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Ashton Walters
English 4
DeBock
March 4, 2015
Tattoo Discrimination
Many of those with tattoos who try to go out and get a job often get turned down.
Employers are known to discriminate against those with visible tattoos. Some of these employers
do not care whether the people are qualified for the job or not, if the employer does not like the
tattoos they are often turned down for the job. The people with tattoos often are discriminated
against by those saying it looks bad on that company, the tattoos can make the hiring process
difficult and often the discrimination leads to court cases. If one has tattoos they should not be
discriminated against for such reasons, these people could be over qualified and benefit ones
business.
Often companies claim that they do not want to hire one with visible tattoos because it
may look bad for the company. Many businesses believe that one cannot hold a professional
appearance if they have tattoos, making the employer believe that one with tattoos would not be
a good fit. As Johnstone says in the article, Employees typically find these policies invasive of
their personal lives and an unwanted dictation of style, shows that those with tattoos attempting
to gain a job find have difficulties because of their choice of life style. Many employers give the
chance to cover up any visible tattoos, though many refuse to do so. Some of those with tattoos
often refuse to cover up the tattoos claiming that it is discrimination. It is possible to hire one

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with tattoos that will contribute to the company and benefit others even though they have visible
tattoos.
Many times tattoos can make the hiring process difficult, it can be worse depending on
the location of ones tattoos. When one goes to an interview and an employer notices that he/she
has visible tattoos they may not hire you no matter how qualified one may be. The location and
what the tattoos are of can highly affect the way employers look at it. If one is not hired because
of their tattoos it can be discrimination because it is not fair for these people to not have a
chance. Employers are often very careful about how they do this process and are known to see if
one would be willing to cover up their tattoos for the sake of the company. When having an
interview or anything to do with gaining a job one should not show up with all their tattoos being
shown but should inform the employer of the tattoos.
Discrimination against tattoos happens more than most people think and the
discrimination leads to many court cases. The court cases usually revolve around discrimination
against ones religion, but one must prove that their religion is legitimate and have a cause for
having the tattoo. For an example, a man who is Rangel fought against Red Robin for religious
discrimination and won because he proved his religion and that the tattoos he had meant
something to the religion. Elzweig says in the article, Refusing to cover the tattoos was more
than a mere personal preference, but was a part of his deeply held religious beliefs. If one wants
to take an issue involving discrimination against their tattoos at work to court they must have a
legitimate reason for it and have evidence to back it up. Having tattoos in the work place should
not affect ones work or affect the way those in the work place feel about one or the way they
look at them. Tattoos lead to many court cases though many lose due to not having strong
arguments to as why they should have to cover them or why one may have been fired. The

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company must also have a genuine reason for letting one go due to their tattoos and also include
evidence to back it up. Many court cases do rule in the favor of the company but many of those
with tattoos have one and proved wrong to the business and those who doubted them.
Tattoos are looked down upon by many people, especially in the work place. The tattoos
can cause many issues with one keeping a job or gaining a job due to the people who do not see
why one may have tattoos or understand what they mean. To someone their tattoos can mean a
lot such as showing their religion, showing memories, or meaning something to the way they live
their life. Having tattoos should not make those with them feel like they are being discriminated
against or cannot receive a job because they are different from others. Tattoos are often
discriminated against because of the way they may make the company look, the tattoos can make
it difficult to be hired, and they usually lead to court cases making the process more difficult.
Those with tattoos should not be discriminated against or looked down on just because of the
way one chose to live their life.

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Works Cited
Deragon, Beth A. Tattoos at Work: Can a Company Ban Them?. New Hampshire Business
Review 36.6 (2014): 24. Small Business Reference Center Web. 9 Feb. 2015
Elzweig. Brian. and Donna K. Peeples.Tattoos and Piercings: Issues Of Body Modification And
The Workplace. SAM Advanced Management Journal (07497075) 76.1 (2011): 13-23.
Business Source Premier. Web. 9 Feb. 2015.
Johnstone. Andrea K.. and Laurel Van Buskirk. Tattoo, Body Piercing Rules Can Lead To
Discrimination Claims. New Hampshire Business Review 26.22 (2004): 29A-30A. Small
Business Reference Center. Web. 11 Feb. 2015.