111.365 Communication of opinions; exceptions and special cases.

(1) Employment discrimination because of declining to attend a meeting or to participate in any communication about religious matters or political matters includes all of the following:

(a) Discharging or otherwise discriminating against an employee because the employee declines to attend an employer-sponsored meeting or to participate in any communication with the employer or with an agent, representative, or designee of the employer, the primary purpose of which is to communicate the opinion of the employer about religious matters or political matters.

(b) Threatening to discharge or otherwise discriminate against an employee as a means of requiring the employee to attend a meeting or participate in a communication described in par. (a).

(2) Notwithstanding s. 111.322, it is not employment discrimination because of declining to attend a meeting or to participate in any communication about religious matters or political matters for an employer to refuse to hire or employ an individual, to suspend or terminate the employment of an individual, or to discriminate against an individual in promotion, in compensation, or in terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because the individual declines to attend a meeting or to participate in a communication described in sub. (1) (a) if any of the following applies:

(a) The employer is a religious association not organized for private profit or an organization or corporation that is primarily owned or controlled by such a religious association and the primary purpose of the meeting or communication is to communicate the employer's religious beliefs, tenets, or practices.

(b) The employer is a political organization, including a political party or any other organization that engages, in substantial part, in political activities, and the primary purpose of the meeting or communication is to communicate the employer's political tenets or purposes.

(c) The primary purpose of the meeting or communication is to communicate information about religious matters or political matters that the employer is required by law to communicate and no information is communicated about those matters beyond what is legally required.

(3) This section and s. 111.322 do not limit any of the following:

(a) The application of s. 11.1207.

(b) The right of an employer's executive, managerial, or administrative personnel to discuss issues relating to the operation of the employer's program, business, or enterprise, including issues arising under this section.

(c) The right of an employer to offer meetings or other communications about religious matters or political matters for which attendance or participation is strictly voluntary.

History: 2009 a. 290; 2015 a. 117; s. 35.17 correction in (1) (a).