Pursuing Holiness

Nadia Eweida can wear her cross necklace to work. Not because she has the right to, but because British Airways, after huge public backlash, changed their policy allowing her to wear it. According to an employment tribunal, British Airways can giveth, and British Airways can taketh away.

A British Airways check-in worker who refused to hide her cross necklace at work has lost her case for religious discrimination.

Nadia Eweida, 56, became embroiled in a highly public row with BA in 2006 after the airline asked that she tuck her cross necklace behind her scarf so that it would not show.

Ms Eweida took BA to an employment tribunal claiming the airline had discriminated against Christians by not allowing them to openly wear symbols of their faith whilst Muslim and Hindu employees were permitted to wear headscarves and turbans.

After a public backlash and widespread criticism from politicians and church leaders, including the Archbishop of Canterbury, BA changed its uniform policy to allow crosses on chains to be worn openly.

The tribunal panel ruled yesterday, however, that Ms Eweida, 56, was treated the same as any other employee would have been if they had broken the uniform policy.

This news, on the heels of the news that a magistrate was reprimanded for refusing to deal with a Muslim defendant who was veiled in court. He left the hearing without giving an explanation, which was wrong. What’s interesting is that the case was ultimately resolved by reprimanding him and having a female judge hear the case while the defendant gave testimony behind a screen. Don’t forget, too, that Christian students are not allowed to wear purity rings, while Muslim and Sikh students are permitted to wear religious dress.

This is not tolerance. It is favoritism.

written by Laura