Carl Crosby Lehmann

Gray Plant Mooty
Minneapolis, Minnesota
www.GPMLaw.com
Carl.Lehmann@GPMLaw.com
(612) 632-3234

Carl has significant experience in advising employers on personnel matters, drafting employment policies and agreements, and litigating employers’ interests in both administrative and judicial proceedings. Carl’s practice includes advising employers in personnel-related matters, including terminations, discrimination and sexual harassment issues, defamation claims, employment and independent contractor agreements, noncompete and confidentiality agreements, wage-hour concerns, voluntary and mandatory affirmative action policies, and insurance issues.

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Q. An employee sent a companywide e-mail inviting employees to attend a morning prayer and Bible study prior to work that will be held on the company premises. Do we have to allow this (or do we have to shut it down)? — C.W., Florida

A. No, you don’t have to shut it down. Whether you have to allow it largely depends upon how the company makes its facilities available to other, nonreligious groups. If you allow an employee book club or gardening group to use the facilities for its meetings (and the e-mail system for publicity purposes), then it could be seen as religious discrimination to deny the same benefits to another group of employees who want to meet for Bible study.

If on the other hand, the company does not make its facilities available to employees for nonbusiness purposes, then it’s your call whether to allow this group to meet.