A systems engineer is suing Honeywell after higher-ups “forced” him to undergo training on how to recognize and address unconscious bias, claiming the company-wide program “violated his sincerely held religious beliefs.”
Justin Wright, a practicing Christian who says he “adheres to biblical teachings on human equality and morality,” argues that the multinational conglomerate — which earns billions of dollars from federal, state, and local government contracts – was itself biased for sponsoring Pride parades, holding events for disabled and transgender employees, and allowing African-Americans, Latinos, Asians, and women to create in-house support networks.
“On the other hand, there was no faith-based corporate messaging or invitations to faith-centered events,” Wright, 38, argues in a federal civil rights lawsuit obtained by The Independent.
Wright’s complaint, which was filed in Atlanta on February 28, alleges his Christianity subjected him to “antagonism” and “disparate treatment” compared to racial minorities, as well as members of the LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming communities. Those groups, the complaint states, were “welcomed and given special status throughout the corporation,” while employees holding “faith-based, religious beliefs were not only disfavored but actively discriminated against.”
Honeywell “sent a clear message” that Wright “must check his sincere religious beliefs at the door when he comes to work and accept a worldview that rejects his faith,” according to the complaint.
“In fact,” it contends, “Honeywell made it clear that the belief system it espoused and required for continued employment forced employees to abandon their sincerely held religious beliefs or face immediate termination.”
The filing comes amid a wholesale purge by the Trump administration of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives across the federal government. In 2020, at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, Donald Trump visited a Honeywell factory producing facemasks, and, without bothering to wear a mask himself, complimented the “incredible patriotic and hardworking men and women of Honeywell… making high-quality N95 respirators.” Honeywell is a major player in the defense sector, making engines for military helicopters, missile system components, and advanced weaponry used by armies the world over.
The Department of Defense recently flagged more than 26,000 images for deletion from a public repository in an effort to remove any content highlighting diversity efforts, among them pictures of the first women to successfully complete Marine Corps infantry training, the pioneering Black military aviators known as the Tuskegee Airmen, and, in what appeared to be an inadvertent error, photos of the Enola Gay, the B-29 aircraft that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima in World War II, simply because the description contained the word “gay.”
Large swaths of the private sector have also taken it upon themselves to dismantle DEI programs in line with the moves made by the White House, including Goldman Sachs, Walmart, Google, Meta, and Target.
In 2023, a New York State appeals court ruled against a school district employee who was fired for refusing to attend a compulsory anti-bias training, and sued on religious grounds. It upheld an earlier decision by a district court judge who found the plaintiff had not been terminated due to any sort of faith-based discrimination, but rather, for “repeatedly refusing to attend a mandatory employee training.”
Honeywell did not respond to requests for comment.
Wright was hired by Honeywell in 2019, and worked on projects for customers that included Lockheed Martin and Boeing, according to his complaint. It says he was never disciplined for any performance issues and worked well with others.
In 2020, Honeywell, like a significant number of U.S. companies, began requiring employees to undergo unconscious bias training, the complaint states. Wright completed it in 2022, although the complaint offers no reason for the two-year gap. However, it says Wright “walked away from the training with a belief that [it] violated his sincerely held religious beliefs.”
“Justin believes that, as a Christian, all humans are made in the image of God and have worth regardless of any immutable characteristic,” the complaint goes on. “Justin believes that focusing solely on people’s immutable characteristics perpetuates derision and division between people and that this is contrary to his religious beliefs. The unconscious bias training Justin was forced to attend was based on the premise that people’s immutable characteristics are their defining attributes and that people are naturally divided by these attributes.”
Wright, according to his complaint, “believes that a person may harbor no biases.”
On top of the mandatory training, Wright objected to Honeywell’s “emphasis” on the importance of employees’ race, sex, and sexual preference, sponsoring events, podcasts, and affinity groups for them, such as the “Heighten Your Professional Experience Employee Network,” which the complaint describes as an “inclusion and diversity advocacy group.” But when Wright emailed HR about setting up a Christian employee network, he says he didn’t hear back.
Often, corporations go beyond a “one-and-done” approach, and provide yearly diversity refresher courses. In mid-2024, Wright was scheduled to sit for another unconscious bias session, the complaint states. This time, it says he objected, in writing, to his direct manager and upper management, telling them that completing the training “would require him to endorse a worldview in direct conflict with his faith.”
“I am only asking that the rights granted to all Honeywell employees to protect their own autonomy be extended to me as well,” he wrote in a June 2024 email. “… To the immediate, I will continue to support Honeywell’s customers and business until formally being told otherwise.”
Honeywell’s HR director responded by telling Wright that he was out of compliance with company policy, which could result in “disciplinary action up to termination,” the complaint states.
Nearly eight weeks later, Wright says he was given an ultimatum: take the training refresher or lose your job.
“When Justin would not compromise his religious beliefs to attend the offensive training again, he was summarily terminated,” according to the complaint, which says he was let go on August 30.
Wright’s lawsuit says his firing has “adversely affected his psychological and physical wellbeing,” and is demanding he be reinstated to his position, with appropriate seniority, or award him lost pay for the past year-plus. He is also asking a judge to prohibit Honeywell from mandating employee training that “violates religious beliefs without accommodation.”
In addition, Wright is asking for compensatory damages, in an amount to be determined by a jury, for “emotional distress, loss of professional reputation, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish, [and] loss of enjoyment of life,” punitive damages “sufficient to deter [Honeywell] from similar conduct in the future,” and “reasonable” attorneys’ fees.
Honeywell now has until the end of March to formally respond to Wright’s claims.
