(June 29, 2023 – Washington, D.C.) A unanimous United States Supreme Court decision issued on June 29, 2023, ruled in favor of religious freedom, determining that employers must honor the religious rights of their employees. As staunch defenders of religious liberty and submitter of an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief in the case, Thomas More Society attorneys are applauding the ruling.

Groff v. DeJoy grew out of the United States Postal Service’s refusal to grant Gerald Groff Sundays off, despite his attempts to work overtime on other days of the week. His employer continually imposed “progressive discipline,” until Groff finally resigned. He then sued under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which states that an employer must demonstrate “undue hardship” to overcome its duty to accommodate religious employees.

Steve Crampton, Senior Counsel for the Thomas More Society, explained the basics of the case, in which the national not-for-profit law firm had filed an amicus brief. The Thomas More Society was joined by the Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty in defending the right of a Christian postal worker to not work on Sundays, in accordance with the tenets of his faith and his Biblical commitment to “honor the Sabbath.”

“The high court upheld Mr. Groff’s rights, clarifying that his employer, the United States Postal Service, must do more than merely show that accommodating a religious employee would cause minimal costs to the employer,” Crampton shared, “thereby substantially strengthening the religious freedom rights of employees.”

A district court granted summary judgment to the Postal Service, and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling based on a 1977 Supreme Court case, Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison, which stated that an employer need only show that accommodation would require more than a minimal cost in order to reject the request.

Crampton noted that because “such a low bar is easily met in almost every case,” the court’s protection for employees with sincere religious beliefs has been “virtually meaningless.”

“This is a tremendous victory for religious freedom,” said Tyler Brooks, Senior Counsel for the Thomas More Society and principal author of its amicus brief in the case. “The de minimis (minimal) rule for protecting against religious discrimination was itself discriminatory against religion. This decision, while long overdue, is a welcome correction of a woefully defective and oppressive rule that permitted employers to freely discriminate against conscientious religious employees. It will go a long way toward providing real protection for sincere religious employees.”

Read the unanimous Opinion of the Supreme Court of the United States, delivered by Justice Samuel Alito, with a concurring opinion filed by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, as issued on June 29, 2023, here.

Read the Brief of the Thomas More Society and the Jewish Coalition for Religious Liberty as Amici Curiae in Support of Petitioner in Groff v. DeJoy, as filed with the Supreme Court of the United States on February 28, 2023, here.

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