ECJ: Authorities may ban employees from wearing headscarves on duty
Public authorities may prohibit their employees from wearing a headscarf or other visible signs of religious belief in the workplace, according to a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Such a rule is not discriminatory as long as it serves to create a "completely neutral administrative environment" and is applied "generally and without distinction to all staff", the court ruled. Another condition is that it is limited to what is "absolutely necessary".
The ECJ ruled in a case from Belgium. The city of Ans had banned a Muslim employee from wearing a headscarf at work in the public sector, against which the woman brought an action before the labor court in Liège for discrimination and violation of her freedom of religion. The court referred the case to the ECJ for a fundamental clarification.
The Luxembourg judges clarified that such a ban within a public administration was "objectively justified" in the sense of enforcing a "policy of strict neutrality" for all employees in accordance with EU law. However, other rules are also permitted. EU member states and their subordinate state units generally have a "margin of appreciation" when it comes to shaping neutrality in the public sector at specific workplaces.
The court emphasized that a public administration could also restrict the ban on the visible wearing of signs of religious beliefs to workplaces with public traffic or generally permit this for its employees. From the perspective of EU law, however, it is crucial that the objective is pursued "in a coherent and systematic manner" and that the measures taken are "limited to what is strictly necessary". The national courts would have to examine whether these requirements were met.
Source: www.ntv.de
