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.
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?
If it gives me the creeps to look at someone, why would I want to patronize their business? I couldn't enjoy my time there. It has nothing to do with judging people.
Well, there ya go. The picture everyone loves to envision when they think of someone with a piercing or tattoos. Nothing like "extremists" to make their day. LOL
Then you are too old to believe what you just said. Else that is a false statement.
Apples and oranges. Those guys' tattoos were discreet or placed squarely on the shoulder where it could be concealed. They didn't exactly resemble the walking maps that kids are now.
People who have Tattoos have put themselves at risk for exposure to the AIDS virus, that is the reason they ask.
I think so. Either that or they really are tears.
My reply to the question raised by the article is, 'Well, Duh? . . .' On a personal note: A pretty young woman with a tongue bead laughed when I raised a similar question with her. She just smiled and said, 'No problems, none at all.'
" Rest of comment removed by poster, or else the Moderator would have done it anyway "
Yep, what's that old saying about discretion and valor?
First of all, yes, employers have the right to hire whomever they choose. I believe in those rights.
What I do not understand, is the illogical hatred and contempt for people who have tattoos and/or piercings. As a side note, I do not have any piercings but I do have pierced ears. Also, for those who don't know, I'm not a young, whipper-snapper. I'm a grandmother.
I think some people just hate tattoos and piercings, and loathe and refuse to acquaint themselves with anyone who has such things on their body. Pity them. I know elderly people with tattoos and I know young people with tattoos. Perhaps that has given me the mental balance on this issue. Not EVERYONE with a tattoo or piercings is a freak...and not everyone WITHOUT a tattoo or piercings is a freak.
I cannot understand people who refuse to look beyond the surface. I don't understand people who would use some extreme example (such as the picture posted) as an example of most people who just enjoy body art and piercings.
I now return some of you to your flaming debate. But I will watch and wonder if someone, any one of you with such serious "issues" about tattoos will ever respond to the fact that there are many elderly people in this world, who fought for you, who raised generations of good people, who do have tattoos. What do you say to them? Are they not worthy of you?
Heil Hitler!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.