A public administration may prohibit its employees from wearing headscarves, crosses or other religious symbols only if certain conditions apply. This was established by the Court of Justice of the European Union when deciding on a citizen’s appeal against the Municipality of Ans in Belgium. Women were prohibited from wearing a headscarf at work. “In order to create a completely neutral administrative environment, a public administration may prohibit the visible wearing of any sign revealing philosophical or religious beliefs in the workplace,” the European judges wrote. In the sentence, they stated that “Such a rule will not be considered discriminatory if it is applied generally and indiscriminately to all personnel of that administration and is limited to what is strictly necessary.”
Case
It all started in the small Belgian town of Ans with an appeal submitted by a municipal employee who held the position of office manager, mostly without any contact with public service users. The municipality banned her from wearing the Islamic headscarf at work. Later, the municipal administration changed its labor regulations, requiring its employees to observe “strict neutrality”: employees were prohibited from any form of proselytizing and were not allowed to wear obvious signs indicating their ideological or religious affiliation. The rule also applies to employees who do not interact with users. The employee filed a lawsuit to obtain a declaration that his freedom of religion was violated and the discrimination he was subjected to.
Discrimination hypothesis
The Liège Labor Court first took up the case and asked whether the strict neutrality rule established by the Municipality gave rise to discrimination contrary to Union law. At this point the Luxembourg Court seized the argument, finding that where there was a policy based on “strict neutrality”, a public administration’s ban was justified because it was a legitimate aim. The European Court noted that it may be equally justified to choose another public administration that permits the visible wearing of signs of philosophical or religious belief, in particular, on a general and indiscriminate basis, even for employees who come into contact with users. Finally, it is legal to ban the wearing of these signs if it is limited to situations where contact with the public is involved.
Discretion
This means that each administration of each Member State has a discretion, within its competence, to assess, depending on the context, the concept of impartiality of the public service that it aims to promote in the workplace. However, this goal must be pursued consistently and systematically. The measures adopted to achieve this must also be limited to those absolutely necessary.
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Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
