It’s common to hear “you’ll never get a job looking like that” or “getting tattoos will ruin your chances of getting a job”, as a young person when talking about getting a tattoo done. Despite the fact that as of 2013 23% of Americans have a tattoo according to a Pew Study, the connotation toward tattoos in the work place is still negative. If such a significant amount of people have tattoos, how is it that having visible tattoos still seems to be the kiss of death for those seeking jobs?
A study conducted by Saint Andrew’s University of Management’s Dr. Andrew Timming, explained that when he spoke to 14 hiring managers who worked in various fields such as banks and prisons. He asked them their opinions on tattoos on a prospective new hire and what they thought about them in a work context. The replies of some of the managers were that a “woman manager told him that ‘they make a person look dirty'”, that “subconsciously, that would stop me from employing them”, and “tattoos are the firs thing they [fellow recruiters] talk about when the person has gone out the door”.
Timmings said that although he himself likes tattoos, he agreed that “most respondents agreed that visible tattoos are a stigma”, and he also explained that the reason most employers has a dislike of visible tattoos was that because they were more fearful of how a customer would react.
Although, it is important to consider that according to Timmings the majority of the respondents that replied negatively were more likely to be of the older generation. Age is a large variable. So it can be seen that as the older generation goes out of the work force and the hiring and management positions go to those who belong to a younger, more progressive generation that tattoos may no longer be an issue for employment. As well as the study didn’t really factor in the benefits of the having tattoos in other professions such as a prison guard with tattoos would increase their “respect” or the fact that hiring managers may put more importance in the candidate’s ability to perform which an article in Forbes points out. As well as the fact that Timmings on spoken to 14 different hiring managers so his study doesn’t necessarily represent the majority.
So yes there is still a stigma around having visible tattoos and their ability to affect your employment. Although, it should be more closely looked at as how other factors such as age of the hiring manager and the line of work play into the employer’s decision as well.
Work Cited
http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2010/10/millennials-confident-connected-open-to-change.pdf
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/05/tattoos-hired-job-chances-study_n_3873425.html
http://www.management-issues.com/news/6745/tattoo-taboo-what-employers-think-about-ink/
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelhennessey/2013/02/27/having-a-tattoo-and-a-job/
http://www.salary.com/how-tattoos-affect-your-career/
People have their opinions of tattoos. They usually associate them with people who have multiple tattoos or that works in a tattoo shop. For me having a sibling with tattoos, I know my parents don’t approve. My brother have a half sleeve on his arm but it is easily covered when he is wearing a t-shirt, I don’t see the problem with tattoos in the work business as long as you can cover them. If you have them covered, your employer would never know. This study is too small to make any conclusions. It could be true more of the older generation disagrees with tattoos since tattoos has become very popular this day in age. Many they should of done the study with managers at a wide range of ages. This would give a better understanding of how perceive them. I don’t think any study or conclusion will change what employers already think. It has been like this for a long time. Employers could also think that tattoos are too much of a distraction to other workers and customers. They don’t someone leaving their company talking about that one person with a bunch of tattoos. I found a website that stated some people only think that certain jobs should allow tattoos. A manager said that she could never see a doctor having tattoos. It wouldn’t look right. Now are we getting into how “professional” jobs are would depend on you having tattoos? Doesn’t seem right….
http://www.npr.org/2014/02/21/280213268/job-seekers-still-have-to-hide-tattoos-from-the-neck-up
This topic is very interesting because i’ve read studies in the past that have came to the same conclusion. Tattoos lower the amount employment opportunities they get offered because it’s unprofessional. Also the profession also matters, a tattoo artist job applicant would most probably be tatted up, while in the business profession all visible tattoo’s must be covered up.
I think this is a great topic, especially for our age group. It is definitely controversial in our society, but in the future, I do not think it will be. I think that the answer to this question differs from job to job. Yes, if you have an entire sleeve or a body full of tattoos, it will affect your chances of getting a job in some career paths. However, our society is definitely changing. When the current generation becomes the managers and bosses, they will be covered in tattoos themselves. However, it can also depend on the tattoo itself. If someone has a small and meaningful tattoo, or one that could be easily covered up, I do not think it will affect an employer’s decision so much. I find this topic so interesting because 3it really does differ from person to person, but considering how many people have tattoos and that our generation will grow up to be in charge with tattoos, it is hard to find a direct answer. It would be very difficult to conduct a study on this, because each individual has their own opinions and ideas. I don’t know if tattoos will ever be 100% accepted in certain job fields, but I do think that as time goes on and tattoos become more popular more employers will open up to the idea and we will make progress towards them become acceptable in the workplace.
I think it really depends on the content of the tattoo, if it’s obscene for example it would likely make people question the judgement of the person with the tattoo, which isn’t good it they’re a doctor for example. However employers still view this as a problem or there would be businessmen with tattoos covering their whole body and we all know this just doesn’t happen. However it is interesting to think that maybe people who are more likely to have a lot of tattoos are less likely to be interested in these sorts of jobs and maybe they are more interested in more creative and artsy jobs instead. I’m not saying people with many tattoos are in any way less able to do professional jobs but merely that they are likely not interested in them.
This topic is very controversial. I personally believe that having NOTICEABLE tattoos could really affect whether you get a job or not. However, there are so many different variables or scenarios which could change everything. For example, it depends what job you are trying to get. If you are interviewing for a job at McDonald’s, it will not matter. However, if you are looking to get a job at the top law firm in America, I think that it would matter. Another factor could be where your tattoo is. If your tattoo is in a hidden location where your boss can not see it, then it should be okay. However, if your tattoo runs up and down your arms, legs, neck, etc, it is too flashy and could be a distraction to other workers. Also, if it is a job that involves in-person communicating, having noticeable tattoos would not give off the best vibes. Unfortunately, people judge hard core now-a-days. A good experiment would be to send ten random people (different sex, race, and ethnicity) into two separate job interviews, each person is assigned two companies. Have them go into one job interview with no tattoos and then have them go into the other job interview with fake tattoos which cover their bodies. It would be interesting to see how the interviewers would treat them. Their could be other third variables, such as what jobs these people are trying to get or how the interviewer views people with tattoos. It could be extremely interesting.
For an interesting article, check out this link: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29211526
This is a very controversial topic. We’ve constantly been told by teachers, parents, and friends that getting tattoos will limit our job prospects. Even though it is a taboo in the job industry to have a tattoo I have never seen data correlating the two until now. People should be able to do what they want to their own bodies and not have to worry about being passed over on a job because of it. But the study that you referenced is very subjective and does not represent the minority. I think it is becoming more commonplace to see tattoos in places of work and more and more so in highly respected jobs such as doctors, teachers, lawyers, etc. All that should matter when going into a job interview is wether or not you have the skills to complete the job you are applying for effectively and quickly. That being said however I do believe that there is a limit on what you should expect in an interview. If you have tattoos covering your entire face and are interviewing for a job that deals directly with customers all day it might make sense that you don’t get that job because you would make the patrons uneasy. One could make the argument that this is discrimination but at the end of that day it’s about making money and scaring away customers is never good for that.
This is a very interesting topic. Tattoos can be very controversial. It is hard to talk about tattoos because everyone views them differently. I do not think a tattoo should define a person. So i believe that if someone has a tattoo , it should not hurt them from being able to be a teacher, a doctor, a manicurist etc..However, there will be people who do not like tattoos and will not let their employees have e them. In that case, the person with the tattoos looses out. There is not really any type of experiment that should be done because hiring someone with a tattoos is completely an opinionated topic and can become personal. There definitely is a correlation between tattoos and employment but it will not be causation due to the people who will hire with visible tattoos. If a tattoo is inappropriate it may hurt the person but if it is simply a flower or heart or a date it should not effect whether or not the person gets the job.
I agree that this is a very difficult topic to try and evaluate because everyone views tattoos differently. Whether you are interviewing for a teaching job, a management position, or a hair dresser, each employer will have a different opinion. Some people, like you said, will not hire someone who has visible tattoos while others will not care. I do not think that there is any way to conduct an actual experiment because I do not think the results will ever show an answer. People either care if you have a tattoo or they don’t. Because of this there is a correlation between tattoos and employment, but it will never be causation because of the people who will hire others with visible tattoos.
This is a very difficult subject to study closely since it is largely dependent on observation. It is also difficult to say whether or not tattoos in the work place will ever be fully accepted. There has to be a point of professionalism with expression. Like if a tattoo has profanity in it, there is potential of offending clientele and I could then understand employers being standoffish to hiring. If a tattoo isn’t outwardly offensive though, I don’t understand the problem.
I think this is a very interesting topic that is very controversial in our modern day society. I do not have any tattoos myself, but my mother always tells me that she will not allow me to get one because of its effect on future employment opportunities. She says that in her office she is one of the people who interview incoming workers and tattoos are one of the biggest deterrents to her and her peers.
I do agree though that as generations progress we may see a change in people’s perspectives on tattoos in the workforce. I think in this scenario it does depend on what area of work we are looking at. For example if a lawyer that regularly goes to court has a tattoo that would probably look way worse to most people than if a garbage collector had a tattoo. I think it would be possible to perform a study on this, but because it would be based on solely opinions, there will always be some people who have the minority opinion. Because of this, It would be hard to say with 100% certainty that one opinion is right versus the other but it might be possible to conclude there is a strong correlation.