Posted on 04/03/2006 8:42:51 PM PDT by presidio9
Tattoos and piercings are ways for an individual to express their personality, but most employers are looking for presentable employees.
"I think that appearance is very important, [because] it lets the employer know that you know how to take care of yourself," said Eric Constantine, the manager of Athlete's House in Nashville.
It can be a very difficult choice whether or not to have your ears pierced or to get a tattoo, as Lisa Stevens, a freshman, found out.
"I really wanted the lifeguard job at the local pool back home," she said. "The only thing was that I also wanted a couple of tattoos that I could get, now that I was 18. I had to make the choice between the two because the pool wouldn't allow any visible tattoos. I second guess my decision a lot."
More and more people are getting tattoos than ever, and more and more of them are having to find ways to cover them up at work.
Tyler White, a Jackson, Tenn., freshman, was trying to find a summer job when a friend of his told him about an opening at a local car shop.
"I went in for the interview and everything seemed to go well, then the manager asked me about my tattoos," he said.
"I had to wear a long-sleeved jumpsuit all summer," White said.
It is important to realize that getting a tattoo is permanent and can hinder one from doing some of the things they might want to, like getting a job.
There are places that are appropriate to receive tattoos that are almost never visible.
Most employers say it would also be a good idea to stay away from too many piercings if one doesn't want to have to remove them every day before work.
Constantine said, "The employer pays a lot of attention to your appearance.
"It is important to look your best for [an] interview, even if that includes passing up getting a tattoo or an extra piercing," he said.
Overall, most people think it's okay to get that extra hole in one's ear or that barbed wire around a person's arm.
However, students are urged to know that career options might become limited because of many visible tattoos or piercings.
Waiting for some numbskull FReeper to post the obligatory picture of that one girl with a ton of piercings.
I can understand business and retail restrictions... but lifeguard? That's just odd.
What I find amazing is that this would be story-worthy. Kinda like writing a lead story entitled "If You Stick Your Hand on the Iron, You Might Get Burned"
I refuse to hire those mutants.
Smokers need not apply either.
People should be allowed to hire who they want and how their employees should look. I had a friend who got tattoos when she was in her early twenties. For several months she later went through painful medical removal of the tatoos as she moved up in her carreer.
Yes, and they seem to go together a lot.
I personally can't look at someone who has piercings in their nose or face. It gives me the shivers.
I certainly would never do business with them.
I remember years ago Dr. Laura had a girl on her show who couldn't get a job because of her outlandish appearance. She was crying tears of rage and frustration, and viewed it as discrimination.
Dr. Laura read her the riot act - you can dress however you want, but people are going to judge you by how you look. The girl just didn't get it.
I've been trying to explain this to my brother for years.
When will some in this world ever learn that it isn't what is on the outside that matters, but what is on the inside? I have dealt with far too many "employees" of far too many businesses who look "presentable" but are also disrespectful, unhelpful, and downright stupid. I also know some folks who have tattoos and piercings that could put those "presentable" employees to shame both in their professional conduct AND their personal integrity.
When I give blood at United Blood Services[AZ], they ask if I have tattoos. I presume that a tattoo would disqualify a person from giving blood.
Should the people who elect to get tattoos sign a form opting out of the health system to the extent that they might need blood? Kind of like a DNR order for blood transfusions?
this article needs a big, loud "well DUH!"
I hope my kid is getting past her tatoo desire stage. I really hope so.
No kidding! LOL
At least it's not posted in breaking news.
Sorry libertines! Don't expect me to hire you and "accomodate" your lifestyle/appearance!
Tattoos and piercings are ways for an individual to express their personality, but MOST EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO DON'T HAVE A DESPERATE NEED TO PUBLICLY DEMONSTRATE SELF MUTILATION.
"I personally can't look at someone who has piercings in their nose or face. It gives me the shivers. "
The exception to that, for me is girls with a tongue peircing...
That would not be a good idea.
I have a tatoo.
I give blood. If you don't want my o neg because it might be contaminated (it ain't) then you can bleed out and die for all I care, Darwin will not be denied.
Do you hire drinkers? Just curious.
Of course there are no absolutes, but first impressions are hard to get over. My favorite was a guy who interviewed for a programming spot. He actually came in for the interview with a rod thru his tongue. I couldn't understand a word the idiot was trying to say. I just cut it short and sent him on his way, I don't have the time to waste.
Where were they employed? At a tattoo shop? That's virtually the only place where they can get employment at. Even McDonald's won't hire kids looking like an Etch-A-Sketch.
Or "Men and women are different".
Well, DUUHH!
When will some in this world ever learn that it isn't what is on the outside that matters, but what is on the inside?
May I just add to that: Duh.
Call me old-fashined. God knows, I've been called worse. But I'd never, under any circumstances, hire anyone who's into self-mutilation.
Quit harshing man.
---I also know some folks who have tattoos and piercings that could put those "presentable" employees to shame both in their professional conduct AND their personal integrity.---
Good! We'll give you first crack at them then. For that matter you can have second, third and last crack at them as well.
Yeah, you know what they say about that? That girls with tongue piercings.....
Rest of comment removed by poster, or else the Moderator would have done it anyway
I get them all the time. They seem always to have an entitlement mentality. Also amazing is how many of them ask to 'borrow' a pen. Needless to say, their apps are in the garbage, unread, before they hit the front door.
I can understand someone not liking piercings or tattoos. What I cannot understand is someone refusing to do business with someone because of it. Amazing. I wonder how many people who feel this way also claim to be Christians?
I can't figure out the doctor on "Lost" and his tattoos.
Depends on the business. That decision is best left to the employer.
"Where do I find Human Resources and apply for the Customer Service opening?"
They scream, "I'm impulsive and I don't think things through, and I want to announce that fact to the world for the rest of my life."
I think the choice is easy. Just don't get them if you are unwilling to put up with rejection.
If you choose to hire someone who chooses to make a spectacle of himself, it reflects upon your judgement as well. Better to hire a naturally ugly person than a self-mutilated exhibitionist.
Unless you are hiring bouncers for a biker bar, then it's fine.
What on EARTH could be on the inside of that garbage pile but more garbage?
The two tears there mean murder, right?
Most business owners don't want to hire someone that will make their customers uncomfortable. It's really that simple. The fact is, if someone wants to present themselves as outside of the norms and "make a statement", they need to realize that they are relegating themselves to working in coffee shops or bars.
Yes, first impressions can be hard to get over, but I say, "get over it". I worked in a legal firm years ago and there was an opening for the front desk receptionist. The final two candidates for this position were women. One was a very pretty gal, one was overweight and quite homely. They hired the "pretty gal". Oh sure, she looked "presentable", but the other gal had far more credentials and intelligence than this "pretty gal" could muster in a lifetime.
I understand someone, such as yourself, who did not hire someone because they were not able to perform their job ("couldn't understand a word...", but that's not what many folks on threads such as this one are saying.
Ping!
They're not being stoned. They're just not being hired.
No one has a "right" to be hired. No employer is required to have his business suffer because some employee insists on being a walking billboard of obscenities and foolishness before the business's clientele or the public.
SELF MUTILATION???? ROFL! I know some elderly veterans who served in WWII, and they have tattoos. Are you suggesting that they were into "self-mutilation"? And what about my pierced ears. Did my father allow me to self-mutilate myself many, many years ago?
Look, if someone is short-sighted enough to make a freakshow of themselves, that's fine with me. It's their business. But I don't want to entrust my online system and decisions that affect it to someone with that poor a decision making ability.
That's fine as far as the personal perceptions of the business owner goes, but what about the lost revenue he suffers because even a few customers are turned off by the freak show? Should he post a "get over it" sign on the door?
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