Praying For Profits

(4 of 4)

Consumers offended by a business's religious bent can take their dollars next door. Employees don't have that freedom. Bosses break no laws by expressing their faith, hosting prayer picnics or painting passages from the Bible on the walls. What they can't do, says Washington lawyer Eric Siegel, is create hostile work environments for nonbelievers or discriminate by religion when hiring or firing. In 2004 courts found that Hewlett-Packard was justified in firing an employee who posted antihomosexual passages from the Bible on his cubicle and that Cox Communications could fire an evangelical Christian worker who criticized the sexual orientation of a lesbian subordinate during a performance review. Large companies, mindful of lawsuits and public scrutiny, are more likely to establish policies for practicing religion in the workplace, says Wolfe of Boston College. Smaller companies are more "tempted" to let religion dictate company practices, such as the hiring of homogenous staffs.

To some extent, homogeneity is a result of self-selection: Christians are more likely to apply for and remain in jobs at Christian businesses. Owners like Griffin say they make their faith clear in the interview. "I say, 'Look, I'm a Christian. We do talk about Jesus here. We do pray with clients. And if you don't feel this is something you can handle, you might not feel comfortable in this environment.'" When she had a biblical mural installed at one location, a stylist stopped showing up at work. "She said Jesus was staring down at her, and she didn't like it," Griffin says. At Integrity Bank, Skow says, "we do not discriminate," adding that "we have hired probably a handful of people who had a weak following with the Lord. Through osmosis in our organization, however, they are now strong believers, and that's a fact."

It's also a fact that starting a business requires a profound leap of faith, and there Christian entrepreneurs may have a distinct advantage. When millionaire businessman and Cuban immigrant Aurelio Barreto III, 46, dreamed up a chain of mall stores selling cool Christian stuff for teens, even other Christians rolled their eyes. Undeterred, Barreto named his venture C28 (for Colossians 2:8) and has opened six stores since 2001. The loud music is Christian alt-rock, the graffiti on the floor is a blue cross and the toe rings say JESUS NEVER FAILS YOU. "When you walk in here, it's happy," says customer James Persinger, 19. Barreto admits he's not always happy contemplating the balance sheets: C28 has eaten up $1.9 million of Barreto's money and has yet to turn a profit. Though store sales are jumping and profits are in sight, Barreto brightens most when he reports that 1,512 souls have been saved at his stores. For a Christian business owner, no number can improve that bottom line. --With reporting by Paige Akin/Blacksburg, Melissa August/Pasadena, Md., Deborah Edler Brown/Riverside, Calif., and Greg Fulton/Alpharetta