The French Court of Cassation has ruled that an airline dress
code that allowed women cabin crew members but not men to wear
their hair braided is discriminatory.
Background
The Air France cabin crew dress code permitted women who had
braided hair to wear it tied up in a chignon. This option was not
offered for men, who were required to wear their hair neatly and no
longer than collar length.
An Air France steward who had braided hair that he wore tied up
in a chignon was disciplined, and ultimately dismissed, for failing
to respect the dress code.
The steward believed his dismissal was discriminatory and
challenged it, claiming damages. His appeal was rejected by a
tribunal, and then by the Court of Appeal, which found that Air
France's brand image required it to have a dress code and that
the distinction in the dress code between male and female
hairstyles was based on social convention.
