PAM: No need to alter working practices following decision by EU Court of Justice to ban head scarves
The EU’s Court of Justice issued a ruling on Tuesday 14 March 2017 according to which employers may ban workers from wearing visible religious and political symbols subject to certain conditions. The Court also states that no direct or indirect discrimination based e.g. on religion may take place.
In its ruling, the EU’s Court of Justice states that a ban may be indirect discrimination, but it is not if the aim of the ban is legitimate and justified. In the view of Service Union United PAM there is no need to change existing proven practices at workplaces. If a ban is imposed, workplaces must have a policy in place applying to all employees and an acceptable justification for the ban, which may not be discriminatory and bans the use of all religious and ideological symbols.
– Despite this decision, there is unlikely to be any need to change established, functioning practices. Banning political and religious symbols would mean banning all symbols at the workplace equally. Classifying a symbol as religious or political may prove difficult in practice because the general awareness of symbols varies, says Erika Kähärä, PAM’s working environment specialist.
The question of Muslim headscarves has been raised in service sectors earlier, but has not led to any problems at workplaces.
– It has mostly been an issue of health and safety at work and, for example, making sure wearing a scarf doesn’t cause any risk of tangling. Solutions have been found in all cases. Some retail firms currently provide scarves that match the colours of the workwear, says Kähärä.
If a company is considering a ban, the need for the ban must be justified. Such a rule will apply to all employees of the firm in the same way without differentiation, the Court says.
– Restricting a particular or certain ideological symbols could still be considered indirect discrimination. For example, just banning headscarves would clearly be directed at Muslims. If a ban on symbols is motivated by a wish to give a neutral impression to customers and the public, the ban could anyway only apply to persons in customer service functions, Kähärä states.
The EU’s Court of Justice
- interprets EU legislation (preliminary rulings)
- monitors implementation of EU legislation
- repeals EU legislation
thus making sure that EU legislation is interpreted and applied in the same way in all member states.