Amendment to exclude "religious employers" from CT Civil Union Law

URGENT NOTICE!!!

Opponents of civil union and marriage equality have just filed an amendment that would exempt “religious employers” from the civil union law: “...no religious employer shall be required to provide benefits to a domestic or civil union partner of an employee.”

What this means is that employees of religiously-affiliated hospitals, universities and schools, in addition to employees at individual places of worship, would be denied access to important rights and protections such as family leave or health insurance if they had a civil union or domestic partnership.

Employers should not be able to opt out of important anti-discrimination laws they don’t agree with.

It is unfair to the thousands of employees in same-sex relationships who work in Catholic hospitals or schools to be denied important rights and protections that come with civil unions.

If you are a Connecticut resident, ask your legislators to vote against this amendment in any form, on any bill. Don’t let those who oppose civil unions gut the intent of the legislation before the session is over.

CLICK HERE TO TAKE ACTION!

The full wording of the amendment is as follows:

General Assembly Amendment January Session, 2005

LCO No. 7494

*SB0114707494SRO*

Offered by:

SEN. DELUCA, 32nd Dist.

SEN. KISSEL, 7th Dist.

To: Subst. Senate Bill No. 1147
File No. 710
Cal. No. 493

(As Amended by Senate Amendment Schedule "A")

"AN ACT CONCERNING EMPLOYEE HEALTH SECURITY."

Strike subdivision (1) of section 1 in its entirety and substitute the following in lieu thereof:

"(1) "Dependent" means the spouse, domestic partner, minor child of an employee, or child eighteen years of age or over who is dependent on the employee, provided, no religious employer shall be required to provide benefits to a domestic or civil union partner of an employee. As used in this subdivision, "religious employer" means an employer that is a "qualified church-controlled organization", as defined in 26 USC 3121 or a church-affiliated organization;"