An Indian worker at Heathrow Airport has lost her job for wearing a tiny nose stud.
"I am extremely upset by this and feel that I am being discriminated against. I had always made it clear that I wear it as part of my Hindu faith. I'm not expecting people to make huge exceptions for me and I could understand if I was wearing a massive stud but this is a tiny pin," said 43-year-old Amrit Lalji.
"It was so small it was almost impossible to see. I was completely happy to wear all the uniform. I'm just asking for a little bit of tolerance and common sense over me wearing a nose stud," she added.
Lalji, a resident of Stanmore in north-west London, was a cleaner and customer relations worker for Eurest, which supplies food and services to British Airway's VIP lounge at Heathrow. Her job involved greeting first-class passengers at the lounge.
She has been wearing the stud since she started working at the airport in March last year. But last month, she was told by her bosses at Eurest that a BA manager had ordered her to remove it or lose her job. When Lalji refused to remove the stud, she was fired last week after a disciplinary hearing.
A spokesperson from Eurest defended the company's decision. "Lalji had been advised of company policy on a number of occasions, which states that with the exception of a plain wedding ring and sleeper earrings, jewellery must not be worn on duty and flesh piercings are not permitted. Jewellery can harbour bacteria, create a hazard when working with machinery and find its way into food. Her decision not to return to work without the stud contravenes company regulations and therefore she was dismissed," said the spokesperson.
However, the Hindu Council in the United Kingdom has flayed the company's decision.
"The nose stud is as integral a part of the Hindu wedding ceremony as the giving of a wedding ring is within a Christian marriage. These marks are not just the outward symbol of marriage -- traditionally they are believed to help ensure the match is harmonious. If the company concerned allows wedding bands, we don't see why she can't wear a tiny nose stud," stated a spokesperson of the council.
Last year, the British Airways had suspended check-in worker Nadia Eweida after she refused to stop wearing a tiny crucifix while on duty. However, she was later reinstated.
