Jobs where you can't have visible tattoos

Grafton

I just thought I'd ask if anyone knows the rules about having tattoos on your forearms etc, of r jobs like nurses and gardaí?

I always assumed that the guards could not have tattoos, but saw one with an eagle or something on his forearm, so I wonder what the rules are. Does anyone on this forum know, or knw where I could find out on the web.

Thanks a million.


(Apologies if this is the wrong place to post this- I'm new here.)

Looby_Loo

I cant have any visible tattoos, I am a nurse but one of my bosses has a tattoo on her foot that is pretty visible when she wears a suit. I also knew a nurse who had the back of her head tattooed but that was only obvious if you were looking for it.

Captain Ginger

I think a good bit comes down to what it is.

A lot of retail staff don't really mind as long as it's not too "in your face".

A subtle flower on your wrist and a flaming skull with penises sticking out of its eyes are too very different things.

Although the above is an extreme case but you know what I mean.

My girlfriend used to work in the suites in Croke Park (the ones where the loaded people get free drinks and food) and she has tattoos on each wrist and they didn't seem to mind them, but they did make her take out facial piercings.

Will

I work for a big company in their IT dept. Im made take out my lobe piercings eve though I dont deal directly with clients, just workers within the place.

All depends who you are working for and whether they think your piercings and tattoos will effect how you do your job, and others within the job.

It's a hairy issue because there are no clear lines or laws.

Krieg

Retail and service related jobs are usually going to have issues with tattoo's/piercings.
In fact, you would be lucky to find somewhere that had no rules against them. Mate of mine wnet for a job at supermacs when he was 17, they didnt see his forearm tattoo during the interview and only saw it when he started work. He was promptly told he could not work there

Industry jobs that I have worked in have been very lax on the issue of body mods. I currently work for a medical device manuf. There are no rules against body mods. But all piecings and must be covered with tape (hygiene purposes). Ive seen a couple people with forearm tattoo's so they are obviously not an issue

As regards to the gardai, I dont think there is an official rule against them. ofc depends on what it is. I heard the defence force are bringing in some regulation on tattoos

Toots

I work in a bank, and although it says in the official dress code that tattoos should not be visible, and no facial piercings are permitted, one of the girls has multiple tattoos and she has her nose, lip, and tongue pierced and she wears the jewellery in work. She has a full sleve on one of her arms, although it is a delicate design in white ink so not all that noticeable, but she has a black tattoo on the other wrist. AFAIK nothing has ever been said to her. I wore a skirt the other day and both my ankles are tattooed, and the manager came over to compliment me on them?? I think in my case it depends on the branch manager. And I suppose if a customer complained they'd have to say something.

Crumble Froo

ha, for a few mins there, i wondered if you worked with fantasy_suicide

i've worked with the elderly and with kids since i got my ink, and have thoroughly checked both contracts and rules etc, and neither mentions anything about ink, except that i have to look presentable for work. neat tidy, etc. lots of people with small ankle/wrist tats in work, though for my ankle/calf one, i tend to cover up with trousers or long socks, dont bother for my wrist and neck ones. have to take out my lip ring though, for 'health and safety' :rolleyes:

bugler

I think most places take a common sense approach. Or at least they think they do.

To answer the original question in relation to the Gardai I don't think they have a definite policy. The Met police have quite a large section on tattoos and what is or is not acceptable on a recruit. They look at several factors including where the tattoo is (hands/face/neck the biggest no nos), whether it's offensive, and the size etc. So I'm sure the Gardai have similar criteria, formally or not.

Toots

Crumble Froo wrote: »

ha, for a few mins there, i wondered if you worked with fantasy_suicide

i've worked with the elderly and with kids since i got my ink, and have thoroughly checked both contracts and rules etc, and neither mentions anything about ink, except that i have to look presentable for work. neat tidy, etc. lots of people with small ankle/wrist tats in work, though for my ankle/calf one, i tend to cover up with trousers or long socks, dont bother for my wrist and neck ones. have to take out my lip ring though, for 'health and safety' :rolleyes:

God, if you're working with kids it's probably for your own health and safety they ask you to take it out!! Saw one of my friends get his nose ring ripped out by his 3 yr old nephew..... OW!!!:eek:

ontheroad24/7

I'm a self employed taxi driver in my 30's, tattooed from elbows up. Many people admire them and those who don't, they pass no comments. It's great not having a boss, especially working in an industry where tattoos are almost obligatory. Anyway, most people under 40 have been tattooed these days, so in another few years we'll live in a near fully tattooed society.

The Artist

That the thing being your own boss,like you said

Many people admire them and those who don't, they pass no comments

which i agree.
ive seen good and bad tats and never comment about them as its only a tattoo.:)

Crumble Froo

yikes toots! :eek:

i still say there's no point, cos the kids are either good with stuff like that, or im particularly careful around them, particularly givne i have two piercings on the front of my neck now, it's just about manouvering myself properly

sarah C

Hi!Im new to this and was wondering if anyone knew,..if your applying to the guards and you dont have a leaving cert due to health reasons,is there any other ways around that??...Besides goin back to doin your leavin,im 27 now.:o

Will

think you've the wrong forum, check out garda recruitment forum, think it's under the soc heading

sarah C

Can anyone help me??:(

Will

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1081 <--- click

Chinafoot

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1081

sarah C

Oh thank you so much,im really sorry but what do i do to get into that,im like brand new at this!!:rolleyes:

sarah C

Thank you both sooooooo much!:)

MizzLolly

The last two job contracts I signed both specifically said that I could have piercings, visible tattoos and any hair/colour style.

Hehehe I don't even have any visible piercings

Only thing I'm not allowed wear is any kind of advertising logo for stuffs!

Toots

Man I wish I could dye my hair whatever colour I wanted in my job! How I long for the days when my hair was pink.

Lilliput69

I am 36 yrs old, have 11 peircings, 10 of which are visible, the tat at the top of my spine can be seen through my hair, if my top rides up when i am stretching for something my tramp stamp and both my sides are fully inked (to on lookers it from front hip to front hip around my back is fully inked) I have my hair dyed electric red.

The job i am in has a dress code, smart casual, every boss i have had since i was about 20 has commented on my piercings or my hair (i went through a shaved head phase too, thts frowned on as much as bright colours lmao) i have just proved my capabilities and they no longer see my appearance but see the real me and accept that this is who i am.

Yes i am in a postition where i would deal with alot of suits and CEO's but i worked my way up the career ladder, i did my apprenticship as an aircraft technician and alot of the peeps i deal with see past the Docs on me feet, the 7 rings on me fingers, tats, piercings, electric red hair.

So what i am saying is, you will have to get an employer to give u a chance first and prove yourself and sadly enough if ur modifications are extream alot of employers will still have a pre presevied opinion of you without taking into account what your work capabilities are, thats just life and there is bugger all we can do about other peeps opinions except be good role models, give em good experiences with us and then they might treat the next tattooed pierced freak(i use this as a term of endearment) a fare break

Shamanic

Lilliput69 wrote: »

I am 36 yrs old, have 11 peircings, 10 of which are visible, the tat at the top of my spine can be seen through my hair, if my top rides up when i am stretching for something my tramp stamp and both my sides are fully inked (to on lookers it from front hip to front hip around my back is fully inked) I have my hair dyed electric red.

The job i am in has a dress code, smart casual, every boss i have had since i was about 20 has commented on my piercings or my hair (i went through a shaved head phase too, thts frowned on as much as bright colours lmao) i have just proved my capabilities and they no longer see my appearance but see the real me and accept that this is who i am.

Yes i am in a postition where i would deal with alot of suits and CEO's but i worked my way up the career ladder, i did my apprenticship as an aircraft technician and alot of the peeps i deal with see past the Docs on me feet, the 7 rings on me fingers, tats, piercings, electric red hair.

So what i am saying is, you will have to get an employer to give u a chance first and prove yourself and sadly enough if ur modifications are extream alot of employers will still have a pre presevied opinion of you without taking into account what your work capabilities are, thats just life and there is bugger all we can do about other peeps opinions except be good role models, give em good experiences with us and then they might treat the next tattooed pierced freak(i use this as a term of endearment) a fare break

Same for me, my first job i was in i had to take out all my mods and make sure my tops were long enough to cover up my back. But once i got a name for myself doing what i do, i got offered another job, and have seen cut my hair short dyed it many colours, and got a few more mods and im currently drawing up my sleeve!:)

Jimmy Trigger

I work in Musical instrument store in Kilkenny.
Covered in Tatt's and have 8 facial piercing,
Its has NEVER been a problem for my Bosses (Husband n Wife)
and they love it if anything. It makes the shop for them.

Iv got complaints loads, but they dont care.
Your character should speak louder than the way you look.
If your good at what you do, then it aint a problem...it just so happens
Im awesome at what i do, hahahaha.

Ink up people, its just a pocksy job.

PEACE

prodigal_son

Krieg wrote: »

Mate of mine wnet for a job at supermacs when he was 17, they didnt see his forearm tattoo during the interview and only saw it when he started work. He was promptly told he could not work there

That was probably a while ago, but im pretty sure that now, they cant sack you for having a tattoo, only ask you to cover it up, and if it was recently he should have gone for an unfair dismissal claim.

missannik

I'm in love with vertical labrets and really want one, was planning to get one a few days ago... but I hear that nurses can't have such. Anyone know whether this is true? I'm planning on coming over to work in 3 months, and don't want to go to the trouble of having it done only to find out no one will hire me. Should I just wait and see or just consider getting a piercing somewhere else?

Star Lord

I thought having any kind of exposed wound would be a big no-no for a nurse...

missannik

Not really. I have a nose stud and it's not an issue, I know that I could get a vertical labret here and my empoyer wouldn't be too fussed. Many fellow workers have lip piercings. Certain jewellery is a no-no, for health and safety reasons. Just not sure if the same applies in Ireland.

oldmantime

prodigal_son wrote: »

That was probably a while ago, but im pretty sure that now, they cant sack you for having a tattoo, only ask you to cover it up, and if it was recently he should have gone for an unfair dismissal claim.

Pretty sure you need to be working somewhere a year to get the benefit of the unfair dismissals act.

LadyMayBelle

I work in a hospital and haven't seen many nurses with very visible tattoos or piercing, apart from nose piercings but piercings are generally frowned upon because of the risk of them pulled out whatever in an incident..

This week though I noticed quite a few of the social workers/psychologists with tattoos on ankles and some on their wrists, one older guy had tattoos on his knuckles obviously from ages ago and didnt have to cover them up..

I'd like a tattoo, dabbling with the idea, just a big chicken when it comes to the ow factor!

vines

I just recently got my full sleeve finished off, and I absolutely love it (of course ) but I find that often it helps to play by the rules, keep it covered and let people get to know me a bit before letting them see it....At least this is how I approach it when working.
As much as I'd love to say that I am who I am and people just have to accept me, at the end of the day, some people are prejudiced and I find it easier to accommodate for them and then let them rid themselves of their prejudices....
Obviously with piercings it's not so easy to cover up... I don't have any myself (not even my ears....I'm terrified of getting it done! :P ), so I wouldn't know what I'd do if I did have them......anyone else any thoughts on it?
Anyone beg to differ?

Macca07

I work in IT and i had an ear piercing, eyebrow piercing and a tattoo on d inside of my upper arm. now d tattoo couldn't be seen but we had casual friday where i would've worn a t-shirt and it would've been seen, and nothing was said. regarding the piercings, i took them out myself becasue i just felt it gives a better impression, even though i never met with any clients

ebmma

I got invited to an aptitude test for a civil service job, not quite sure wat to do with regards to piercings.

Don't have many, just few in earlobes and eyebrow. Got retainer for the latter but dunno if I should bother.

There will be many people there, nobody would probably notice?

It really annoys me that things like that even have to be considered

Raze_them_all

Take them out for the day. Civil service jobs are awkward like that AFAIK

-lala-

Raze_them_all wrote: »

Take them out for the day. Civil service jobs are awkward like that AFAIK

Actually when I worked in the civil service I kept my piercings in for the interview and the whole time I was working there and it was never, ever an issue. There were loads of people in my department with visible tattoos and piercings.

Obviously, up to you, some people feel more secure going for interviews and the like looking as conventional as possible. But I doubt if it would be an issue. Best of luck ebmma!

-lala-

Whoops, just read your post properly and realised it's the aptitude test you're going for and not the interview. Don't bother taking them out, there will, as you said, be loads of people there and they will have no idea which one you are! So even if it would be an issue (which I doubt), it won't be noticed.

ebmma

-lala- wrote: »

Actually when I worked in the civil service I kept my piercings in for the interview and the whole time I was working there and it was never, ever an issue. There were loads of people in my department with visible tattoos and piercings.

Obviously, up to you, some people feel more secure going for interviews and the like looking as conventional as possible. But I doubt if it would be an issue. Best of luck ebmma!

Thanks a lot, I definitely need lots of luck !

I think I'll keep them all in for the test and keep eyebrow out for interviews.
If I get that job hopefully it won't be a problem. I'm not going to be dealing with customers or anything like that.

dearg lady

Sorry to be dragging up old thread, but new one seemed pointless!

I'm always quizzing people on this very topic. The type of work i do, i would generally be expected to dress quite smart, though my current office is reasonably casual.

I've been planning a half sleeve for a while, and it still needs soem more thought, so it'll probably be the end of summer before ink touches skin, but I'm trying to decide how to approach it with work. We don't have an official dress code, though it was susggested to me that i remove a facial piercing, which I was happy enough to do.

But with regard to the sleeeve, i don't know if I should mention it before getting it, or just get it and ask later if they'd prefer it covered.
I have a tatoo on my foot which is sometimes visible and nothing ahs been said, but in fairness it's a lot less in your face!!

I'm being a bit overdramatic really, but what are peoples thoughts, what would you recommend?

saraz86

My friend didn't get a job becuase of a tatoo.... and it was for working in a call center!!!

Melion

I can never understand call centres etc expecting tattoos to be covered up. No customers see you in person so whats the problem? When i was working in a bar i had to have all mine covered and facial piercings removed and i had no problem with that.

pajodublin

Raze_them_all wrote: »

Take them out for the day. Civil service jobs are awkward like that AFAIK

i know im quoting an old post but they are actually grand
I'm a civil servant
I've had a promotion through interview in the last few years and my visible piercings (lobes stretched, lip ring, ear rim rings and scaffold) and visible tattoos on both forearms (Not Small either) didnt go against me in any way.

Its not as bad as it used to be

pippington

i no many nurses with tattoos...some quite visible and it doesnt seem to be too much of an issue..piercings are much more of an issue due to infection control reasons...minimal jewlery is allowed (one pair studs, wedding ring) because of the risk of germs etc gathering on the jewlery and the risk of being pulled out by some1..

tfak85

i work as a maternity care assistant in one hospital and a student midwife in another, i have big enough tattoos on the insides of my wrists...
at work i never get too much said but as a student i am reminded that "a few years ago, you'd be kicked off the course for those", in this day and age they are not going to discriminate against you for being yourself...

someone mentioned that i might have to cover them up but in fairness, they are right down to my hand and there is no sanitary way of covering them when you handle as many bodily fluids as i do...

but yes, for nurses and midwives piercings are a no no, jewellery can hold onto microbes.

LadyMayBelle

A registrar I work with recently has two visible tatts, I'm in awe!! A lot of patients commented on them and created a conversation topic which they said sometimes broke the ice. A good few of the psychologists/social workers have them too, usually just catch a glimpse of ones on wrists or ankles..

I know the kid brother was told (after he did the training day) in Dunnes that he' have to lose the dreads and cover the tattoos if he was to work with them....this was at a time when the job situation was a bit nicer than it is now..so he didn't take the job..but now i can't get over how many lads and ladies work in Dunnes with visible tattoos and dreadlocks..okay dreadlocks not near food, but the tattoos go fine. Times are a changing, and I'm glad of it.

XxMCRxBabyxX

Anyone have experience of working in law and having tattoos? Currently studying law and have a smallish tattoo on my left wrist, in the future when applying for internships and jobs etc would I be better just keeping it covered and what would be the story when working?
I love my tattoo but I love law too and don't want to jeopardise my chances of doing well in a career any more than I have (Awful LC!) if you know what I mean!

aoife2k

I've got a black star on my right wrist and a few years ago I ended up gettin a job teaching music in a few local national schools... Nothing was ever said to me and the kids thought I was really 'cool' cuz I had it. Teaching music led to being asked to sub if one of the teachers was out sick and was delighted.

Now however, I'm actually training to become a teacher and am wondering what the general thoughts would be regarding visible tattoos and teaching children. When I was subbing and a child asked me about it I answered their question (Was it sore Miss?) and moved on without dwelling on it and they got over it... Desperate to get more but want to find out how acceptable it is. Any one got experience of teaching and tattoos?

Aaron-

Used to work in a Joinery before being made redundant, have a few tattoos and facial piercings. Only hassle I get is the aul lads making terrible jokes about them. =P


Nowadays my employer (social welfare) doesn't have a problem with them and still pays me.