The question posted is whether or not it would be legal and/or advisable for Matthew and Thomas to open a manufacturing

facility and restrict hiring to only those who are professed evangelical Christians. My opinion is that the answer is no that it is not legal and neither is it advisable. Civil rights laws prohibit the discrimination of any persons according to their gender, race, religion, national origin, or sexualorientation. Hiring practices cannot be discriminatory to anyone and all candidates must be considered based on their qualifications to perform the required tasks of the job to which they are applying. Specifically in regards to religious preference, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not allow any employer to discriminate against anyone due to their religious practice: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also prohibits government employers, private employers, and unions from discriminating against persons because of their religion. An employer must reasonably accommodate the religious practices of its employees, unless to do so would cause undue hardship to the employers business (Miller & Jentz, 2009, 314). However, a business or organization may include a Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ) as part of their hiring practice which would allow them to hire Christians only and fire any employee who did not profess to be a Christian. However, there are restrictions: This applies to any employer, not just educational institutions, and it permits using religion as a basis for employment in those certain instances where religion, sex, or national origin is a bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to the normal operation of that particular business or enterprise 42 U.S.C.A. (Weiss, 2010). In order to determine whether or not a business or employer may invoke a BFOQ, their services and/or products must be scrutinized to determine if a certain religion would be necessary to the objective and normal operation of that business. In his legal commentary, Dr. John Weiss writes For example, the essence of an airline's business is transporting passengers, not making passengers feel psychologically secure while riding in an airplane, and further argues, If the job in question has been successfully performed by members of other religions without impairing the normal operation of the business, either for the

employer or for employers with similar businesses, then there is no BFOQ. EEOC Compliance Manual, Section 625.3 (Weiss, 2010). There was an instance where four former employees of World Vision filed suit against them because they were fired for not sharing World Visions statement of faith which is invoked as a BFOQ. Ultimately, it was ruled that World Visions hiring requirements were legal based on religious affiliation as they were a faith-based humanitarian organization and [are] exempt from the Civil Rights Act (Miller, 2011). Generally, a manufacturing company only produces goods for a customer and this would not require any particular religious practice, knowledge, or affiliation in order to support the purpose business or its normal operations, thus, restricting hiring to only evangelical Christians would be considered discriminatory and a violation of law. As long as an employee or prospective employees religion would not conflict with the performance of the position, they should be considered only on their ability to perform the duties required. Speaking only by opinion, perhaps if the products produced were specifically religious in naturethe argument for a BFOQ could be made. However, if it could be shown that a person of any religion could still perform the job without impact to the process or product, then it would not be viable. From a the perspective of the Great Commission, the policy of hiring only professing evangelical Christians would not be advisable. Your place of work can sometimes be a great place of ministry to those who do not know Jesus. While a completely Christian staff might grant a certain sense of unity, it will ultimately not accomplish much towards spreading the Gospel to the lost. Rather, a business that is owned/managed by Christians is in a good position to hire people of all beliefs and be able to minister to them. For example, provide extra support (counseling, family activities, etc.) to show particular care and love for their employees or perhaps offer a group Bible study for those who might wish to attend. My answers would certainly change if they planned to open a Christian school instead; legal/advisable. In this case, the intent of a Christian school is to provide not just a solid academic foundation, but a Scriptural one as well, and in building up and edifying young peoples spiritual lives you are preparing the next generation of partakers and participants in the Great Commission. As well as advisable, it is also legal in this case to restrict hiring to only those who are evangelical Christians. Since the purpose and normal operations of a Christian school are to educate youth spirituallyas young Christiansas well as academically,

then it is imperative that the staff shares the same spiritual beliefs. Weiss again states: The bottom line is that a religious school is explicitly allowed to employ people of a particular religion if it is in whole or in substantial part, owned, supported, controlled, or managed by a particular religion or by a particular religious corporation, association, or society, or if the curriculum of such school, college, university, or other educational institution or institution of learning is directed toward the propagation of a particular religion. 42 U.S.C.A. 2000e-2(e)(1)

References Bagley, C.E. & Savage, D.W. 2006. Managers and the Legal Environment: Stragegies for the 21st Century. Mason, Ohio: Thomson West. Miller, Ben. 2011. Supreme Court: World Vision can hire only Christians. Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrived on March 7, 2012 from http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2011/10/03/supremecourt-world-vision-can-hire.html. Weiss, Dr. Jillian Todd. 2007. Legal Commentary. Retrieved on March 7, 2012 from http://www.gendertree.com/Prof_Firing_Legal.htm