EU court says public employees may be barred from wearing head scarf

FILE PHOTO: A shopkeeper wearing a mask waits for customers at a hijab shop, following the outbreak of the coronavirus in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, March 6, 2020. REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng/File Photo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The top European Union court ruled on Tuesday that public authorities in member states can prohibit employees from wearing signs of religious belief, such as an Islamic head scarf, in the latest decision on an issue that has divided Europe for years.

The case came to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after an employee of the eastern Belgian municipality of Ans was told she could not wear an Islamic head scarf at work.