Air France flight attendants in uproar over order to wear headscarves in Iran

Female flight attendants are furious that Air France will require them to wear headscarves and loose clothing in Tehran when service from Paris to Iran's capital resumes later this month, union representatives say. 

Multiple flight crew unions are fighting back against the rules, with at least one reaching out to a government minister in hopes that she would intervene.

The headscarf requirement and clothing limitations are "true threats to their dignity," the Union des Navigants de l'Aviation Civile (UNAC) wrote in a letter to Laurence Rossignal, France's minister for women’s rights and families, Friday. 

Another union, Syndicat National du Personnel Navigant Commercial (SNPNC), also denounced the provisions in a statement, calling them "an attack on freedom of conscience and individual freedoms, and invasion of privacy."

Union representatives have asked Air France to make service on flights to Tehran voluntary for female crew members who do not want to wear headscarves, without repercussions related to pay or schedules.

Women are required to cover their hair in Iran; meanwhile in secular France, hijabs and full body veils are banned.  

Air France is set to resume service to Tehran on April 17 after an eight-year break. The service was initially cut as part of international sanctions related to Iran's nuclear program. Following the 2015 nuclear deal struck between Iran, the U.S., France and several other countries, Air France announced it would fly once again to the tourist-hungry country.

Source: MASHABLE