Jobs And Tattoos: A Complete Guide With Tips

Having a tattoo is important to most people. But will this decision affect your workplace or a job that you are going for?

Here Is A List of Jobs That Are Accepting Of Tattoos:

Barbers and Hairdressers: These industries are very hip and cool, and the staff love tattoos

Chefs: As you are not dealing with the general public it is fine to show your tattoo in this industry.

Personal Trainer: Gyms are accepting of tattoos.

In this article I have researched different professions regarding tattoos, and whether it is ok to have one in your workplace or not.

So what jobs allow tattoos?

Lets find out!

What Jobs Allow Tattoos?

Since tattoos generally associate in the minds of people with criminality and savage lifestyle, finding a job seems hard to do for people who have one or more.

In fact, not all jobs have drastic rules regarding tattoos. There are many positions you can get while sporting a visible tattoo. Here are some of them.

Barber/hairdresser

Having a beautiful tattoo may even be an advantage if you want to get hired in the beauty industry.

The jobs from this field generally encourage employees to enhance their appearance and look their best. So if you aren’t sure whether you should apply for a barber/hairdresser position, leave all doubts aside and go for it.

Personal trainer

If you go to the gym, you will most probably notice personal trainers having tattoos on their big arms.

This denotes the liberal approach of many gyms towards body art. As long as the tattoo is morally acceptable and not looking odd, people in the gym aren’t likely to pay any attention to it. They have something more important to focus on.

Chef

While some of elite restaurants may have a more restrictive policy towards tattoos, most public eating establishments accept tatted chefs.

The acceptance is related to the fact that chefs are working in a separate cooking area away from the clients’ eye.

Tattoo Artist

Tattoo artists usuall always have tattoos as this is what they do as a living. It would probably be unusual if a tattoo artist didn’t have a tattoo!

Here is a good article on why being a tattoo artist is a good career.

What Jobs Don’t Allow Tattoos?

You are likely to not be allowed to have visible tattoos if your job implies face-to-face interaction with clients.

First of all, these include the jobs of social/community significance, such as a policeman, doctor and a teacher.

When talking to a victim of crime, a patient or a student, there should be nothing in your appearance that can potentially affect your sensitive conversation.

In addition, teachers are a role model for their students.

So by having tattoos, they promote particular ideas and beliefs that children can capture and integrate in their personality formation process. It can’t be so bad when the math teacher inks the Pythagorean Theorem on his neck to inspire the love for math in his students.

Tattoos are generally not accepted in the banking field also. Banking workers must have a professional, neat and trustworthy outlook so that people can hand over their money to them.

Unfortunately, visible tattoos inspire none of the afore mentioned traits.

Those aiming the position of a housekeeper should also give up on the idea of getting a visible tattoo.

It can drastically reduce the applicant’s chance to be hired. Other jobs that ban tattoos include being a lawyer, airline cabin crew and hospitality staff.

What Are The High Paying Jobs Allow Tattoos?

Tattoos are accepted not only by low-paid or average-paid jobs. Some positions on the high end of the payment spectrum tolerate tattoos as well. For example:

Fashion designer

Fashion industry belongs to people who aren’t afraid to express themselves in how many ways they want.

Some choose to put a fancy suit from the new collection on, others decide to get an artful tattoo. As a fashion designer, your tattoo bears a commercial value, as it tells your clients pretty much about your perception of beauty.

CEO

In recent years, there is a visible transition in CEOs’ attire from highly formal office suit to a hoodie and casual pants.

The chill lifestyle of some CEOs can be also seen in their tattoos they keep visible. After all, it’s not your clothing style and appearance that determines how effectively you run your company.

Singer

Most singers adore putting their tattoos on public display. It’s a way they express themselves and stress their uniqueness.

As long as the crowds love your songs, your tattoo cannot change their opinion about you – unless it’s something immoral and offending of course.

Do Tattoos Affect Jobs?

Tattoos mostly affect jobs where the service provider interacts with the client in person.

It comes without saying that when you talk to your customer face to face, your appearance helps them create the first impression about you.

A controversial tattoo on your arm or neck can obviously make the client trust you less.

Your appearance must make customers feel comfortable. And if it does the opposite, your career’s future is in peril.

It sounds stupid but prejudices caused by tattoos can make people think you are a poor service provider, even if you are one of the best specialists in the city.

Can You Become A Doctor With A Tattoo?

One can easily say that as long as the doctor is a great professional, his or her tattoo means nothing.

Actually it does. The doctor’s job is considered sensitive. It means that patients can be easily affected by the appearance of the doctor.

Healthcare specialists should make patients comfortable and have a neat and clean appearance. This naturally excludes the possibility of having visible tattoos.

Can Police Officers Have Tattoos?

Judging from the perspective of human psychology, police officers shouldn’t have tattoos.

Most people associate tattoos with criminality, underground world and deviant behavior, which is a wrong perception, but still. Now, if a policeman with a tattoo came to your call, you would be less likely to trust him.

That’s why, to make people feel comfortable when interacting with policemen, law enforcement employees worldwide are encouraged to give up on making visible tattoos.

We don’t know how a tattoo with the names and birth dates of the policeman’s kids could ruin someone’s trust in him. So there is still a large space for debate on this topic.

What Is The List Of Jobs That Don’t Allow Tattoos In UK?

Currently, there is no law in UK that forbids having tattoos at work. The government leaves it to employers to decide whether to hire tattooed applicants or reject them.

Some employers use this right to prevent people with visible tattoos work in their company. They usually come from fields with a high degree of service provider-service beneficiary interaction. These include:

1. Teachers
2. Policemen
3. Doctors
4. Banking sector workers
5. Receptionists

What Is The List Of Jobs That Don’t Allow Tattoos In Australia?

Physical appearance doesn’t fall under the list of attributes protected by the Fair Work Pact. To put it simple, the employer can freely reject you if you have a visible tattoo.

There are basically two situations in which the employer can be sued for discrimination.

It’s when the tattoo has as the main theme your religion or your race. In this cases, you can fight for your right to be hired in that specific company in court.

Unofficial statistics show that employers reject tatted applicants for positions that involve direct interaction with clients. Some of them include:

6. Doctors
7. Hospitality staff
8. Banking tellers
9. Government employees
10. Teachers

What Is The List Of Jobs That Don’t Allow Tattoos In South Africa?

Discrimination has a special role in the history of South Africa and it’s quiet a sensitive topic in the society.

That’s why, you will see less employers eager to reject tatted applicants. There are even teachers, doctors and lawyers that have tattoos in visible parts of their body.

Some employers, though, impose tattoo limitations, arguing they don’t want their company’s reputation spoiled.

Others are more flexible, allowing tattoos only in specific parts of the body. Or they may suggest their tattooed employees to cover up their body art.

The fields you have higher change to be rejected because of your visible tattoo include: justice, law enforcement, healthcare sector, banking.

What Is The List Of Jobs That Don’t Allow Tattoos In India?

India has a workplace tattoo limitation law that applies only to government employees.

That is, public school teachers, public hospitals staff, law enforcement, judges are not allowed to sport tattoos in visible parts of the body.

There is an even stricter law for military personnel that is not allowed to have tattoos at all.

This measure comes to limit the transmission of severe infections among soldiers. Private sector is free to decide on how to treat tatted employees.

Some accept with the condition of covering up the body art under uniform, others ban uncompromisingly. Sectors where you will see less employees with tattoos include:

11. Hotel hospitality
12. Banking
13. Law firms
14. Administrative assistance

What Is The List Of Jobs That Don’t Allow Tattoos In United States?

The United States have a more liberal approach to tattoos at workplace.

Unlike Indian soldiers that are completely banned from having tattoos, US marines are given green light to having them. Corporates are free to set whatever in-house rules they see fit on sporting body art at workplace.

In general, workers that don’t interact with clients directly are fully allowed to have tattoos (except for ones using extremist messages and foul language). Jobs where face-to-face interaction is needed are more restrictive regarding tattoos.

Like in other developed countries, in the United States it is considered morally correct for teachers, doctors and policemen not to show off their body art.

Even if some of them admitted to have a tattoo or more, they are responsibly hiding them under clothes.