Female employees at the Eiffel Tower were asked to leave their workstations and step out of sight during a private visit by a Hindu religious delegation, prompting a staff protest and an investigation by Paris authorities.
The monument opened late on Monday (7 September) after employees held a meeting over Saturday’s incident involving around 100 people linked to the Hindu organisation Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS).
“As the delegation passed through, women were asked to leave their workstations so that men could take their places,” union representative Diane Davoine said.
Davoine said tensions grew over the weekend, leading employees to meet with management and demand guarantees that female staff would not be treated in the same way again.
Management apologised to employees over the incident, she added.
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire said an investigation would be launched “as soon as possible”, describing employees’ anger as legitimate and calling for the circumstances surrounding the incident to be fully established.
The controversy also drew criticism from National Assembly President Yael Braun-Pivet.
“Welcoming others never means giving up our values,” she wrote on X. “In France, women are fully present in public life. No one tells them to become invisible.”
BAPS representatives were in France for festivities surrounding the inauguration of a Hindu temple in the Paris suburbs.
The organisation said the Eiffel Tower visit had been arranged at the beginning of opening hours because of the delegation’s size and to minimise disruption to other visitors.
“To the best of our knowledge, at no point was anyone prevented access to the Eiffel Tower,” BAPS said, while adding that it “sincerely” apologised for any pain or inconvenience caused.
SETE, the company that operates the Eiffel Tower, did not comment.
The monument displayed signs on Monday saying its opening had been delayed for “operational reasons” while staff held their meeting.
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