The San Diego County clerk is going back on a pledge to accommodate the religious beliefs of deputy clerks who don't want to perform same-sex "marriages."
County Clerk Greg Smith originally agreed not to make deputy clerks who objected on religious grounds perform same-sex "marriages." But when 14 of the 30 deputies normally assigned to that duty wanted to opt out, Smith changed his mind. Glen Lavy, senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, notes that while only 30 employees routinely perform weddings, 112 deputy clerks are authorized to do so. "That would seem to be a pretty easy accommodation," the attorney observes. "It's interesting, though, the fact that so many of the clerks are unwilling to perform this act shows that there is not the broad-based support for redefining marriage that our opponents claim." Lavy says Smith's decision to force the clerks to choose between their religious beliefs and their jobs violates Title VII laws against employment discrimination. "The federal Constitution protects religious freedom in the First Amendment -- that is our first liberty," he points out. "[But] when a state employer will not allow its employees to carry into effect their religious liberty, there's something terribly wrong." And even the clerk's offer to let those employees transfer to other county jobs may not fulfill the legal requirement to accommodate their religious beliefs, says Lavy. "It would depend upon whether that had an adverse impact on their career," he explains. "If it reduced their salary [or] if it reduced their opportunities in the future, then that would not really be an ordinary understanding of accommodation." Other California county clerks simply asked for volunteers to take the place of those who had religious objections to performing same-sex ceremonies.
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