Going backwards in time

Fifteen years ago, when I worked at my dad's large construction company, we had a job applicant who refused to shake hands with me, who was the CFO, and my younger sister, who was HR, when we greeted each other. He explained himself by saying it was for religious reasons. My sister and I entertained his wish and reconnected with the person in question after a couple of days and said that unfortunately we had no vacant position to offer him.

Recently Stockholm's public transport denied a Muslim man a job interview because he refuses to shake hands with women for religious reasons. The man in question applied for a position as a security guard in Stockholm's public transport and was first called for an interview. Before the interview, he informed the employer that, due to his Muslim faith, he does not greet strange women by shaking their hands. The recruiter then canceled the interview. Now the company is being criticized by the discrimination commissioner, who says it was wrong not to let him come for an interview, reports the Swedish newspaper Expressen.

I cannot understand how a secular country like Sweden allows women to become "second-class citizens" in this way.

AI generated image with Grok