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FIRST ON FOX: Federal agencies are now required to protect religious expression in the workplace, according to a new government-wide memo obtained by Fox News Digital on Monday—marking one of the most sweeping moves in decades to defend faith and freedoms in the civil service.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Monday sent guidance to federal agencies across the Trump administration, detailing the new requirements, which ensure federal workers can display Bibles, crucifixes, or mezuzahs on their desks; pray in groups while off-duty; invite colleagues to church; and speak about their religious beliefs, even to the public, without fear of reprisal.
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The memo, titled “Protecting Religious Expression in the Federal Workplace,” was sent to agencies by OPM Director Scott Kupor on Monday, and obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital.
“Federal employees should never have to choose between their faith and their career,” OPM Director Scott Kupor told Fox News Digital. “This guidance ensures the federal workplace is not just compliant with the law but welcoming to Americans of all faiths.”
Kupor added: “Under President Trump’s leadership, we are restoring constitutional freedoms and making government a place where people of faith are respected, not sidelined.”
In the memo, Kupor details that the federal workforce “should be a welcoming place for Federal employees who practice a religious faith.”
“Allowing religious discrimination in the Federal workplace violates the law. It also threatens to adversely impact recruitment and retention of highly-qualified employees of faith,” the memo states. “The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution robustly protects expressions of religious faith by all Americans—including Federal employees.”
Kupor noted that freedom of religious expression is also protected by federal statutes, which “prohibit the federal government from discriminating in employment based on religion or religious expression.”
“This memorandum provides guidance to agencies on robustly protecting and enforcing each Federal employee’s right to engage in religious expression in the Federal workplace consistent with the U.S. Constitution, Title VII, and other applicable sources of law,” Kupor wrote in the memo. “Agencies should allow personal religious expression by Federal employees to the greatest extent possible unless such expression would impose an undue hardship on business operations. And they should review and (if necessary) revise their internal policies to ensure that they appropriately protect religious expression.”
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Kupor details examples of religious expressions that are permissible—including employees keeping Bibles on their desk and reading it during breaks; keeping rosary beads or tefillin on their desks, and using those items to pray during breaks.
Kupor notes that agencies “may restrict all posters, but an agency may not single out religious posters, such as those of a crucifix, a Bible verse, or a Star of David, for harsher treatment.”
“An employee may wear a cross, as well as clothing displaying a religious message,” Kupor wrote.
Kupor also detailed appropriate conversations between federal employees about religion.
“During a break, an employee may engage another in polite discussion of why his faith is correct and why the non-adherent should re-think his religious beliefs. However, if the non-adherent requests such attempts to stop, the employee should honor the request,” Kupor wrote. “An employee may invite another to worship at her church despite being belonging to a different faith.”
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Kupor added: “On a bulletin board meant for personal announcements, a supervisor may post a hand-written note inviting each of his employees to attend an Easter service at his church.”
As for expressions directed at members of the public, Kupor gave an example that “a park ranger leading a tour through a national park may join her tour group in prayer,” and “a doctor at a Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital may pray over his patient for her recovery.”
The OPM memo comes following President Trump’s executive orders on eradicating anti-Christian bias and establishing a Religious Liberty Commission.
The memo also builds on OPM’s guidance from earlier this month on reasonable accommodations for religious purposes.
Trump signed an executive order establishing a White House Faith Office in February.
The office empowers faith-based entities, community organizations and houses of worship “to better serve families and communities,” according to the White House.
The office is housed under the Domestic Policy Council and consults with experts in the faith community on policy changes to “better align with American values.”
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