Women asked to remove hijab in an interview for job

Melbourne: Mona Alfadli, 25-year-old Muslim girl in New Zealand, who applied for a job as a sales assistant at Steward Dawsons in Auckland, was left embarrassed after she applied for a job at a jewellery shop and was told it was a “waste of time” unless she removed her hijab. She was told by a prospective manager not to bother applying because of her headscarf.

She said her aspirations for her life in New Zealand was to find a “safe” home for herself and her family, who settled in the country as refugees from Kuwait in 2008. It was second incident at the jewellery store where in October former Kelston Girls College deputy head Fatima Mohammadi was turned away from an interview at the jewellery chains Henderson branch because of her hijab.

Alfadli, who lives in Avondale, has been looking for a job after completing her diploma in applied computer system engineering. She told “I can do any job, I don’t mind, but I will keep my hijab, I will keep my identity, and respect my culture and my religion.”