The Pope’s AI Warning Could Help Workers Seek Religious Exemptions From Using AI

The document has prompted discussion about whether workers can use religious objections to avoid using AI in their jobs. Religious accommodations under US employment law allow employees to request exemptions from workplace requirements that conflict with their sincerely held religious beliefs, and the encyclical could provide a basis for such requests.

A software engineer in North Carolina has already obtained a religious accommodation from her employer to avoid using AI tools as part of her work. The engineer cited her religious beliefs, but details of the specific beliefs and the employer's reasoning for granting the accommodation have not been disclosed. The case is believed to be one of the first where a papal encyclical was cited in a workplace religious accommodation request regarding AI.

Whether AI use constitutes a substantial burden on religious exercise remains untested in court. The encyclical does not carry legal weight in secular employment law, but it may influence workers and employers navigating the intersection of faith and workplace technology.