Mayor Elisabeth Herzog-von der Heide of the town Luckenwalde, in Brandeburg, fired an intern after one day because she would not take off her headscarf.
“The Islamic headscarf is a means of expressing a religious worldview,” Herzog-von der Heide said on Wednesday.
The mayor said that therefore, wearing a headscarf would violate the neutrality of the town hall, where crucifixes are also not allowed.
The Palestinian woman, 48, had been hired for a project called “Perspectives for Refugees” and was set to work for six weeks.
The woman said that she did not want to remove the headscarf in the presence of men, and therefore Herzog-von der Heide said they would not be able to offer her a suitable working environment.
She added that it would have been better to clarify this policy with the intern before hiring her, and the town hall would proceed this way in the future. [The Local] Read more
