OPM Advocates for Compassionate Decisions in Granting Telework for Religious Reasons

In a recent development, federal agencies are emphasizing the importance of accommodating their employees' religious and disability needs while maintaining operational efficiency.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has encouraged agencies to adopt a "generous approach" when evaluating federal workers' requests for telework and other workplace flexibilities due to religious observances. This guidance comes from a public memo issued by OPM Director Scott Kupor, following his Senate confirmation last week.

The memo refers to the 2023 Supreme Court case Groff v. DeJoy, which states that employers must demonstrate "substantial increased costs" if they deny an employee's religious accommodation request. Agencies must adhere to this standard when addressing religious accommodation requests, ensuring that denials are justified with evidence of significant operational impact.

The Veterans Affairs Department (VA) has started an effort to review the reasonable accommodations for disabled employees who are working from home. The VA's new policy does not appear to be directly related to the Supreme Court case Groff v. DeJoy. However, the VA's guidance states that agencies have an obligation to work with employees who request an accommodation based on a disability. The purpose of the VA's new reasonable accommodation guidance is to ensure these accommodations remain necessary, reasonable, and effective.

Agencies may use a variety of workplace flexibilities to address an employee's religious accommodation request, including telework, compensatory time off, flexible and maxiflex work schedules, and both paid and unpaid leave. Telework, in particular, is often considered a low-cost solution that aligns with the Groff standard, as it typically does not impose substantial operational burdens.

Telework can be particularly useful for accommodating religious holidays or sabbath observances, observing-or preparing to observe-a religious holiday, engaging in religious fasting, or other time-specific prayer observances. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has advocated for a "friendly approach" in evaluating federal employees who request telework and other economic flexibilities due to religious observances.

If telework or flexible work schedules cannot accommodate a religious observance request, employees can earn compensatory time off, working overtime before or after the observance to cover for the hours they would otherwise miss, though without earning the premium pay associated with overtime work.

The VA press secretary, Pete Kasperowicz, stated the new guidance for reasonable accommodations at the VA. This guidance emphasizes equal opportunities for disabled employees in the application process, performing their jobs, and enjoying the same benefits and privileges as non-disabled colleagues.

It is worth noting that the VA's new policy and the OPM's guidance are separate, with the VA focusing on disability accommodations and the OPM on religious observances. Both, however, are rooted in the requirements of Title VII [of the 1964 Civil Rights Act] and the Groff clarification of the 'undue hardship' standard.

This story was updated to include comments from the Veterans Affairs Department. The agencies are urged to honor such requests from their employees, prioritizing employee needs while maintaining operational efficiency.

OPM Advocates for Compassionate Decisions in Granting Telework for Religious Reasons