work and hair colour

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 20:36

just splicing out from my blog slightly with this.... says in my employment handbook that hair colour should be kept discreet....

i'm due into work tomorrow, what grounds are there if any that they could suspend me on? i'm aware my hair is not exactly discreetly coloured but surely suspending someone for their hair colour is slightly discriminatory...

also, would they be able to, i know that many many people flount the laws of this handbook regularly, tongue piercings are banned and at least 3 people have these, and mobile phones are not on the shopfloor yet i have seen the managers themselves on them on more than one occasion...

so, do i have any rights if they want to stop me working there, or do i have to just put up with it?

Chris W · 11-04-2005, 20:42

unfortunately "other people break the rules" is no defence....

I can't see how it can be viewed as discriminatory as it is not your natural hair colour- yes, stating that ginger hair was not allowed would be discrimination, but asking that colours be discreet is not. However, personally i wouldn't say that vibrant orange hair is discreet that might drag this off topic

punky · 11-04-2005, 20:43

To be honest... No.

You agreed to abide by the rules when you took the job on, which meant keeping your hair discreet.

You can't really argue that other people break the rules, as its upto the management's discretion how they enforce them. If someone was in a similar situation as you, but a difference race, you might be able to argue race discrimination, but the courts would probably still rule in the management's discretion.

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 20:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeybreath

unfortunately "other people break the rules" is no defence....

I can't see how it can be viewed as discriminatory as it is not your natural hair colour- yes, stating that ginger hair was not allowed would be discrimination, but asking that colours be discreet is not. However, personally i wouldn't say that vibrant orange hair is discreet that might drag this off topic

personally i dont really care whether they suspend me or not, i am sick and tired of working there now

just want to know where i stand, i know i will have an argument..... ah well

11-04-2005, 20:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Stones

i'm due into work tomorrow, what grounds are there if any that they could suspend me on? i'm aware my hair is not exactly discreetly coloured but surely suspending someone for their hair colour is slightly discriminatory...

Who is it discriminating against? It can only be discriminatory if the persons hair is naturally not discreet. Other than that the person has chosen to colour their hair and therefore has chosen to break the rules.

punky · 11-04-2005, 20:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Stones

personally i dont really care whether they suspend me or not, i am sick and tired of working there now

just want to know where i stand, i know i will have an argument..... ah well

They'll probably keep sending you home without pay until the hair colour is changed. When they get bored of you, they'll fire you. TBH though it would look better for future employment if you resign first, rather than get fired for insubordination.

11-04-2005, 20:48

mind you, you could argue that you wanted to make the older generation feel at home so you had a blue rinse.

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 20:51

blue rinse but mixed it a bit strong

the paragraph that refers to hair is as follows:

Quote:

Hairstyles must be kept neat and tidy. Long hair should be tied back and hair colour and makeup should be discreet reflecting the professional image we wish to give to our customers.

as it happens i am leaving there at the start of june anyway, i'm just interested in any possible repercussions my "conservative" hair colour will have

punky · 11-04-2005, 21:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Stones

as it happens i am leaving there at the start of june anyway, i'm just interested in any possible repercussions my "conservative" hair colour will have

Well, causing a ruck in principal is fine to a point, but if you resign, you can give your new prospective boss any old toffee, when he asks you why. However, if you have to put down on your CV that you were sacked, when he asks you, you have to be honest, as he'll check it out (if you resign, you don't need to tell your old boss why). You'll struggle to get work after being fired for insubordination... What boss would want to take that on? You could spin it as a point of principal, but most bosses won't like that. They want you to do what they tell you, rather than what you'd want to do.

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 21:15

oh i haven't dyed my hair and caused a fuss as a point of principle, i have already handed my resignation letter in effective from the start of june, so they know i am leaving. several members of the middle/lower management and all of the shopfloor staff knew i was going blue as well, i was originally gonna do it a couple of weeks ago but chickened out

i just wanted to know how seriously im gona get in trouble, i have no interest in causing problems cos some of the time its an ok place to work

ill give them a ring before my shift starts tomorrow and see what they say

me283 · 11-04-2005, 21:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Stones

blue rinse but mixed it a bit strong

the paragraph that refers to hair is as follows:

as it happens i am leaving there at the start of june anyway, i'm just interested in any possible repercussions my "conservative" hair colour will have

I think the key here is just what is defined as "discreet". Also, they mention that you should be reflecting their professional image, and you could claim (although I doubt you would win) that hair colour does not impact that image... not knowing what you do, it's hard to tell.

As a last resort (holds breath to wait for mudslinging!)... you could always claim it's your "human right" to have coloured hair... seems commonplace to fall back on that one these days

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 21:50

i work as a shopfloor assistant at homebase. to be honest, professional image is dubious in that respect. every single shift i am on my knees cleaning up paint that some inbred customer has put in their basket thats not designed for big cans of paint and dropped....

bitter? moi? never

i've put another layer of dye in now and its gone a bit more inky like its supposed to, but we will see. in truth, i doubt they would do much they are fairly relaxed about everything, and they are always woefully short staffed... (staff turnover is obscenely high...)
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i wouldnt dare go down the human rights lane either, i would burst out laughing before i even got to a tribunal...

paulyoung666 · 11-04-2005, 21:55

go for it then , try it on with them , you will soon find out if they are serious or not

Dave Stones · 11-04-2005, 21:57

im sure my hair colour doesnt really impinge the customer service i give anyway... if anything my CS level will go up, since everyone will be able to recognise "that one with the blue hair"..... so i will have to be a lot more helpful as i will be more recognisable LOL

Halcyon · 11-04-2005, 22:02

They probably wouldnt sack your straight away, just tell you to get it changed.