Christian School May Use Oregon's Religious Exemption To Reject Jewish Faculty Applicant

In King v. Warner Pacific College, (OR App, Feb. 21, 2019), an Oregon state appellate court held that a Christian college's refusal to hire a Jewish applicant for a position as adjunct professor of psychology falls within the religious preference exemption to Oregon's non-discrimination law.  ORS 659A.006(4)provides:

It is not an unlawful employment practice for a bona fide ... religious institution, including ... a school... to prefer an employee, or an applicant for employment, of one religious sect or persuasion over another if:  (a) The religious sect or persuasion to which the employee or applicant belongs is the same as that of the ... institution; ... [and]  (c) The employment involved is closely connected with or related to the primary purposes of the ... institution....

The court held that the exemption allows the school to reject a non-Christian applicant and await a later hiring cycle to fill the position, or to assign the work to an existing Christian employee.  A majority of the judges also held that this particular faculty position met the requirement of being closely connected to the school's religious purpose.