The Politics of Religion: Reasonable Accomodations and the Establishment Clause an Analysis of the Workplace Religious Freedom Act

The Workplace Religious Freedom Act is the focus of this note. The Workplace Religious Freedom Act represents another Congressional attempt to fortify the "reasonable accommodations" and "undue hardship" standards of Title VII with regard to religious discrimination in the workplace; the WRFA does go in the face of Supreme Court decisions which have narrowed the scope of those standards, eased burdens on employers, and valiantly guarded the citadel of the First Amendment's Establishment Clause. Specifically, this note will analyze the potential constitutional infirmity of the Workplace Religious Freedom Act in light of Establishment Clause jurisprudence and the Court's rather murky guidance on the constitutionality of existing Title VII standards. This note ultimately suggests that the WRFA distorts the meaning of "accommodation," places too great a burden on employers, and disproportionately raises religious interests above secular economic concerns of the workplace-all of which add up to a losing battle on the Establishment Clause front.