The chief executive of the organization overseeing the Eiffel Tower is set to resign by the year-end following an incident where female employees were excluded during a visit by a Hindu religious group at the iconic Parisian landmark. Patrick Branco Ruivo, the director general of the Société d’Exploitation de la tour Eiffel, will step down after an investigation revealed operational shortcomings related to the visit on September 5. The company acknowledged the failures that led to the exclusion of female staff during the visit as an unacceptable circumstance. Ruivo assumed his position at the end of 2018.
The Eiffel Tower, a popular tourist attraction drawing seven million visitors annually, had to close on September 7 due to a strike staged by staff in protest against perceived inadequate management directions. Tensions escalated among the 330-meter tall tower’s employees when management instructed that female workers should not interact with the delegation from the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, known as BAPS, a global religious and civic organization within the Swaminarayan sect of Hinduism. The group was in Paris to celebrate the inauguration of a traditional Hindu stone temple in the region.
BAPS clarified that they did not request the exclusion or removal of female employees during the visit. They explained that their monks have personal spiritual practices, which they adhere to without imposing them on others, emphasizing that their practices do not mandate the exclusion of women from visited places.
In response to the incident, Ariel Weil, the company’s chair, announced plans for implementing measures and training programs to promote gender equality within the organization. This closure of the Eiffel Tower due to staff actions is not unprecedented, as the historic landmark was also shut down for six days in February 2024 when employees went on strike demanding improved maintenance and higher wages.
