Can You Tell Employees, 'OK, Enough with the Piercing' ?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) “requires an employer, once it is aware that a religious accommodation is needed, to accommodate an employee whose sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance conflicts with a work requirement, unless doing so would pose an undue hardship,” according to its guidelines. The EEOC goes on to explain that when dress codes or grooming policies conflict with the religious belief or practice, it is then that the employer must make an exception.

And as for body piercings and tattoos that aren't part of formal religion? A Canadian woman with 22 piercings is trying to end workplace dress-code discrimination, but employment law experts predict she won't have much success, says Katrina Clarke in a National Post article. And Cohen says he agrees.

Marlisse Silver Sweeney is a regular contributor to Law.com, an ALM affiliate of this newsletter.

Just when is OK as an employer or prospective employer to suggest canceling that extra visit to the tattoo artist or piercing salon? Generally, according to Richard Cohen of Fox Rothschild, companies can refuse to hire or have the leeway to fire nonunionized workers for many reasons, as long as they're not connected to a human-rights violation. So discrimination based on appearance in the most basic sense may actually be sanctioned.

What's not lawful is when dress codes infringe on religious beliefs or protected classes of individuals, says Cohen. He uses the example of a ban on dreadlocks when an employee wears them as a religious belief or practice. “Accommodation for religious beliefs in the key,” he explains.

The EEOC and Religious Expression

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) “requires an employer, once it is aware that a religious accommodation is needed, to accommodate an employee whose sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance conflicts with a work requirement, unless doing so would pose an undue hardship,” according to its guidelines. The EEOC goes on to explain that when dress codes or grooming policies conflict with the religious belief or practice, it is then that the employer must make an exception.

And as for body piercings and tattoos that aren't part of formal religion? A Canadian woman with 22 piercings is trying to end workplace dress-code discrimination, but employment law experts predict she won't have much success, says Katrina Clarke in a National Post article. And Cohen says he agrees.

Marlisse Silver Sweeney is a regular contributor to Law.com, an ALM affiliate of this newsletter.