Key facts of the case - In this case a Muslim student was not admitted to a position of ‘stagiaire’ (trainee) in a public primary school. The school’s head teacher took the view that wearing a headscarf was in contradiction with the principle of neutrality, a principle that should be upheld by a public school. The position of the head teacher was that although the law does not explicitly prohibit this religious dress, it was in his opinion not appropriate to wear it in the public school.

Main reasoning of the court - The Equal Treatment Commission decided that the fact that a Muslim trainee is wearing a headscarf does not exclude that she has an attitude that is in conformity with the principles of a public school.