Religious freedom, inc: Business, religion and the law in the secular economy

Abstract

This article focuses on the rise of corporate religious freedom in EU law. In general, this legal category might be associated with not only a positive dimension (corporate freedom of religion) but also with a negative one (corporate freedom from religion). The present article centres around the latter, underscoring how the CJEU has taken for granted the necessity of neutrality within the private business world in reaching a decision in the case of Achbita v G4S Secure Solutions. And, in addition, to highlight how churches (but also the Belgian branch of a provider of secure global logistic services) can discriminate on religious grounds under Directive 2000/78EC. This article explains how the judicial extension of conscience exemptions from non-discrimination laws for religious institutions to a secular for-profit corporation has signalled a new 'religious institutionalism' in tension with employment and human rights law. Accordingly, if that is how secular commercial businesses have become 'religious' under the EU Single Market, this article calls for a new approach to employer/employees conflicts through a 'freedom of the church' analysis.