Spanish Supreme Court Upholds Employee Dress Code Ruling

 

The Spanish Supreme Court recently upheld a claim brought by female nurses at a Spanish hospital that they should be allowed to wear the same uniform as their male colleagues : Specifically trousers rather as opposed to skirts and aprons. The nurses claimed that the Hospital's policy on uniforms was not only discriminatory, but that it breached health and safety regulations.

The Court acknowledged that although Spanish law grants employers the right to manage and control their own activities, they have to respect basic human rights (including freedom from unlawful discrimination) and should only treat men and women differently if they can justify this being the case. The Court said that the customs of society are key to evaluating the suitability of an employer's practices. In this case the Hospital's uniform policy was found to be discriminatory and outdated and could not therefore be justified.

This ruling does not mean that employers will now be unable to determine what their staff wear to work, and they will still be permitted to set their own dress codes, providing that they are not in breach of any discrimination laws.