Discrimination!

[I Am Jarvis]

Just a random topic!

 

A little while ago i went to talk to someone about doing an IT course, but it turned out i had already done similar things in school and got an A, therefore making me ineligible for this specific course!

The tutor then went on to talk about apprenticeships in IT, leading on to telling me this...

He basically said that because of the way i look i probably wouldnt (or id find it hard) get work in IT... im currently off work for anxiety and depression so i didnt really know what to say to this!

its all basically because i have tattoos and piercings....

 

what are other peoples thoguhts on this??

[Loe]

Tattoos and piercings, mainly facial ones aren't known for creating good impressions so I see where he is coming from.

[I Am Jarvis]

but in this day an age so many people have them..and its frowned apon to discriminate because of that.

[xToFxREAPER]

but in this day an age so many people have them..and its frowned apon to discriminate because of that.

i agree that it was wrong however he does have a valid point, most if not all companies nowadays have a very strict dress code against such things.. i dont think he was trying to be rude or discriminatory i think he was just pointing out a fact that many companies have rules against

[Hyydrah]

but in this day an age so many people have them..and its frowned apon to discriminate because of that.

Of course, but judgemental people like that won't understand.

[Vitalius]

Just a random topic!

 

A little while ago i went to talk to someone about doing an IT course, but it turned out i had already done similar things in school and got an A, therefore making me ineligible for this specific course!

The tutor then went on to talk about apprenticeships in IT, leading on to telling me this...

He basically said that because of the way i look i probably wouldnt (or id find it hard) get work in IT... im currently off work for anxiety and depression so i didnt really know what to say to this!

its all basically because i have tattoos and piercings....

 

what are other peoples thoguhts on this??

Tattoos and piercings, mainly facial ones aren't known for creating good impressions so I see where he is coming from.

This basically^

Sorry dude, but while this is discrimination, it is the "right" kind, in the sense that it is understandeable and imo acceptable. Your choices in life reflect what type of worker you would be in their eyes. I'm not saying you aren't good for the job, I'm saying that because of your choices in how you display yourself (piercings/tattoos), they will make judgements based on this. And it's their job to do this, because they have to judge whether you are worth hiring or not. 

Not only that, how you look, as an employee of a company, reflects on the company itself. If the public (generally) has a negative perception of people with your appearance, you will likely have a harder time finding a job as they don't want to be represented by someone with the deck stacked against them. Basically.

I say this as an IT intern for a nation-wide company. That's how I see it.

 

but in this day an age so many people have them..and its frowned apon to discriminate because of that.

Apparently not enough to change the public's mind about it making it irrelevant. And I don't know where you get that it's frowned upon to discriminate because of that reason. I figure it'd be expected, if anything.

[InfinateX]

It's sad that people judge others based on their appearances still, but when they see people with all kinds of tattoos and peircings, they assume they're trouble. It sucks for the people who aren't and just like to look that way, but unfortunately their are plenty enough people that fit stereotypes to keep them as commonplace in most people's heads.

[Langdon]

I guess you'll  have  to take  off your  piercings in an interview. A lot of employers are okay with  it in this age though.

[allthatremains94]

but in this day an age so many people have them..and its frowned apon to discriminate because of that.

It doesn't look very professional to people, so they don't want anything "unprofessional" in their workspace. I you don't mind doing it, at least remove a piercing or two and maybe cover up any tats. I know where you're coming from, but it isn't worth losing out on money and doing something you enjoy if one little thing is holding you back.

 

Good luck Jarvis, and polish the suit  ;)

[Volbet]

Tatoos and piercing still have a negetiv connotation with most people. I have gotten the same treatment as you have. I also have alot of tatoos (Currently I'm working on a full japaness body suit). But because of those negativ connotations I have never gotten any tatoos on my face, hands or feet. 

 

No matter what we think is fair, we have to realise that we live and work amongst other people, and those people can be prejudice bigots. 

[qwertywarrior]

do u know that they even discriminate on how ur name is pronounced  or even age

 

this is common knowledge

 

hide ur tattoos and get rid of your piercings

 

 

watch all of this guy's series  (Job interview prep etc)  he is extremely informative and ull know everything

[Vitalius]

It's sad that people judge others based on their appearances still, but when they see people with all kinds of tattoos and peircings, they assume they're trouble. It sucks for the people who aren't and just like to look that way, but unfortunately their are plenty enough people that fit stereotypes to keep them as commonplace in most people's heads.

While I somewhat agree, I just want to point out that it's their job to judge you. They are deciding if you would be a good addition to their company. That includes how you represent them. If they aren't the type of company to be well represented by piercings and tattoos, then you aren't the guy they are looking for. It's not really different from being turned away because you lack the technical expertise to do the job. You have to look the part as well, or have enough of one thing they want to make them ignore the other thing you lack. 

i.e. you are smart enough with IT stuff that your appearance is irrelevant. 

[I Am Jarvis]

i guess is sort of see where the bad reflection for a company comes from. its just that how i look doesnt reflect how i actually am haha.

i havent got any facial tattoos and what not and i never would! i only have tattoos on my body, arms and legs.

with taking piercings out i could...bit i have some that i cant actually get rid of (flesh holes) and i just find it annoying that this person actually told me this considering i was at that place because of anxiety aha

[InfinateX]

While I somewhat agree, I just want to point out that it's their job to judge you. They are deciding if you would be a good addition to their company. That includes how you represent them. If they aren't the type of company to be well represented by piercings and tattoos, then you aren't the guy they are looking for. It's not really different from being turned away because you lack the technical expertise to do the job. You have to look the part as well, or have enough of one thing they want to make them ignore the other thing you lack. 

i.e. you are smart enough with IT stuff that your appearance is irrelevant. 

I see what you're getting at, but I think a company would get good publicity from being less discriminated than others. If they hire people only for their IT skills then people will think betetr of them. Even if that means they end up hiring a few people with really weird peircings and tattoos.

[I Am Jarvis]

I see what you're getting at, but I think a company would get good publicity from being less discriminated than others. If they hire people only for their IT skills then people will think betetr of them. Even if that means they end up hiring a few people with really weird peircings and tattoos.

i agree with this. appearance doesnt say "he cannot do this or this" in my opinion and i know a lot of people i know would agree. if someone says you can have a job because of how you look then its pretty bad

[InfinateX]

i agree with this. appearance doesnt say "he cannot do this or this" in my opinion and i know a lot of people i know would agree. if someone says you can have a job because of how you look then its pretty bad

It's bad whether they're giving you a job based on your looks (unless you're like a stripper or something) or if they're not giving you a job because of your looks (unless, again, you're a stripper). I think the only way you can truely get rid of discrimination in the workplace is to interview people with absolutely no idea about their appearance, gender, age, race, or anything. Of course, that would mean either text interviews (horrible idea), or you sit in a room with a voice changer while your interviewer listens in from somewhere they can't see you (weird idea). There's just no good way to go about it.

[Art Vandelay]

and this is why tattoos are so much less fun in reality than in your fantasies. Just like everything else. Damn reality.

[Vitalius]

I see what you're getting at, but I think a company would get good publicity from being less discriminated than others. If they hire people only for their IT skills then people will think betetr of them. Even if that means they end up hiring a few people with really weird peircings and tattoos.

i agree with this. appearance doesnt say "he cannot do this or this" in my opinion and i know a lot of people i know would agree. if someone says you can have a job because of how you look then its pretty bad

I think you two are missing what I'm saying. 

There's more to a job than actually doing the job, though that's like 80-85% of it. Personality and other things like it (like your appearance) matter just as much to companies because they only want to be associated with whatever the public perceives as good. Professional = Good. Tattoos/piercing = unprofessional in the public's eyes and thereby = not good. 

And I disagree with you. A company being "less discriminating" isn't how the public would view it. They would see it as the company being unprofessional. 

Well then, life itself is pretty bad. Most jobs (particularly higher up ones) are decided by who you know and your personality. The information or the ability to actually "do" the job is a pre-requisite and they are essentially just screening for someone who can do the job adequately (not necessarily the best) and do more by being a good image for the company as well as a good employee in the sense of attitude and relationships. 

Too many people are educated these days for it to be based on pure knowledge/ability to do the job. And too many of the masses care about appearance for it to be ignored when hiring someone.

[KaareKanin]

My thoughts are that it's something you did to your own body, and as such something you'll have to take the consequences of. It's no different than wearing bad/broken clothing, not maintaining personal hygiene, being a drunk etc, those things are up to each individual. The problem with more permanent expressions of individuality is that it can't easily be switched off. If you wear only a judas priest costume on your spare time because that's what you like, you can still wear a suit to work, it isn't as easy with tattoos and piercings. while at work, you represent the company and not your self (in most cases anyways). Actually, in lots of places, it's grounds for termination of employment if you give a false impression of what you'll look like at work while on an interview for that position.

I'm sorry, but this isn't discrimination, it's just your choices catching up to you. And while it might sound harsh, it's the truth and what you need to hear over some sugar coated lie about how it doesn't matter. Perceptions may change over time, but until then you'll just have to work harder and make them want you badly enough

[pewpewmerica]

That sucks man :I 

[mr moose]

The public profile of tattoos comes from the time when you only saw them on bikies and prison inmates. And thus I am afraid to say it will be a very long time, probably not until majority of the population have tattoos that this perception will start to die. As other people have said impressions are everything, you have to give a prospective employer the right impression just like he expects his clients to get the right impression. Even the Police force in Victoria ( a government employer ) had disallowed visible tattoos on frontline service personnel. Their reasoning is that their research has shown people fear other people with tattoos, not a good look for the police. So you can imagine that a company does not want its clients to fear its personnel.

EDIT: I really hope you find work in IT regardless. It does suck, but that's the reality of people, I can't get some jobs for similar reasoning.

[eoso]

It's not really discrimination, its more like an unofficial dress code in customer service jobs. Besides, you weren't born with tattoos and piercings, you chose to get them. It's not discrimination at all.

[obsidian1200]

That's just the nature of things, unfortunately :\ At best, remove your piercings and hide any tattoos you can when doing a job interview. I don't agree with it in general and find that those who are offended/put-off by that sort of thing shallow. including employers and individuals, but that's how it is.

[ConfusedDolphin]

Just a random topic!

 

A little while ago i went to talk to someone about doing an IT course, but it turned out i had already done similar things in school and got an A, therefore making me ineligible for this specific course!

The tutor then went on to talk about apprenticeships in IT, leading on to telling me this...

He basically said that because of the way i look i probably wouldnt (or id find it hard) get work in IT... im currently off work for anxiety and depression so i didnt really know what to say to this!

its all basically because i have tattoos and piercings....

 

what are other peoples thoguhts on this??

Where is the tatoo if you dont mind me asking...?

[smjpl]

i guess is sort of see where the bad reflection for a company comes from. its just that how i look doesnt reflect how i actually am haha.

i havent got any facial tattoos and what not and i never would! i only have tattoos on my body, arms and legs.

with taking piercings out i could...bit i have some that i cant actually get rid of (flesh holes) and i just find it annoying that this person actually told me this considering i was at that place because of anxiety aha

Well then for the most part you should be able to cover up the tattoos by wearing a suit. With regards to the piercings, you can just cover up the one with holes (how big are the holes?). Don't give up because of this. If you can present yourself in a responsible manner, dress well, speak well and know your stuff, then don't sell yourself short.