Bismarck, N.D. — More than 9,000 Catholic employers are exempt from federal regulations that protect employees seeking abortions and fertility treatments, according to a ruling from a federal judge in North Dakota issued this week.
Last year, the Catholic Benefits Association along with the Bismarck Diocese filed a lawsuit against the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), arguing that the agency’s regulations and guidelines “overstepped” their religious rights.
U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor subsequently granted a preliminary injunction to temporarily prevent enforcement of the EEOC’s final rule pertaining to the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and guidelines for harassment protections that encompass gender identity within sex-based discrimination.
On Tuesday, Traynor issued a permanent injunction against these regulations, ruling that the association and the diocese had successfully demonstrated that the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act infringed upon a federal law that safeguards religious freedom.
The judge noted that the facts and evidence in the case remained unchanged since his initial injunction last year.
In his previous statement, he remarked: “It is a precarious time for individuals of faith in America. It has been described as a post-Christian age. One indication of this alarming perspective may be the repeated unlawful and unconstitutional administrative actions against one of our nation’s founding principles: the free exercise of religion.”
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act came into effect in 2023, mandating that covered employers provide reasonable accommodations for their employees’ pregnancy or childbirth-related needs. In 2024, the EEOC established the rule to implement this law alongside its harassment enforcement guidance.
In earlier court documents, the association and the diocese asserted, “The cumulative effect of the EEOC’s directives is that they compel CBA Members, in conflict with their Catholic beliefs, to accommodate employees’ abortions and morally objectionable fertility treatments, to use incorrect pronouns as requested by transitioning employees, to refrain from articulating Catholic teachings on sexual matters, and to allow employees of one sex access to private spaces designated for the other sex.”
The EEOC had previously requested the judge to deny a permanent injunction, asserting that the plaintiffs could not substantiate their claims.
Attorney Martin Nussbaum expressed that his clients are “very grateful to the federal judiciary for upholding religious freedom rights” in this and prior cases involving the association.
“One trend we’ve observed is a growing inclination among certain federal administrations—and in some states—to not only enforce immoral benefits but also to impose speech codes that contradict Catholic values,” Nussbaum noted, referencing the commission’s harassment guidelines. “These speech codes extend beyond just pronouns to include addressing Catholic teaching, and we are thankful to this court for safeguarding the freedom of speech for Catholic organizations as well.”
The Associated Press reached out to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for comments regarding this ruling.
The Catholic Benefits Association supports over 9,000 Catholic employers and has approximately 164,000 employees enrolled in its health plans, as stated on its website.
