Muslim teacher in Flanders prefers unemployment to taking off her hijab headscarf
Three years of conflict, disciplinary proceedings, human rights resolutions and courts did not change the Muslim teacher's attitude.
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The Muslim teacher Hadija Amajoud has ended up losing her job after three years of conflict with the East Flanders education authority for refusing to remove her hijab while teaching. The woman had been working at a school since 2022 and has remained steadfast despite disciplinary proceedings, legal actions and the provincial regulation prohibiting staff from displaying visible religious or ideological symbols. According to The Brussels Times, the teacher rejects the rule because He argues that the veil «is part of who she is». Her refusal has ultimately had consequences: on 14 September, the province of East Flanders decided to dismiss her for refusing to remove her hijab during working hours, according to reports. Headline News.
The explicit ban on wearing religious symbols by the provincial teaching staff of East Flanders It came into force on 1 September 2024.. The regulation requires staff to remain neutral and prohibits wearing visible religious or ideological symbols, except for teachers of religious subjects. In May 2025, The province also extended this line to pupils., reinforcing a policy of neutrality that contrasts with other areas of Belgium.
I was already wearing it headscarf When they hired her
The woman started working at the centre in September 2022 and I was already wearing headscarf. For approximately a year he taught like that without the school preventing him. The conflict began in September 2023, when Management informed him that the veil did not fit with the policy of neutrality. that the province wanted to apply to teaching staff. Three years later he was still wearing it.
The problem for the school in 2023 was that There was not yet a sufficiently clear general prohibition.. A disciplinary procedure was opened against her but was halted because the code of ethics in use did not properly cover subsidised teaching staff. The province responded by amending the regulations to close all loopholes so that they would come into force in September 2024. That, too, did not change her attitude. According to the Muslim woman, the ban did not affect her because she had been hired two years before the regulation came into force. But the province's position was clear: Working conditions may change and staff must adapt to the current regulations..
The courts uphold the ban on teaching classes with the headscarf.
Before the dispute reached the ordinary courts, the teacher took the case to the Flemish Institute for Human Rights. Its Litigation Chamber issued a ruling on 11 December 2025 and largely upheld the teacher's case. Nevertheless, the authorities of Flanders went to the ordinary courts.
In May 2026, The Ghent Court of First Instance dismissed the teacher's claims and ruled in favour of the province.. The judgment held that the general rule had not been created specifically against it and that The teaching staff must adapt to the current rules.. Despite the sentence, the teacher continued to turn up to class with headscarf after returning from sick leave. This opened a new disciplinary procedure and the decision was dismissal.
On 3 September 2026, Amajoud appeared before the provincial disciplinary committee, which left the decision pending deliberation. Eleven days later, the outcome arrived: East Flanders has decided to dismiss her.. The teacher, therefore, has maintained her refusal to remove her headscarf to the point of losing their job. The ACOD union has already announced that it will appeal the decision, so the legal battle is not yet over.
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