Eiffel Tower boss to stand down after female staff excluded during Hindu group visit

The head of the company which runs the Eiffel Tower is to stand down after female staff were excluded during a visit by a Hindu religious group.

Management told employees that female staff should not be in contact with the delegation from Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) - an organisation which sits within a sect of Hinduism - during the 5 September visit.

The tower was closed two days later after staff went on strike to protest what a union official described as "unacceptable" management instructions.

Patrick Branco Ruivo, director general of the Eiffel Tower Operating Company (SETE), is now set to leave his post at the end of the year, the firm confirmed in a statement on Tuesday.

An independent investigation into the visit discovered a series of operational failures.

SETE said that they resulted "in female staff being excluded from the visit that day", and called it an "unacceptable situation".

Ariel Weil, SETE's chair, said he has called for measures and training programmes promoting gender equality.

The BAPS group was celebrating the inauguration of a traditional Hindu stone temple in Paris at the time of the visit.

It previously said: "This co-ordination was undertaken purely as a matter of operational courtesy and logistics to ensure a smooth visit for a large group without inconveniencing the tower's employees or the public.

"It was never, at any point, intended as a request rooted in gender.''

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Sky News has contacted BAPS for comment on the latest development.

The tower was previously closed for six days in February 2024 as staff went on strike to demand better maintenance of the landmark along with higher wages.

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