France: The Eiffel Tower reopens after a strike against the sidelining of female employees

According to union representatives cited by Reuters and the Associated Press, female employees were reportedly asked to leave certain positions or to avoid contact with a delegation of about 100 people linked to the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) organization. Men then reportedly took their place in some positions.

The protest led to the closure of the monument on Monday, with staff demanding explanations from management and assurances that such a situation would not happen again. The Eiffel Tower, one of the most visited monuments in the world, resumed its activity the following day.

BAPS denied any intention of imposing a rule based on gender. The organization explained that it had coordinated the visit with management in order to limit disruptions related to the size of the group and assured that, to its knowledge, no one had been prevented from accessing the monument. It apologized to anyone who may have been hurt or inconvenienced by the incident.

The City of Paris, supervisory authority of the Société d’exploitation de la tour Eiffel (SETE), announced on Tuesday two investigations to establish the exact circumstances of the reception of the delegation and to determine the chain of decisions that led to the alleged exclusion of female staff members.

Two investigations with expected conclusions within seven days

The first investigation must be conducted internally by SETE with the involvement of an independent external service provider. The second will be carried out by the City of Paris as the supervisory authority. According to the municipal statement, their findings are expected within seven days.

The Mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Grégoire, visited the site on Tuesday with Ariel Weil, president of SETE, to meet with union representatives and the company management. The municipality reiterated that gender equality must be applied without exception in Parisian facilities and services.

An incident that provoked a strong reaction from the staff

The CGT explained that the employees’ anger had grown over the weekend following the instructions given on the occasion of the visit. The union denounced a treatment it considers incompatible with the usual rules for hosting delegations at the monument.

The precise circumstances remain at the heart of the investigations. The accounts of the staff representatives and those of BAPS notably diverge regarding the intent behind the measures taken prior to the visit. The two investigations announced by the City must now clarify who decided on these measures and under what conditions they were implemented.