Utah Expands Employee Religious Protections
The Utah Antidiscrimination Act has been amended to expand religious accommodation requirements for employers under Utah law. The Utah Legislature passed House Bill 396 (H.B. 396), and Governor Spencer Cox signed the bill on March 19, 2024. The new law will go into effect on May 1, 2024. Currently, Section 112 of the Utah Antidiscrimination Act requires employers to allow employees to express “religious or moral beliefs and commitments in the workplace” as long as they do so in a “reasonable, non-disruptive, and non-harassing way.” Section 112 also prohibits retaliation against employees who express religious beliefs outside the workplace “unless the expression is in direct conflict with the essential business-related interests of the employer.” H.B. 396 expands Section 112’s workplace protections by prohibiting employers from making employees engage in “religiously objectionable expression” that the employee reasonably believes would burden or offend the “employee’s ...