You can always get what you want: why religious organizations opposed the employment equality directive

Abstract

The Employment Equality Directive expands protections for, among others, gays and lesbians from discriminatory employment practices. This directive has been implemented poorly in Ireland, the UK, and Germany, because religious organizations believed their core ideological and material interests were threatened by extending these protections, even though degrees of policy fit vary among all three countries. Furthermore, the European Commission’s enforcement measures have not been effective in securing compliance. The European Commission has permitted noncompliance to continue in Ireland and the UK. Only change in the partisan make-up of the government led to compliance. This article speaks to ongoing debates about the causes of noncompliance with European Union law and how religious groups, not often considered in the scholarly literature, are now trying to limit the effects of European integration.