The European Court of Justice ruled Thursday that employers can forbid their staff from wearing visible symbols of religious or political belief, including headscarves, in order to present an image of neutrality. The Court decided on the matter following referrals from the Labour Court of Hamburg and the Federal Labour Court of Germany, which had requested the European Court consider whether the dismissal of two Muslim women from their employment over their non-compliance with orders to refrain from wearing their hijab was compliant with EU law on equal treatment in employment and occupation. The first woman was dismissed from her employment at a childcare facility following her refusal to comply with a rule prohibiting employees from wearing any visible political, philosophical, or religious sign at the workplace when they are in contact with the children or their parents. She challenged her dismissal on the grounds that the prohibition directly “targeted the wearing of the Islamic headscarf and therefore constituted direct discrimination,” and that given its greater impact on migrant women it was also capable of constituting discrimination on the grounds of ethnic origin. She further supported her claim by arguing that the German Federal Constitutional Court had previously held […]
