The popularity of tattoos is creating new human relations questions you need to wrangle with. Can you require employees to cover their visible tattoos? And is the presence of a tattoo worth losing a valuable teacher or staffer?
ISM Human Resources Consultant Michael Brisciana tackled this question. Can the school require that tattoos be covered during the school day? “Most likely, yes. In general, an employer has the ability to dictate reasonable appearance standards for it employees—so long as those standards don’t illegally discriminate based on an individual’s race, gender, religion, etc. However, several states have regulations limiting an employer’s ability to proscribe appearance standards. So, it is always prudent to consult with your employment attorney regarding legal matters—especially concerning sensitive matters such as appearance” Michael said.
“As with all employee-related matters, it is safest to relate school policy to the needs of the job. In this case, stating that ‘no tattoos may be visible’ can be related to the faculty member’s role as a role model (in appearance, decorum, temperament, etc.) to students. Such a requirement is best spelled-out in a clear Appearance Policy published in the employee handbook. The flip side of the issue, however, is, ‘Is the school unnecessarily limiting its pool of candidates by proscribing job requirements that aren’t truly requirements but are rather preferences?’ If the tattoo issue isn’t central to the school’s conception of ‘role modelness’ for faculty members, the school might best stay neutral (i.e., saying or enforcing nothing with regard to tattoos).”
The issue is also sticky if an employee’s tattoo is part of a religious belief. As an employee, it is not legal to discriminate for religious beliefs (private-independent religious schools have wiggle room here, secular schools would not). If the tattoo is part of a sincere religious belief, you may need an exception to the rule.
There could also be gender discrimination issues if women are asked to cover tattoos and men are not. Or if a hiring decision is made based on a woman’s visible tattoo, if the interviewer feels strongly women should not have tattoos. In fact, making any assumptions about potential or current employees based on the presence of body art could open the discrimination can of worms.
The important thing here is that your policies are written, clear, and enforced consistently. ISM can help you … our Sample Employee Handbook: Policies for Private-Independent Schools is an e-book in Microsoft Word that allows you to cut, paste, and customize for your school. Get the details here.
Learn what you, as a Head, need to know about hiring and letting employees go. Join us Nov. 7-10 in Wilmington, DE for our Hire Smart, Let Go Safely workshop or if you can’t make the trip, register for our Oct. 20 What a Head Needs to Know About HR Webinar.
