CAIRO - The administrative judgement court at the State Council will resume their deliberations over a lawsuit brought by hundreds of female flight attendants, who wear hijab (Islamic headscarf), calling for them being allowed to wear headscarves during their work on board EgyptAir flights. A number of the 350 female flight attendants concerned (out of EgyptAir's 900 in total) noted that they had many problems under the previous regime due to their desire to wear hijab during their work, including being threatened with dismissal. Furthermore, some of these flight attendants were referred to the now dissolved State Security authority and had their phones tapped by the former regime. A number of them organised sits-in in front of the Ministry of Aviation after the January revolution, and the officials responded by telling them that they would tackle the matter. The flight attendants pointed out that the officials at the company have justified their refusal to permit them to wear hijab on the grounds that it contradicts the nature of their work. The company has also refused to allow their male flight attendants to sport beards, under the pretext that hair from the beard would fall into the food they are serving. Hossam Kamal, head of EgyptAir, told the Arabic mouthpiece of the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party that the company could not change the uniform of hostess at the present time, especially given the current conditions faced by the State. If EgyptAir achieved huge profits, in this case it would design distinctive new costumes for air and ground crews and then the company would consider the possibility of allowing flight attendants to wear the headscarf, he added. Mayssa Abdel-Hadi, who has worked for16 years as a flight attendant and wants to cover her head at work,said: “After the revolution we imagined that our demand would be accomplished. However that hasn't happened.” Mayssa added that six years ago, five hostesses filed a case against then Minister of Aviation Ahmed Shafiq for refusing to implement the ruling that had been issued permitting them to wear hijab while at work. Mayssa revealed that, while there are certain conditions in the contract they sign with the company relating to marriage and having children, it is free from any conditions relating to dress or even banning hijab. She pointed out that some airlines allow their female flight attendants to wear hijab, such as those of Indonesia, Malaysia, Jordan and Italy. Additionally, British Airways has a booklet for such attendants, although they are few in number, explaining how to wear the headscarf while working, and there is also a uniform for female ground staff that cover their heads. According to Amira Mans, who has worked as a female flight attendant since 2003, one of her colleagues that wanted to cover her head, was told by another colleague that a senior official is concerned with your demand and he would help her. She then discovered that she had been referred to State Security, where the officers interrogated her, asking her such questions as: Which Islamic group do you belong to? Who is financing the group? How many belong to this group? However, she replied with one sentence: “I am a Muslim and just want to wear headscarf during my work.” Another flight attendant, who preferred to remain anonymous, noted that EgyptAir told those female employees wanting to wear hijab should leave their onboard jobs to work in administration with a salary reduction. If they wanted to return to the aircrew, they would have to take off their headscarves.
