From the Spencer County Leader (Dale):
Q: A monastery wishes to place an employment ad with the requirement that applicants be male. Is this legal?
A: If the monastery’s religious beliefs prohibit women from working in the monastery or being in the monastery, it could argue that being male is a bona fide occupational qualification for the job.
Otherwise, the gender-specific language could be deemed discriminatory.
I suggest you ask whether being male is a necessity for the job, explaining that you don’t want the monastery to get in trouble with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission.
If the monastery insists on the language, any liability for the employment ad falls on the monastery, not the newspaper.
Contact Steve Key, HSPA executive director and general counsel, with media law questions at skey@hspa.com or (317) 624-4427.
