The Online Reflector

“I got tattoos as a way to express myself and separate myself from everyone else,” said junior sports marketing major Kelsey Jones, who has nine tattoos.

A recent study published by the Pew Research Group found that four-in-ten Millennials (the group aged 18-29) have a tattoo, with about half of the group having two-to-five and 18 percent of the group having six or more. However, the study also found that 37 percent of that age group is unemployed. Could there be a connection between having tattoos and the unemployment rate?

Another study  conducted by Careerbuilder.com and Valut.com found that 42 percent of managers said their opinion of someone would be lowered because of that individual’s visible body art. Also, 76 percent of respondents believed visible tattoos were unprofessional.

Assistant Director of Career Services Libby Davis said there could be several factors involved in one’s likelihood of getting a job with tattoos, including the industry to which an applicant is applying and the interviewer’s biases.

“Whether it’s fair or not, we all make a first impression with someone,” Davis said. “So why would we take the chance of not making a good first impression when we have the opportunity?”

Davis went on to discuss professional business attire, and said  that in an interview, one should always air on the side of being too conservative and that keeping tattoos covered during a job interview would be a good choice.

However, senior sports marketing major Angeline Sondgerath has a tattoo on her finger that cannot be hidden. Sondgerath said that it probably will depend on the corporation whether her tattoo will have an effect on her likelihood of getting this job.

Davis also said that many times there will be a second interview, and that could be the time for a candidate to tell the interviewer that he or she has a tattoo and ask whether it would be okay to have that tattoo exposed if given a job.

Jones echoed this and said that in a job interview, she always asks about the company’s policy on tattoos.

“I am always completely honest and up-front with them,” Jones said. “I also want to say that I really think that the taboo of tattoos is ridiculous in this day in age, because so many people have tattoos now, that as long as they aren’t anything offensive, there shouldn’t be an issue when it comes to jobs.”

Sondgerath also said that she asks a company about its tattoo policy during interviews.

“I worked for a place where their corporate policy was no tattoos, and I went through the interview [and] then asked her if it was fine if this one [the tattoo on her finger] shows,” Sondgerath said. “There’s no way of hiding it. She said ‘Yeah, that one’s fine, because you can barely see it.’ So I don’t know. That might be just a once in a blue moon thing.”

Sondgerath has six tattoos and wants another one on her wrist, although she said her parents don’t want her to get another and her boyfriend said she probably shouldn’t get one in such a visible place, because of business policies.

Some of Jones’ more visible tattoos include one on the inside of each of her wrists and one on the back of her neck. She would like to work in the sports industry in public or community relations and isn’t worried about her ink affecting her likelihood of getting a job.

Davis said that some industries could be more accepting of body art, including advertising or graphic design, but ultimately it depends on the company culture. She also said that with some job fields, such as the food industry, customers and their biases have to be considered, because they can have a negative effect on the business.

“It’s totally understandable that people want to be able to express their individuality,” Davis said. “It’s also equally important for candidates to understand fitting into a particular business culture or organizational culture.  So much of what is done today in the world of work is we work in teams, so it isn’t just about us expressing our individuality, but also understanding being able to adapt.”

Sondgerath said she always has wanted tattoos and thinks that our culture should be more accepting of them since they have gained in popularity.

“I think corporations or businesses should be more lenient toward people having tattoos just for the fact that it’s so much more popular,” she said. “You see a group of people, and there’s probably at least one person in that group who has a tattoo. So I think they should be a little more lenient, but I don’t know if that will happen.”