Paris opens probe into women staff being 'sidelined' during Hindu group's Eiffel Tower visit

Female employees at the Eiffel Tower were asked to step out of sight during a visit by a ​Hindu religious delegation at the weekend, according to union representatives, prompting a staff protest ‌and an investigation by Paris city authorities.

A delegation of about 100 ​people linked to the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, made ​a private visit to the Eiffel Tower on Saturday. The spiritual movement later apologised for “any pain or inconvenience caused” by the incident.

The September 5 incident angered staff and drew criticism from French politicians, with the Hindu religious group later apologising. The Paris monument was set to reopen on Tuesday after being closed late on Monday following a meeting between staff and management.

The operating company that runs the Eiffel Tower, SETE, acknowledged that the Hindu delegation had requested the visit be organised so as to limit “interactions with women” and said that “these conditions should not have been accepted”.

“To the best of our knowledge, at no point was anyone prevented access to the Eiffel Tower,” BAPS wrote in its statement on X.

“Due to the size of our delegation, the visit was arranged in conjunction with the Eiffel Tower team at the start of normal operating hours to avoid disrupting or inconveniencing others.”

Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire ​said that an investigation would be launched “as soon as possible”.

In a post on social media platform X, ‌he said ⁠he was aware of the employees’ anger and agreed their dissatisfaction was legitimate.

“It is urgent that all light be shed on the facts that led to this protest,” Gregoire wrote.

Eiffel Tower staff said in a statement that it condemned “professional instructions that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and made invisible because of their sex” during the visit by the delegation.

“Instructions were given to female employees of the Eiffel Tower and to female employees of contractors to make themselves invisible in order to welcome this delegation,” the staff said in their statement, adding they were shocked to have been put in such a situation.

“Some were asked to leave their posts and withdraw to other areas. In some posts they were replaced by men. And all female employees were instructed not to go through or cross certain areas while the delegation was present,” the statement said.

“As the delegation passed through, women were ⁠asked to leave their workstations so that men could take their places,” Diane Davoine, a ​union representative, told Reuters.

Davoine said management apologised to staff over the incident.

Yael Braun-Pivet, the president of ⁠the ​National Assembly, wrote in a post on X: “Welcoming others never ​means giving up our values. In France, women are fully present in public life. No one tells them to become ​invisible.”