A number of interesting cases involving religious discrimination in employment have arisen recently in Great Britain. British Airways has generated controversy by demanding that a Christian check-in worker remove, or conceal under her clothing, a cross that she was wearing around her neck. Saturday's Examiner says that the airline does not have a similar policy regarding turbans, hijabs and bangles since it is not practical to conceal these under airline uniforms.
Meanwhile, in London, a Catholic chef who was fired for refusing to work on Sunday won his claim for employment discrimination before an employment tribunal, according to a report today in This Is Local London.
But a Muslim teaching assistant at Headfield Church of England Junior School in West Yorkshire was removed by the Kirklees local educational council after she refused to remove her veil during lessons aimed at helping bilingual students improve their communication skills. Pupils-- many from families of Pakistani or Indian origin who are still learning to speak English--were finding it difficult to understand the teacher when she was wearing her veil. A report from the Times, carried today by The Peninsula, says that leading Muslims have backed the council's removal of Aishah Azmi, the bilingual support teacher. The teacher has taken the case to an employment tribunal.
