Eiffel Tower shut by staff protest after female workers moved for religious visit
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The Eiffel Tower was closed on Monday after staff went on strike over female workers being removed for the visit of a Hindu religious group, workers and management said.
A delegation of around 100 people linked to the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) group visited the landmark in the French capital on Saturday.
According to Diane Davoine, a staff union representative, women were asked to leave their workstations during the visit. *"During the visit of this delegation, women were asked to leave their places of work in order to place men there," she told Reuters. Davoine also mentioned that management has since apologised.
"So that absolutely does not go down well with the employees, with women obviously, who are all humiliated by what happened," she added.
The Société d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel (SETE), the company operating the monument, confirmed the delegation requested a visit that limited "interactions with women", according to AFP. They stated that these conditions were unacceptable.
SETE president Ariel Weil expressed his disapproval: "It is clearly not an acceptable practice." He reiterated the Eiffel Tower’s commitment to republican values and equality between men and women.
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