The research isn’t exact, but a recent poll found that up to half of Americans under the age of 40 have tattoos, and that has implications for the job market.
Hinterhaus production | Stone | beautiful pictures
The growing battle to attract and retain workers has prompted employers to adjust longstanding employment and workplace policies, from accepting combine and work remotely arrive remove the college degree requirement. The less-insured policy is also changing: displaying tattoos on workers.
Companies including Disney, UPS and Virgin Atlantic have relaxed dress and style rules to allow employees to show off their tattoos in the workplace. Many moves have taken place over the past two years as the labor market, which was already tight before Covid, has become even more competitive during the pandemic.
When long time Home Depot Chief Financial Officer Carol Tomé Appointed CEO of UPS In June 2020, many of her first efforts to revive the package delivery giant focused on boosting the job satisfaction of the company’s more than 534,000 workers globally. A few of those initiatives focus on corporate dress and style constraints.
“We don’t allow beards; we don’t allow natural hair. So if you’re African-American and you want a shaggy or twisted or braided hairstyle, that’s not allowed. Policy Our tattoos are more limited than the US Army,” Tomé told CNBC last year.
UPS, known for its regimental brown uniform and driver’s dress code, acknowledged that it needed to make changes to “create a more modern workplace for our employees.” me, allowing them to bring their true selves to the workplace,” said Christopher Bartlett, Vice President of UPS. president of people and culture.
UPS initially reviewed its hair and beard policies, which previously forbade men to have long hair below their collars or beards. The regulatory policy, implemented in November 2020, now allows beards and mustaches “to be worn in a business manner”, as well as certain “natural hairstyles”. However, the policy says that employees must maintain a neat and clean appearance “appropriate for their job and workplace” and that the length of their hair or beard is not a safety concern.
Changing attitudes about tattoos in the workplace
After that policy was well-received, Bartlett said, UPS began considering changes to its tattoo policy. In the past, the company banned employees from revealing any tattoos — workers with tattoos had to cover them with long-sleeved shirts or pants, or skin-colored sheets.
After a series of cultural surveys, discussions with employees, and other studies, UPS has decided to base a new policy announced in April 2021 that allows employees to reveal tattoos under certain conditions. provided they do not contain any offensive words or images. Workers are also not allowed to have tattoos on their hands, head, neck or face.
“Tattoos are important to everyone, and while there was a time when people could get a tattoo of their choice,” says Bartlett, “now tattoos are really important to someone; it’s part of it,” says Bartlett. of their people”. “We want people to feel like they can push themselves not only in their current job, but when they think about their entire career.”
DisneyTheir parks department went through a similar change in April 2021, updating the dress code and style to allow employees to show off their tattoos, which is believed to be part of the broader efforts to make its employees and guests feel more welcome at its theme parks.
The policy change “provides greater flexibility for personal expression around the choice of gender-specific hair, jewelry, nail, and outfit choices; and allows tattoos to have a gender identity.” can see fit,” said Josh D’Amaro, president of Disney parks, experiences and products, wrote in a blog post on Disney’s website.
“We’re updating them to not only remain relevant in today’s workplaces but also allow our members to better express their culture and personality in the workplace,” D’Amaro writes. .
According to the Disney members handbook, visible tattoos no larger than the extended hand are allowed with the exception of any tattoos on the face, head, or neck. For larger tattoos on an arm or leg, staff may wear a fabric shirt that matches the tattoo sleeve. Any tattoo that depicts nudity, offensive or inappropriate language, or violates any company policy is also not allowed.
Disney did not respond to a request for comment.
Virgin Atlantic, the British airline owned by Richard Branson, lifted its ban on visible tattoos for staff in uniform in May. Estelle Hollingsworth, Virgin Atlantic’s chief human resources officer, said in an emailed statement, “Many people use tattoos to represent their unique identities, and colleagues wear uniforms and face-to-face with guests. Our customers shouldn’t do that if they want to.”
The US military has also taken similar steps, issuing an updated directive in June to further expand tattooing, including tattoos on the arms and back of the neck. The Army previously relaxed regulations limiting the number of tattoos recruits and soldiers could have on their arms and legs in 2015.
“We’ve always looked at policy to keep the Army as an option open to as many people as possible who want to serve,” Major General Doug Stitt, the Army’s Director of Personnel Management, told the BBC. Military news service. “This directive has implications for Soldiers currently serving and allows a greater number of talented individuals the opportunity to serve now.”
According to the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, 41 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds have at least one or more tattoos.
Customers accept tattooists more
Enrica Ruggs, associate professor in the Department of Management and Leadership University of Houston CT Bauer College of Business, says that there have been long-standing negative stigmas against tattoos that have returned to cycling culture and the sense that people Rebels are people with tattoos. That has shifted to corporate cultures, where hiring managers will stereotype candidates with good-looking tattoos or where employers worry that hiring someone with a tattoo will cost clients. interest.
However, Ruggs said recent research find that most tattoos today reflect a sense of belonging – for example, a memorial image, a caption about their culture or profession, or a tattoo that matches the tattoo on a loved one.
Ruggs ran a test that measured customer response to workers wearing temporary tattoos. While some customers still have negative stereotypes about tattoos, employees with tattoos earn just as much revenue as those who don’t. Negative stereotypes also do not negatively affect customers’ perceptions of the organization. According to research by Ruggs, in fact, employees with tattoos in white or creative jobs are favored and more competent by customers than employees without tattoos.
“Part of the argument has always been that it’s going to hurt the organization and that that can actually change consumer buying behavior,” Ruggs said. “But if the foundation of your business is services, that won’t change, but allowing and relaxing some of these policies can help boost employee morale and possibly expand those.” you can hire, which can help improve employee performance. If employees are happy and they feel satisfied with their employees, they can also be very productive.”
Although there are no exact statistics regarding tattoos, a January Rasmussen Report survey found that nearly half of Americans under the age of 40 have tattoos. The survey found that across all ages, 33% of Americans have tattoos.
The New York City Council currently has a bill to limit discrimination against people with tattoos, including in the workplace. The bill would add tattoos to categories in the city’s administrative code that already prohibit discrimination such as race or sexual orientation. While it still allows employers to require employees to cover tattoos, it will require them to prove that not showing tattoos is a “genuine professional qualification”.
Bartlett said that after UPS changed its policy, he noticed that some employees posted their UPS-themed tattoos on the company’s internal message board.
“When someone puts the UPS logo on them after 25 years of driving here, it’s very important and it shows how important the company is to them,” he said. “This isn’t a P&L game here, it’s about mingling and putting your true self into action.”
Join us October 25-26, 2022 at CNBC’s Employment Summit – Allocation, Negotiate, and Decide: The World of Work Now. Visit CNBC Events to register.
