An Islamic teacher is said not to have been given a contract as a regional teacher because she did not wear a headscarf. According to a court judgement – which is not legally binding – the teacher was discriminated against by the Islamic Religious Community (IGGÖ) because of her religion.
According to a first-instance judgement by the Labour and Social Court, an Islamic teacher was discriminated against by the Islamic Religious Community (IGGÖ) because she took off her headscarf, report the weekly “profil” and the daily “Der Standard”. The woman is said not to have been given a contract as a regional teacher because she did not wear a headscarf. The court found direct discrimination on the grounds of religion and the IGGÖ intends to appeal the judgement.
The plaintiff, who was employed by the IGGÖ from 2006, had worn a headscarf since she was a child. However, according to court documents, she gradually took it off from around 2016, first in her private life and then in class. According to the judgement, which is not legally binding, this led to the plaintiff’s application for employment as a Viennese state teacher not being dealt with further and not being forwarded to the Vienna Education Directorate.
“The motive for this was that, in the opinion of the authorised inspectors, the plaintiff did not wear the headscarf required for a woman’s head covering according to Islamic doctrine, or did not wear it constantly or sufficiently”, the court found “direct discrimination on the basis of religion”. The IGGÖ is now to pay compensation of 15,000 to the plaintiff for the personal injury suffered.