Tattoos and work

michis05
michis05 Posts: 99 Member
edited September 30 in Chit-Chat
I applied for a job as a receptionist for a job, only problem was that the costumers had been complaining about the workers and their tattoos. They recently had to let someone go because of her tats. From what one of the workers told me, its the costumers complaining not the managers, but if they see them on me, they wont hire me. Is this legal? has anyone been in this situation? how did you handle it?
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Replies

  • otr12
    otr12 Posts: 632 Member
    Is this legal? Yes.
    has anyone been in this situation? Yes.
    how did you handle it? Cover them up.
  • ♥Faerie♥
    ♥Faerie♥ Posts: 14,053 Member
    Nope, I work in a very laid back place, however, if I would not be hired due to my art, I would not want to work there in the first place....people need to learn to not judge so quickly....
  • michis05
    michis05 Posts: 99 Member
    well that blows..this job was perfect though..id get the weekends off!! I am still gonna go check it out...im in no position to reject a job but if i see they make a huge deal during the interview ill just walk out (not literally)
  • papastu
    papastu Posts: 737 Member
    Is this legal? Yes.
    has anyone been in this situation? Yes.
    how did you handle it? Cover them up.
  • dayzeerock
    dayzeerock Posts: 918 Member
    If they hire you knowing you have tattoos, they cannot legally fire you for them. If you hid them while interviewing and tattoos are against company policy, they can let you go.

    Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!
  • If they hire you already with tats, you still have to comply with the company dress-code policy. In my company, tats must be covered with clothing, band aid, whatever works.
  • PalmettoparkGuy
    PalmettoparkGuy Posts: 212 Member
    Is this legal? Yes.
    has anyone been in this situation? Yes.
    how did you handle it? Cover them up.

    Exactly
  • Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!

    Most professional environments do not allow visible tattoos.
  • michis05
    michis05 Posts: 99 Member
    seems like the gym attracts older people and they seem to be the ones who are complaining more. its an odd gym if you ask me... trainers wear business clothes while training their clients. I have yet to go in there and see it for myself, but a picture is worth a thousand words. I wont keep it from them, ill be honest and tell them the truth, they arent offensive in anyway, and if they decide not to hire me, well then i atleast gave it a shot..ya know...


    If they hire you knowing you have tattoos, they cannot legally fire you for them. If you hid them while interviewing and tattoos are against company policy, they can let you go.

    Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!
  • Trixtabella
    Trixtabella Posts: 471 Member
    I used to have this issue when I worked in sales I had a Tattoo on my foot and because I wore ballet type pumps to work I used to have to cover it with a bandage or a plaster.
    The place I work now are pretty laid back however and they are ok with tattoo's.
  • bry_all01
    bry_all01 Posts: 3,100 Member
    If they hire you knowing you have tattoos, they cannot legally fire you for them. If you hid them while interviewing and tattoos are against company policy, they can let you go.

    Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!


    many corporate jobs are still that way. I know that is in our Dress Code Guidelines that they not be seen. Some girls wear bandaids, some put makeup on them. Crazy, but true.
  • grrrlface
    grrrlface Posts: 1,204 Member
    I have had problems before and it's horrible that people judge because of them.
    I wouldn't want to work for someone that judges me by what's on my skin and not by how I work, if you're good at the job then what's the problem. As long as they are not offensive works then it shouldn't be a problem.
  • Samiwhereareyou
    Samiwhereareyou Posts: 277 Member
    I feel it would really depend on the tattoos. DId the other person get fired for having a flower and a unicorn or swastikas and racist jargon or naked ladies in provocative poses. Thats all part of it. Working at a preschool they told me straight up my octopus tattoo was just fine even educational cuz the kids would recognize an animal they were learning about but if my tattoos were ever not PG and the kids could see them they would have to let me go. I respect that.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    There are plenty of places that are still really uptight about tattoos. I'd check to make sure they aren't against company policy, but if they let someone go because of them, it probably is. I've worked at places where I was forced to wear skirts or dresses, no pants, and that included panty hose (torture when you live in the desert Southwest!). Another place where we couldn't wear ANY jewelry with the exception of wedding rings. Another where men weren't allowed any facial hair. Companies can certainly dictate how their employees look and dress, and they do. It's up to you to decide if the job is worth conforming to their rules.

    If you can cover yours up, I'd still ask during the interview if they have a policy against them being visible. Better to be upfront about having them and then clearly stating that you'll be more than willing to make sure they're covered when you're on the job.

    My son (21) got a tattoo last year and my husband and I were sure to make him realize he didn't want one where it could be seen if he were in short sleeves. He can decide later if he wants them in places more visible, but at his age, he's better off not limiting himself because of his body art.
  • I applied for a job as a receptionist for a job, only problem was that the costumers had been complaining about the workers and their tattoos. They recently had to let someone go because of her tats. From what one of the workers told me, its the costumers complaining not the managers, but if they see them on me, they wont hire me. Is this legal? has anyone been in this situation? how did you handle it?

    Here is the deal...there is still a great deal of descrimination against those of us who like body art and unfortunately there is nothing that we can do about it. I am covered in two complete arm sleeves, the rest are pretty well hidden when I choose them to be. There are jobs out there that are good paying that could care less if you have tattoos and even have higher ups that have them (and flaunt them) but these places are far and few between, even today.

    I never go to an interview with my tattoos visible and I also remove my nose stud. Even without being able to see my tattoos I've always been told of their policy, some places are 0 tolerance and you have to have them covered at all times and other places are okay with them as long as they're not offensive.

    You must decide if you want a job that is so blatently against tattoos over your job preformance. Some places will even use the customers as an excuse when it really isn't the customers. I worked in a surgeons office where my art was being admired by elderly men and women every day!! I've been fortunate that in my last two jobs they could care less and I was able to flaunt them at work as long as I remained in dress code.
  • michis05
    michis05 Posts: 99 Member
    if they are offensive i understand..but i got the words "eternal love" (in spanish) a small heart a dove and the letter S all on my left arm( wrist and forearm) i think its ridiculous i was in the military and they didnt make a huge deal about it!! Obviously we were covered from head to toe with that uniform but still.
    From what i was told, they "let her go" because the costumers were complaining about her tattoos. She had to doves on her chest, not offensive to me, but hey..to each its own...im telling them i have them and i will cover them up. Not keeping it from them
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    If they hire you knowing you have tattoos, they cannot legally fire you for them. If you hid them while interviewing and tattoos are against company policy, they can let you go.

    Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!

    Georgia is an at-will employment state, which essentially means there is no such thing as wrongful termination unless you have an employment contract that was breached (an actual contract, not an employment handbook that everyone signs) or unless you were fired for something that would violate public policy or protected class statutes, like race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc.

    Basically, in an at-will employment state, you can be fired for wearing a shirt your boss hates, and there's nothing you can legally do about it.
  • I work within the court system and I'm pretty heavily tattooed. The only time I cover them is if I am in the courtroom. In my own office it's not a big deal. Even when I deal with the general public it doesn't seem to offend anyone. I work in a criminal courthouse so in a way I think some of the clients are more apt to be open with me and see me as an equal.

    It's still relatively uncommon to see a woman heavily tattooed though and I get some strange looks from time to time, but mostly I get good humoured questions and often enough people ask me if they can touch them.
  • RokMomma79
    RokMomma79 Posts: 21 Member
    Most professional environments do not allow visible tattoos.

    I disagree - I have worked in various real estate offices, both commercial and residential, front office and back, met with clients from all ranges of backgrounds for over 8 years with my tattoos exposed (i have arm, back, foot and neck tattoos), and hair colours that ranged across the rainbow. It's not a sign of professionalism if your office has an laid-back view of ink and self expression, it's a sign of acceptance and realization that exterior appearance is no indication of ability, education or work ethic.

    I have now worked in a very casual, but highly professional travel/ tour operator office for the last year, I meet with clients and service providers and my tattoos have never been an issue. I always make sure to have them exposed when in an interview situation and if I get the job then clearly it was my ability and experience that weighed more than my ink.
  • otr12
    otr12 Posts: 632 Member
    Your tattoos are a choice that you make. Where you work is also a choice that you make. If you don't like the results that come from your choices that is your fault and nobody elses.

    It's that simple.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    I think appearance has a lot to do with work ethic. I don't think tattoos necessarily indicate a substandard work ethic, but some matters of appearance definitely do.

    Regardless, it's not about what society judges as acceptable or unacceptable. It's about the image a company is trying to portray and how that image serves the company's brand and marketing strategy. A lot of corporations don't want employees with visible tattoos because their clientele may be mostly of a demographic that frowns on body art, piercings, etc. I worked for an estate planning firm right out of college, and we did a lot of living trusts, mostly for elderly clients. I dare say most of them wouldn't have allowed a tatted up, pierced to high heaven trust salesman into their home, which is precisely why any employee with tats had to keep them covered and any employee with visible piercings had to remove them while on the job.
  • ilookthetype
    ilookthetype Posts: 3,021 Member
    If they hire you knowing you have tattoos, they cannot legally fire you for them. If you hid them while interviewing and tattoos are against company policy, they can let you go.

    Wow...didn't realize there were still places out there that are so uptight!

    I work in DC, welcome to the land of picky.

    And, it's their right. Tattoos don't look professional to most of the working world. I have a tattoo, I got it some place where it wouldn't show at work.

    You chose to get the tattoos; your mother and everyone else in the world probably told you you'll never get hired anywhere because of them. Suck it up and apply somewhere else, lots of tech places/mechanic shops/intranet/website kinds of places are beyond laid back and chill about tattoos/dress code.
  • Phera
    Phera Posts: 269 Member
    I work in a very conservative environment with clients from all over the world. No visible tattoos ever. A large back tattoo will be my reward when I lose the weight but no one needs to know about it except me and probably my husband as he's usually pretty observant.
  • ilookthetype
    ilookthetype Posts: 3,021 Member
    I work in a very conservative environment with clients from all over the world. No visible tattoos ever. A large back tattoo will be my reward when I lose the weight but no one needs to know about it except me and probably my husband as he's usually pretty observant.


    :laugh: I hope he wouldn't miss that....
  • voluptas63
    voluptas63 Posts: 602 Member
    I have tattoos on my wrists and they're very colorful and you're going to notice them. I didn't do it to prove/make a point. I did it because that's what I wanted.

    On the other hand though, I wouldn't expect ANYBODY to just deal with them. I thought long and hard about the placement of my tattoos and how this would affect me in my future business/personal life. So far, it's more than welcomed:) But I would not be offended if I was asked to cover them. I do cover them (on my own will) for large meetings and other business gatherings.
  • clairegreen1974
    clairegreen1974 Posts: 121 Member
    I guess from a legal standpoint, it depends where you live in the world. technically in the UK its illegal for an employer to discriminate on various grounds, age, sex, race, religious views and so on, it does not implicitly cover tattoos and body mods, although an employer would never tell you they are not hiring you becasue of them, and open themselves up to potential litigation (its a headache whether its valid or not!)

    I am in the UK, I have the top part of my back covered in a large tattoo piece, I can, and have shown it off at work, No one has ever pulled me up about it - I work for the Police. More specificaly, I work within Forensics, for the most part, i do tend to keep it covered up, but i refuse to wear huge tops if the sun is beating down - i'll wear what everyone else does.

    I think in a way because im well liked, known as a bit of a nutter and they see me as their own little bonkers Abby Scuito from NCIS that i get away with it!!

    I say, if you want one, get one, and roll your eyes at anyone who comes out with that age old boring line of "but what happens when you get old and wrinkly?!" Answer: i'll be old, wrinkly and tattooed! :bigsmile:
  • ladybg81
    ladybg81 Posts: 1,553 Member
    As a hiring manager, if I see tattoos, forget it; next contestant please. I expect my employees to be extremely professional. If you like tattoos, whatever, but be smart enough to put them some place you can cover them easily.
  • voluptas63
    voluptas63 Posts: 602 Member
    As a hiring manager, if I see tattoos, forget it; next contestant please. I expect my employees to be extremely professional. If you like tattoos, whatever, but be smart enough to put them some place you can cover them easily.


    Well that's intense.
  • clairegreen1974
    clairegreen1974 Posts: 121 Member
    Can i jusy ask... as a Hiring Manager - what is it about the tattoo that would make you say forget it, (and im not in any way being 'funny' here) but is it some kind of stereotypical knuckle dragging uneducated rude beer drinker that pops to mind? I say this as it seems to be the image a lot of people associate

    On the QT, I would say i have a respectable job (see above) I am a BA (Hons) graduate and i dont drink alcohol - at all!
  • sulugirl
    sulugirl Posts: 17
    Our world isn't quite as laid back as some of us wish it to be. I am tattooed. I'm a legal assistant and I have a tattoo on my neck and on my foot, quite visable. I haven't had any complaints just yet but I do my best to cover them up majority of the time. If someone were to approach me about it, I would definitely make more of an effort to hide them. Work isn't exactly the place to "be yourself" so to speak - you're there to work. If you have a job where you can truly be yourself, cherish it. There's not a lot of places like that out there.

    Us alternative folk just need to accept that the world isn't always going to be as accepting and non-judgemental as our generation. Just give it another few decades.
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