The Edmonton Police Service has now approved the option for female officers of Muslim faith to wear a police-issued hijab headscarf while in uniform.
EPS Supt. Kevin Galvin, representing the Chief’s Muslim Community Liaison Committee, says: “Regardless of race, culture, religion, or sexual orientation, it is important that anyone who has a calling to serve and protect Edmontonians, and passes the rigorous recruitment and police training standards, feel welcome and included in the EPS.”
Police say the traditional hijab is worn by some Muslim women as an outward expression of religious and cultural identity -- it covers the head and neck, but not the face. The force does not currently have any members or applicants requesting to wear the hijab.
As there were no police-issued hijabs readily available, the EPS Equity, Diversity and Human Rights Unit, and the EPS Tactics Training Unit developed a prototype with the assistance of a hijab tailor. After rigorous testing, the force determined that the headscarf did not pose any risk to the officer wearing it, or reduce officer effectiveness, nor interfere with police duties or public interactions.
The hijab prototype met the requirements of Occupational Health and Safety, and the professional standards of EPS Dress and Deportment.
A statement from the EPS states that the force “continues to change with the times, as have a number of police, justice and military organizations in western nations that have already modified their uniforms to accommodate the hijab.”