According to the Chicago Tribune, a prominent refugee resettlement agency, World Relief, has enacted a policy that requires new employees to be Christians.  World Relief is an arm of the National Association of Evangelicals, an organization that has represented a diverse array of Evangelical churches and parishioners since 1942.  The agency receives about 65% of its budget from the federal government and assists 40% of refugees resettling in the U.S.  According to its mission statement, World Relief empowers the local Church to serve the most vulnerable, and its “staff and volunteers help thousands of refugees – victims of war and persecution – replant their lives in the United States.”  The agency has 23 offices across the U.S., and is the biggest evangelical refugee resettlement agency in America.  From the World Relief website:

In[its United States] offices, World Relief offers legal support, job training and English classes to immigrants.  In Baltimore, a Legal Services clinic reaches out to thousands of clients each year—helping them fill out paperwork, joining them at hearings and ensuring they understand their rights and responsibilities.  World Relief is also engaged in advocacy for immigration and refugee policy. 

One “unfortunate part” of World Relief’s selective hiring policy is that it could conflict with professional guidelines for social workers and clinical psychologists.  As a result, the agency’s mental health unit was forced to close down and refer its clients elsewhere.  Though current employees don’t necessarily have to be Christian, they risk termination if they don’t affirm the organization’s Christian mission statement “to follow Jesus by living holy, humble and honest lives.”  Non-Christian employees in hard-to-replace roles can apply for an exemption, but they must sign the Christian statement of faith if they ever change positions.

Already some employees are searching for new employment and some funders have decided not to renew grants.  The World Relief  interim director, the Rev. Brad Morris, said the hiring policy has nothing to do with the services provided and that he doesn’t see a conflict.  “I don’t believe it’s discrimination. It’s an internal hiring policy,” he said.