EU companies can ban headscarves under certain conditions, court says

EU companies can ban headscarves under certain conditions, court says

NNA - Companies in the European Union can ban employees from wearing a headscarf under certain conditions, if they need to do so to project an image of neutrality to customers, the EU's top court said on Thursday.

The Luxembourg-based EU Court of Justice (CJEU) was ruling on cases brought by two Muslim women in Germany who were suspended from their jobs for wearing a headscarf.

In the cases brought to court, a special-needs carer at a childcare centre in Hamburg run by a charitable association and a cashier at the Mueller drugstore chain did not wear headscarves when they started their jobs, but decided to do so years later after returning from parental leave.