Sacrificing sense of self for the sake of getting a job
@crimsonladybug (3112)
United States
January 27, 2012 1:08am CST
I have been looking for a job for about five months now and am not getting anywhere. I have not received contact back on any of the applications I've put out, save for a couple of companies who extended the courtesy of telling me they'd hired someone else. I am going to a job fair on Tuesday and it will be my first time meeting face to face with potential employers.
I have a lip piercing, in which I wear a very small jewel and one small visible tattoo on my wrist (four others that are generally hidden under my clothing). I have an unusual hairstyle which is streaked black and purple. I am not everyone's idea of the perfect professional image but I am far more sedate than a lot of people in my generation.
I don't feel like I am intentionally searching for jobs where I know I will be allowed to keep my personal image but maybe I am. I know that I spend a lot of time checking employees at businesses I patronize, looking for "unnatural" hair colors, tattoos and piercings. And if I had to sacrifice something, I would rather wear a uniform than color my hair solid black. Uniforms can be changed at the end of a shift... hair color is more permanent.
Conversely, (and maybe this is my generation and my body modifications speaking) I would rather see someone with plugs or tunnels in their gauged ears than a gaping hole. I would rather see someone with a small, unobtrusive jewel in their lip than the gaping hole left by removing their piercing. Also, people say the facial piercings are offensive to certain customers but the same can be said of religious symbols (crosses, Stars of David, etc) and they'd be sued for telling an employee they couldn't wear that to work.
So, what about you? What are your thoughts on people being allowed to show their personal style in the work place, provided it doesn't distract from the job (for example I get not wearing fingerless gloves if you are a server in a restaurant because you'd waste more time taking them off to put your hands in water than you would spend helping customers...)?
6 responses
@fransmonlot (411)
• United States
30 Jan 12
Unfortunately your piercing and tattoo are probably causing you the jobs. The way you look is very important to a pertential employer. At my job they have a strick dress code. You cant even where your hair the way you want.I personally dont agree. I think what matters is if the person can actually do the job. You could come to a interview dress all nice but when it comes to the work you cant do it.
@mayrah (1144)
• United States
28 Jan 12
actually it depends on the kind of job you are applying.. for example if you are a nurse in a hospital it would be very offending to your profession since as you have mentioned it's "not a perfect professional image" if you have tattoo, lip piercing or your hairstyle was as if your were a member of a band. But if you cannot sacrifice your fashion just to get the job you want... You could rather find a job that would accept whatever fashion or style you have, a great example is a call center job, most call center companies don't really care how you look, whether you have tattoos all over your body or whether you have the weirdest hairstyle and haircolor, they don't care as long as you can perform the job with efficiency that alright.
@mensab (4200)
• Philippines
27 Jan 12
it is up to you which one you like - to keep your style or get a job. if you are a starter, then it is advisable to keep the expectations of the employers, to which they look for a professional looking employee that can showcase and represent them in public. but once you have established yourself in your chosen field, employers will come to you no matter how you look. they are after your work and ideas. build yourself first and then you can be who you want to be.
@eunife (165)
• Philippines
27 Jan 12
if you are an employee of a certain company, you bear their name. if people see you, they see the company in you. That is why most companies implement dress codes. when you work for them, you are not totally yourself in some sense because the company is already a part of you. so if you want to be employed, accept the company and its rules including the possibility that you need to change something in yourself.
@visminda_824 (153)
• Philippines
27 Jan 12
Hi crimsonladybug. Looking for a job is not an easy task. There are rules or shall we call office decorum that you must need to follow, such as dress code. Since an employee symbolizes the company to which he/she belongs, you need to be packaged according to how the company wants you to be. Thus, if the employer can sense that you are prone to breaking their company rules, he/she may not hire you, unless of course, there is a special task they may conceive for you to do, or you have such an extraordinary talent or skill that they cannot find in anyone else.
@Mashnn (4501)
•
27 Jan 12
I have no problem with personal preferences whether is dressings or jewellery but when it comes to looking for a job, most employers will go for a professional lookin type of person. I think it is very hard for a serious employer to hire someone with a plunging neckline or pierched tongue unless they are hiring someone for an entertainment purposes. Dressing code is one of the most important factors that determines whether you will be hired or not.
