Eiffel Tower Closed as Staff Protest Sidelining of Female staff During Visit by Hindu Delegation
Quick summary
- •Eiffel Tower closed to visitors in Paris on Monday after staff struck over claims that female employees were sidelined during a private visit by 100 BAPS representatives. Unions said women were moved from workstations while male colleagues replaced them after requests to limit contact. Operator SETE apologized and opened an investigation; Paris opened an inquiry.
The Eiffel Tower closed to visitors on Monday, September 7, 2026, after employees went on strike over allegations that female staff were sidelined during a private visit by about 100 representatives linked to the BAPS Hindu organisation.
According to unions and staff statements, women — including subcontracted employees — were told to withdraw from workstations or remain out of sight while male colleagues replaced them. The arrangements were reportedly made after BAPS monastics requested limited interaction with women during the visit.
Background
The delegation was in Paris ahead of the inauguration of BAPS’s first major temple in the French capital’s suburbs. BAPS monastics follow rules limiting physical contact and close interaction with women, while staff representatives said the instructions at the Eiffel Tower amounted to gender-based exclusion in the workplace.
Management and inquiry
The tower’s operator, SETE, apologised to employees and said the conditions requested by the delegation should not have been accepted. It has opened an internal investigation, while Paris authorities have launched a separate inquiry into how the arrangements were approved.
Political and union reaction
The CGT trade union condemned what it described as professional instructions that made female employees “sidelined, replaced, and made invisible based on their gender”. Paris First Deputy Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire called the situation unacceptable. National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet also criticised the decision, saying women in France should not be told to step aside to meet the demands of foreign visitors.
What happens next
The tower was closed for the entire day after an emergency staff assembly. Staff representatives said it was expected to reopen on Tuesday after meetings with management aimed at ensuring similar requests are not accepted in future.