brian J. Grim

Shock, outrage and calls for justice over the heartless murder of George Floyd under the knee of a white police officer continue to grow across America and the world. Communities of faith are at the forefront of the growing movement to address racial prejudice. It is cutting across party lines, as was seen when Republican Senator Mitt Romney joined a march this weekend organized by Christian churches in the Washington area, carrying signs that based their call for racial equality in the Bible.

And as Reuters reports, it is cutting across faith lines too. Conservative and mainstream religious leaders are joining with Black churches, progressive Catholics and Protestants, Jewish synagogues and other faith groups in calling for police reforms and efforts to dismantle racism.

“We’re seeing it at the grassroots level. We’re seeing rabbis walking alongside Muslim leaders, walking alongside Catholic priests and religious sisters,” said Johnny Zokovitch, executive director of Pax Christi USA, a national Catholic peace and justice group. “We are seeing that race cuts across all religious denominations.”

The flood of visible religious engagement included clergy from the Episcopal diocese of Washington DC distributing water in support of protesters demonstrating in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church, directly across Lafayette Plaza from the White House. The church was damaged in the protests and, as the demonstrators were forcefully removed from the square, it became the site of a highly controversial Bible-in-hand photo op for President Trump.

Religious freedom’s clear role in this event is that the Episcopal leaders and many other faith leaders had the freedom to call out what they saw as co-opting religion for political purposes. The perceived political use of the Bible has even split Evangelicals, who are generally more supportive of Trump.

Religious freedom allows not only dissent by religious figures but also faith-based arguments to be heard in the public square, such as those made more than five decades ago by Rev. Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr.

Loving Your Enemies, MLK, Jr.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” – Matthew 5:43-45

Probably no admonition of Jesus has been more difficult to follow than the command to “love your enemies”.  Some men have sincerely felt that its actual practice is not possible.  It is easy, they say, to love those who love you, but how can one love those who openly and insidiously seek to defeat you?  Others, like the philosopher Nietzche, contend that Jesus’ exhortation to love one’s enemies is testimony to the fact that the Christian ethic is designed for the weak and cowardly, and not for the strong and courageous.  Jesus, they say, was an impractical idealist. …

Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love an do that. Hate multiplies, hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. So when Jesus says “Love your Enemies” he is setting forth a profound and ultimately inescapable admonition.

(Read Rev. Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr.’s full sermon,  Love_Your_Enemies.)

Indeed, because the world is so religious — with more than 8-in-10 people following a faith — and because governments will always be tempted to curry their favor in ways that break the Golden Rule and the Rule of Loving Your Enemies — as shown in The Price of Freedom Denied — religious freedom ensures that religion has the power to resist co-optation and remain prophetic and pertinent.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Compilation: Love Your Enemies Speech and Tribute Footage

Also see A Lesson on Race & Religion for Corporate America.

by Kent Johnson, RFBF Senior Corporate Advisor, comments at the start of the monthly Faith and Belief Employee Resource Group community call, June 2, 2020

There’s a light at the end of the long tunnel of cynicism and distrust that divides and enflames people today. Kent Johnson’s comments at the start of this month’s vignettes from American Airlines spotlight the significance of a workplace movement that’s bringing people together across the world. There’s hope.

Today we again spotlight and celebrate a change that’s gaining momentum worldwide: an appreciation of the significance of faith and belief in daily work.

Expressions of faith and belief are still considered inappropriate in many workplaces.  But the personal stories shared by leaders in this series illustrate how that is changing.

We don’t want anybody to miss the significance of this change. 

This isn’t JUST about making workplaces more welcoming, more inclusive, more comfortable and more vibrant; though it is that. It’s not JUST about strengthening profitability and recruitment and collaboration, or strengthening corporate cultures, though we’re hearing lots of stories about all of those.

There’s something even more powerful and life-changing going on here.

Our point is this:  As you hear these personal stories of faith and belief at work, consider their HEALING effect. ESPECIALLY as we see racial discord around the murder of George Floyd.

We’ve seen reconciliation take place across divides that are often presumed to be hostile.

1. (1) Devout Muslims and Jews and atheists, connecting in meaningful friendships; and collaborating together in outreach to the needy.
2. (2) Deep respect, kindness and admiration prevailing between LGBTQ people and advocates of traditional faiths.
3. (3) Evangelical Christians, Hindus and Buddhists eagerly learning about one another’s beliefs and how those beliefs relate to the workplace.
4. (4) Expressions of joy as people are acknowledged for who they truly are, beneath the surface.

This movement is at war with a prevailing culture of divisiveness.  It stands opposed to the cynicism and distrust that characterizes much of public dialogue today:

• ⇒ The kind of cynicism that presumes that people who are “not like us” are driven by hateful motives.
• ⇒ That “they” distrust us; and they consider themselves better than us.
• ⇒ That I’d need to change before they’d consider me a worthwhile human being.

This movement for freedom of religion and belief is healing deep tears in the fabric of civility:

• ⇒ rifts that are perpetrated when people are ignorant and suspicious of one another’s core values and beliefs.

There’s hope.

• ⇒ This healing work is happening
• ⇒ Right in our workplaces
• ⇒ Thousands of times a day; in personal connections.
• ⇒ We’re seeing examples right here.
• ⇒ This is a significant development.

There’s Hope! from Religious Freedom & Business Foundation on Vimeo.

“We are at a global tipping point, a once-in-a-generation opportunity to move the world in a new direction.” — Brian Grim

With challenges as diverse as the global pandemic, a superpower trade war, and unresolved racial disparities, perspective is desperately needed.

Brian Grim is no stranger to world-changing events, perhaps channeling a bit of Forrest Gump, he walked through the Berlin Wall the day it fell; the Soviet Union was dissolved in his office building, and the next week the president of the new country of Kazakhstan asked him and his faith-based NGO to help set up the country’s first western style business school in what was, until then, the training academy for communist party cadres.

Since then Grim has become involved in helping companies, governments and leaders understand and embrace how religious freedom benefits business and the economy. This is important to know coming out of the global pandemic when all of us need to get back to work.

Brian Grim to Keynote Global Human Intelligence Forum

Friday, June 5, 3:10pm / NYC Time, Grim will keynote the virtual Forum streaming from Sydney, Australia. Tickets for the Forum can be purchased here.

LIVE – Online
June 03|04|05 /NYC 3-10pm /LA 12-7pm
(June 04|05|06 /Sydney 5am-12pm)

The Forum allows you to experience 3 days with a group of leaders, to go deep into four areas:

1 – Forward Conversations to remove any uncertainty, to make better decisions and the need to take advantage of opportunities to prepare for the future.

2 – New Insights to stretch outside the norm into the power of resilience, learning through human intelligence and from those who have walked the pathway ahead of you.

3 – Proven Solutions to make quick turnarounds to extend your capacity to scale and therefore to master the long term results.

4 – Culture Shifts to engage in the willingness to shift mindsets, to reach the next level of peak performance, impact and the freedom to succeed.

This is an opportunity to hear from keynote speakers who are global leaders in their industry.
To learn what has worked, won’t work going forward and evolving solutions at the decision table.

The Speakers

“Open and honest discussion of core beliefs helps maintain a flourishing culture.” — Kent Johnson (video)

Speaking at the weekly COVIDxNOW meeting of business leaders, Kent Johnson, Senior Corporate Advisor for the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, powerfully outlines the important role that faith and religious freedom have in addressing the spiritual, emotional and economic impact of Covid-19 (watch).

COVIDxNOW Global Economic Leaders Consortium is aimed at unlocking all possible solutions to the impacts of COVID-19 and in the process creating hope, opportunity and job creation across the globe. COVIDxNOW is galvanizing global leaders from all sectors to generate “fast response solutions” to address social, health and economic impact of the Covid-19 outbreak. As an initiative of The EBW Foundation (Empowering a Billion Women) the COVIDxNOW team is actively seeking and recruiting leaders from around the world who are innovating revolutionary solutions to combat the impact of COVID-19.

Religious Freedom Week, Sao Paulo, Brazil

May 25 is the State Day of Religious Freedom. During this week a sequence of online events celebrating religious freedom is being held  under the leadership of Congresswoman Dr. Damaris Moura. See Brian Grim’s talk (dubbed into Portuguese).

The World in View

The coronavirus pandemic is impacting different spheres of human activity worldwide. Many countries are heading for unprecedented recessions.

Join RFBF President Brian Grim this Thursday with Azza Karam (Religions for Peace), Jeffrey Franks (IMF) and Cole Durham (BYU) to discuss how different sectors are responding.

COVID-19: Business, Religion, Economics

Thursday, May 21 at 9:00-10:00 AM EDT (Washington DC) 3:00-4:00 PM CEST (Brussels).

Register here.

The Coronavirus pandemic is impacting different spheres of human activity. Many countries are heading for unprecedented recessions. The crisis will therefore lead to relevant changes. The aim of this webinar is to address how the pandemic is impacting the world and the contribution of the business sector, world religions and international organizations like the International Monetary Fund.

The following issues will be addressed:
– Economic context of the global pandemic and its impact on religious groups
– Contribution of world religions and its impact on businesses and public finances
– Initiatives of international organizations

Panelists (download biographies):
Brian Grim, Ph.D., President, Religious Freedom & Business Foundation
Azza Karam, Ph.D., Secretary General, Religions for Peace
Jeffrey Franks, Ph.D., Asst. Dir., Europe., International Monetary Fund

Chair:
Prof. Cole W. Durham, International Center for Law and Religion Studies, Brigham Young University

Topic: Faith-Oriented ERGs’ Response at American Airlines to Covid-19

• ⇒ What:  Community Call for Faith and Belief Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)
• ⇒ Featuring:  Leaders of American Airlines’s various Faith & Belief EBRGs
• ⇒ When:  Tuesday, June 2, 2020
• ⇒ Time:  12pm EDT; 11am CDT; 09am PDT
• ⇒ Host:  Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF)
• ⇒ Moderator:  Kent Johnson
• ⇒ Registration (FREE) Required:  Register Now
• ⇒ Join Faith & Belief ERG LinkedIn Group:  Join Now
• ⇒ Questions?  Email RFBF

Note: Will not be recorded and is off the record (Chatham House Rule)

Faith-Oriented Employee Resource Groups throughout the world are helping inspire compassionate and effective responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. The June 2 call will feature insights from the faith-and-belief-related Employee Business Resource Groups (EBRGs) of American Airlines.

This is the third in a series of monthly interfaith ERG community calls. The first featured insights from Intel and the second various faith ERGs at American Express. The next call will be Tuesday, July 7, with Salesforce hosting the call.

Background Concept

by Kent Johnson, Senior Corporate Advisor, RFBF

The Covid-19 crisis spotlights another threatening illness in companies and society today: The apparent lack of authenticity, transparency and trust.

Especially during this time when we’re barred from in-person interaction, coworkers need to go deeper; to get more personal – and more authentic. We need deep connections among people collaborating all over the world – including people who differ in their faiths and beliefs, but who share core personal motivations to promote honesty, compassion and unselfishness.  This need will remain after Covid-19 is defeated.

Faith-and-Belief-oriented Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) have a lot to offer in this crisis. The Religious Freedom & Business Foundation’s (RFBF’s) online conferences promote freedom of expression about faith and core values in the workplace. RFBF’s rigorous studies illustrate how this freedom enables human flourishing.  We celebrate companies that do this well, especially those that encourage employees to bring their full authentic selves to work, including their faith. And we see increasing evidence that companies are increasingly embracing faith-oriented ERGs as enormously beneficial for business – and for society at large.

We’re thankful that many of you are joining us in this hope-filled venture for a cure to the lack of authenticity, transparency and trust. And we are also pleased to announce the launch of the first-ever LinkedIn Group for Faith and Belief ERGs. Please join our LINKEDIN GROUP to share your thoughts and to stay in touch.

Learn about RFBF’s Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index:

• Most employee groups are focused around gender, minorities – but faith groups are gaining steam

• May 7, 2020 By Marcel Vander Wier*

“Faith-based employee groups are gaining steam in the United States, according to Brian Grim, founder and president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation in Annapolis, Maryland.

While companies such as American Express and American Airlines have been supporting these groups for 20 years, fresh support from Google, Facebook and Walmart have boosted the popularity of the workplace faith groups, he says.

‘There is — just in recent years — an acceleration of that trend among companies such as Walmart, who now have started their own interfaith employee group,’ says Grim. ‘Others like Salesforce started less than three years ago and it’s now their fastest-growing employee group.’

Largely driven by worker demand, employee faith-based groups have a positive effect on recruitment and retention, as it encourages staff to bring their whole selves to work, he says.”

Read full article.

* Talent Canada makes the business case for investing in HR to a new and critical audience – C-suite professionals and senior decision-makers at companies of all sizes across Canada. It is designed to catch the attention of professionals who don’t hold HR titles but understand the value of people.