Yes, it is Discrimination

November 10, 2017 Longrider General News, misanthropy 13

But it was a choice.

A job hunter says he has been unfairly discriminated against after being rejected from 30 potential employers because of a giant neck tattoo dedicated to his late grandfather.

Joe Parsons, 21, got the £250 six-inch throbbing red heart with turquoise angel wings in memory of his grandfather Thomas, who died in a care home aged 63 last year.

He got the inking while he was working in a factory, but claims since trying to get a new job he has attended 30 interviews that have gone nowhere.

This is one for Julia’s tiny violin, frankly. Of course it’s discrimination. You chose to get a fucking dreadful daub across your neck. That choice has consequences. No one is obliged to give you a job and if they find that pile of shit under your chin is sufficiently unattractive that they would prefer a candidate who didn’t display such a dreadful lack of judgement, then that’s their choice. They owe you nothing.

Mr Parsons, of Collyhurst, north Manchester, insists he doesn’t regret getting the extreme body art – but wishes potential bosses could see past it.

He said: ‘Before I got the tattoo people thought I was a happy, confident person. Now it feels like people think I’m full of my self and that I don’t give a damn.

‘That’s just not who I am. I’m just a normal person and all I want is a decent job.

‘There’s definitely a stigma attached which there shouldn’t be. I do think it’s a form of discrimination.

Too bad. You had a choice. You made it. Now you have to live with the outcome. You might think that cack on your neck looks good. The rest of us have a different opinion. Clearly potential employers think likewise. Too bad; they are not obliged to see past it. That would be something of a feat given how in your face it is.

He said nobody has explicitly mentioned his tattoo specifically but added: ‘As soon as I sit down they look me in the eyes and then I see their gaze drop down to my neck where they stay for a few seconds.

‘Then they look up again and go on with the interview.

‘I can telling they are pre-judging me even before the interview has started.’

No, they are not pre judging you. How you present yourself is part of the process. I wouldn’t employ you either.

13 Comments

  1. Why did the idiot choose to have it on his neck? Chest, back or upper arm I can understand, but somewhere it’s always going to be visible?

    I wouldn’t hire him either because he’s not bright enough to see the obvious.

  3. Perhaps he should think of investing in a couple of high neck rollneck sweaters, or a scarf.

    His choice of location for the tattoo displays quite remarkable lack of nous. He might as well have had ‘FUCK YOU’ tattooed on his forehead (which I’ve seen, amazingly).

    You could say that the old Estate Agent adage of ‘Location, location and location are the main things’ applies here. As Bill says, chest, back or whatever wouldn’t have been a problem, but on his neck? At the front?

    Remarkable lack of judgement.

  4. I love this kinda stuff. A few days ago BBC2 broadcast (quite late) one of thier pet “yoof innit” programmes where George Lamb was despatched to various parts of London to get darn wiv da yoof and explore thier social issues.

    And they found this guy, who was English but had decided to become Islamic and was sporting various tattoos plus one of those mustache-less beards so favoured by Islamists… his search for work seemed to involve (as filmed!) walking around engaging shop owners with “Hey blud, whassa your vibe, you hirin?” and them blaming everybody because they had no jobs.

    And then in interview with Lamb, he goes on to blame social prejudices for his woes, and discrimination because of his funny beard. “But that’s so unfair, you can’t do anything about that” empathises Lamb… except perhaps to shave his f**king silly beard off and stop addressing potential employers as “blud” perhaps…

  5. Yes the guy’s a prat, yet he also needs to consider the HR person. S/he is ultimately held responsible to the team leader where dickhead will work. And trust me those people can be vicious. That reflects badly on HR and can be severely career limiting.

    It can be the same thing with ear, nose and so on piercings. I once interviewed a lad who had fantastic potential, but had an enormous pony tail. As I was interviewing for a staid finance company, he got the job offer subject to his losing the hair. He chose well and two years later used his time in that outfit to boost his CV and leverage a job in Canada.

    Now of course if you smoke, it’s best you take care to avoid any residual smell on your clothing and scrub off any yellowing on your digits.

    Many Hollywood actors have tattoos, Angela Jolie being one, and they’re covered over using makeup. It’s time consuming, but not in the least difficult. There are a bunch of sites devoted to that topic.

    And all mention that one reason for covering them is to avoid giving the wrong impression at interviews.

  6. We’re assuming he is being discriminated against because of the tattoo, it may be that there have been better candidates for the jobs he has gone for. That said, I wouldn’t employ him because, as Longrider notes, he is advertising his lack of judgment very prominently.

  7. Hmmm, not sure about this one. If potential employers can’t see past a tattoo I think it’s their loss. I equate this with LRs stories of his long hair, but having said that, I wouldn’t want a job working for some idiot in a suit that only employs clones in equally dull grey suits…

    • I wouldn’t work for an organisation that told me to cut my hair. If they chose not to employ me, then so be it. It’s a two way street.

      The problem with this individual is that a big inking on his neck displays a massive lack of judgement and people will judge him accordingly. Too bad. The other thing to bear in mind is that organisations have to consider the appearance of customer facing staff – and he was looking for retail roles.

      • @LR: “…customer facing staff…”

        Exactly. I do not want to be served by a tattoed monstrosity

        One Ep of Undercover Boss covered this – must not be visible wearing uniform. A similar iirc KFC covered pirecings – must be removed.

        I would not hire him as his common sense is non-existent.

        Job Seekers allowance – automatic deductions for self-inflicted detriments to being hired eg tats, hair inc facial, piercings esp large holes etc.

        • Hair isn’t generally a problem these days. So long as it is neatly styled or tied back. Likewise piercings – they can be taken out. However a tattoo is permanent. A small discreet one might be overlooked but a hideous deformity such as this one simply can’t be and as I’ve already mentioned displays massive lack of judgement and that comes with a cost.

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