Prohibition of headscarves for teachers and public servants in Germany

Notes:

  • This page contains in excerpts translations of the relevant provisions of the laws of the German Länder.

  • The translations on this page do only serve informational purposes. They do by no means claim any accuracy or completeness. They are not official translations.

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Outline:

Law of the Länder

(with translations in English)

  1. Baden-Württemberg (01.04.2004 / 14.02.2006)
  2. Lower Saxony (29.04.2004)
  3. Saarland (23.06.2004)
  4. Hesse (18.10.2004)
  5. Bavaria (23.11. 2004)
  6. Berlin (27.01.2005)
  7. Bremen (28.06.2005)
  8. North Rhine-Westphalia (13.06.2006)

States, in which a law was planned

(only in german)

  1. Brandenburg
  2. Rhineland-Palatinate
  3. Schleswig-Holstein

No interdiction

 

  1. Hamburg
  2. Mecklenburg-Western
  3. Saxony
  4. Saxony-Anhalt
  5. Thuringia

 

I. Judgement of the German Constitutional Court form 24 th march 2003

1. There is no sufficiently definite statutory basis in the current law of the Land (state) Baden-Württemberg for a prohibition on teachers wearing a headscarf at school and in lessons.

2. Social change, which is associated with increasing religious plurality, may be the occasion for the legislature to redefine the admissible degree of religious references permitted at school.

Fulltext(official english translation)

    II. Law of the Länder

    A. Law of the Länder

    (with translations in English)

    1. Baden-Württemberg

    • Kopftuchverbot / Schulgesetz:
      Gesetz zur Änderung des Schulgesetzes vom 01.04.2004
      (GBl. S.178)

      • English translation:
        Amendment of § 38 School Act:
        (2) Teachers at public schools within the meaning of par.2 sec.1 are not allowed to exercise political, religious, ideological or similar manifestations that may endanger or disturb the neutrality of the country towards pupils or parents or the political, religious or ideological peace of the school. Particularly illegitimate is a behaviour that can appear to pupils or parents to be a teachers' demonstration against human dignity, non-discrimination according to article 3, the rights of freedom or the free and democratic order of the constitution. The exercise of the task of education according to article 12 sec.1, article 15 sec. 1, and article 16 sec. 1 of the constitution of the land of Baden-Württemberg and the respective exhibition of Christian and occidental educational and cultural values or traditions does not contradict the duty of behaviour according to sentence 1. The duty of religious neutrality according to sentence 1 does not apply within the religious instruction according to article 18 sentence 1 of the constitution of the land of Baden-Württemberg.

    • Kopftuchverbot / Kindergartengesetz:
      Gesetz zur Änderung des Kindergartengesetzes vom 14.02.2006
      (GBl. S. 30)

      • English translation:
        Amendment of § 7 Kindergarten Act:
        In institutions which this law applies to and which are held by the Land, a country, a municipality, a public administrative community or a special administrative union of local or regional authorities skilled persons in the sense of sec. 1 and 2 and other staff in charge of taking care or educating are not allowed to exercise political, religious, ideological or similar manifestations that may endanger or disturb the responsible body’s neutrality towards children and parents or the political, religious or ideological peace of those institutions which this section applies to. Particularly illegitimate is a behaviour that can appear to children or parents to be a skilled person’s or other educating or caretaking staff’s demonstration against human dignity, non-discrimination according to article 3 Basic Constitutional Law, the rights of freedom or the free and democratic order of the constitution. The exercise of the task of article 12 sec. 1 of the constitution of the Land of Baden-Württemberg, which is to educate the youth in the spirit of Christian love and fraternity among mankind and the respective exhibition of such traditions does not contradict the duty of behaviour according to sentence 1.

    2. Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen)

    • Gesetz zur Änderung des Niedersächsischen Schulgesetzes und des Niedersächsischen Besoldungsgesetzes vom 29.04.2004 (Nds. GVBl. S. 140-142)

      • English translation:
        Amendment of § 51 School Act:
        (3) The outer appearance of schoolteachers may not create any doubts concerning the teachers’ qualification to fulfill convincingly the educational mandate of the schools (par. 2). This does not apply for teachers in private schools.
        (4) Sec. 3 does also apply for teachers in preparatory service, as long as they give lessons under their own responsibility. In individual cases exceptions may be granted for these teachers.

         

    3. Saarland

    • Gesetz Nr. 1555 zur Änderung des Gesetzes zur Ordnung des Schulwesens im Saarland (Schulordnungsgesetz) vom 23.06.2004 (Amtsbl. S.1510)

      • English translation:
        Amendment of § 1 School Act:
        (2a) School has to teach and educate pupils on the basis of Christian educational and cultural values showing due respect for the feelings of differently minded pupils. The task of education has to be fulfilled in such a manner, that neither the neutrality of the country towards pupils or parents nor the political, religious or ideological peace of the school are endangered or disturbed by political, religious, ideological or similar manifestations.

         

    4. Hesse

    • Gesetz zur Sicherung der staatlichen Neutralität vom 18.10.2004 (GVBl. I S.306)
      • English translation:
        Amendment of § 68 Public Service Act:
        (2) Public servants on duty have to conduct themselves politically, ideologically and religiously neutral. They are particularly not allowed to wear or use any garments, symbols or other features that objectively may impair public confidence in their neutral tenure of office or endanger the political, religious or ideological peace. On deciding if the requirements of sentence 1 and 2 are fulfilled the humanistically and in a Christian manner imbued occidental tradition of the Land of Hessen has to be taken into due account.

        Amendment of § 86 School Act:
        (3) To ensure the principles of par. 3 sec. 1 teachers have to maintain political, religious and ideological neutrality in school and in instruction; par. 8 remains unaffected. They are particularly not allowed to wear or use any garments, symbols or other features that objectively may impair public confidence in their neutral tenure of office or endanger the political, religious or ideological peace of the school. On deciding if the requirements of sentence 1 and 2 are fulfilled the humanistically and in a Christian manner imbued occidental tradition of the Land of Hessen has to be taken into due account. On application the competent authority in individual cases may allow teachers in preparatory service to use garments, symbols or other features contrary to sentence 2, as long as peremptory public interest do not impair this.

         

    5. Bavaria (Bayern)

    • Gesetz zur Änderung des Bayerischen Gesetzes über das Erziehungs- und Unterrichtswesen vom 23.11.2004 (GVBl. S. 443)

      • English translation:
        Amendment to Art. 59 School Act:
        "(2) […]. They must impart to their students the fundamental constitutional values. During lessons teachers are not allowed to wear outer symbols and garments, that express a religious or ideological creed, in case students or parents may understand these symbols or garments as expression of an attitude, that is not compatible with fundamental constitutional values and educational objectives of the constitution, including Christian-occidental educational and cultural values. […]. For teachers in preparatory service exceptions from the rule in sentence 3 may be granted in individual cases."

         

    6. Berlin

    • Gesetz zur Schaffung eines Gesetzes zu Artikel 29 der Verfassung von Berlin und zur Änderung des Kindertagesbetreuungsgesetzes vom 27.01.2005 (GVBl. S. 92  )

      • English translation:
        Law concerning article 29 Berlin Constitution
        § 1 Public servants on duty that work within the field of justice administration, penal law enforcement or police are not allowed to wear any visible religious or ideological symbols that signal the spectator an affiliation to a specific religious or ideological group and any noticeably religious or ideologically imbued garments. In the area of justice administration this does only apply for public servants that exercise governmental functions.

        § 2 Teachers and other employees with pedagogical tasks on duty at public schools according to the public school act are not allowed to wear any visible religious or ideological symbols that signal the spectator an affiliation to a specific religious or ideological community and any noticeably religious or ideologically imbued garments. This does not apply to religious or ideological instruction at school.

         

    7. Bremen

    • Gesetz zur Änderung des Bremischen Schulgesetzes und des Bremischen Schulverwaltungsgesetzes vom 28.06.2005 (Brem. GBl. S. 245) 

      • English translation
        § 59 b Duties of all the school staff

        (4) Public schools have to safeguard religious and ideological neutrality. The conduct in school of teachers and other employees who take care of the pupils must live up to this obligation. In each subject the teaching and caring staff has to show due respect to religious and ideological feelings of all pupils as well as to the parents’ right to impart to their children religious and ideological convictions. These obligations of the teaching and caring staff extend to the manner of manifesting their own confessions. Also the outer appearance of the teaching and caring staff in school may not be such as to disturb religious and ideological feelings of pupils and parents or to carry tensions into school, which endanger its peace through a violation of religious and ideological neutrality.

        (5) Sec. 4 does apply to teachers in preparatory service only as long as they give lessons.

         

         

    8. North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen)

    • Erstes Gesetz zur Änderung des Schulgesetzes für das Land Nordrhein-Westfalen vom 13.06.2006 (GVBl. S. 270)

      • English translation
        Amendment to Art. 57 School Act:
        (4) Teachers are not allowed to exercise political, religious, ideological or similar manifestations that may endanger or disturb the neutrality of the country towards pupils or parents or the political, religious or ideological peace of the school. Particularly illegitimate is a behaviour that can appear to pupils or parents to be a teachers' demonstration against human dignity, non-discrimination according to article 3, the rights of freedom or the free and democratic order of the constitution. The exercise of the task of education according to article 7 and 12 sec. 6 of the constitution of the land of North Rhine-Westphalia and the respective exhibition of Christian and occidental educational and cultural values or traditions does not contradict the duty of behaviour according to sentence 1. The duty of religious neutrality according to sentence 1 does not apply within religious instruction and for religious or ideological schools.

         

    B. States, in which a law was planned

    (only in German)

    C. No interdiction

     

    1. Hamburg

    2. Mecklenburg-Western (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)

    3. Saxe (Sachsen)

    4. Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt)

    5. Thuringia (Thüringen)

     

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    Update

    Accountability for translation and contents:
    Jan Niklas Klein
    Last update: 28.10.2013