ISTANBUL — The government on Tuesday lifted a ban on head scarves for female workers in state offices, ending a longstanding restriction that has polarized Turkish society.

The change, which went into effect immediately, was introduced as part of a series of measures aimed at bolstering democratic standards in the country, including improved rights for minority Kurds.

The head scarf ban is one of the most emotionally charged issues in Turkey. It has long divided the country, pitting a rising group of religiously observant Turks who govern the country against a once-powerful secular elite that has struggled to regain control over the Turkish state.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has long sought to address the concerns of the observant Muslims who helped sweep his Justice and Development Party into a parliamentary majority in 2002 and have delivered successive electoral victories to it since then. They have said the ban discriminates against observant women by keeping them out of public jobs.