My red hair is 'unprofessional' but tattoos aren't!!

[IntegrityisDead]

I work in a uniformed role in the UK, uniform standards say 'Conspicuously "unnatural" colours (e.g. pink) and extreme hairstyles are not allowed.'
I am spitting feathers!!
My hair is L'Oréal Preference Bright Red 8.624.
Yes it's bright

Appearance matters. You don’t have pride in your appearance when you ruin it by permanently drawing all over it like you’re a chalkboard 🙄

I mean you can get quite a bright natural auburn (photo is one of my daughters classmates zoomed so pretty sure it’s not dyed) but it’s still not actually red.
It’s a silly policy I question the value of but probably not a hill worth dying on

It’s just a matter of taste. I don’t like tattoos either and I wouldn’t ever get one (I wouldn’t even get my ears pierced. It doesn’t mean people with them don’t care about their appearance though and it has zero bearing on their ability to do a job well. Lots of our IT new hires are covered in tats and are excellent. They like their tattoos and they think they look better with them.

I don’t like tattoos but you sound ridiculous.

L'Oréal Preference Bright Red 8.624 is a conspicuously unnatural colour. And therefore breaks your uniform rules.

Get a grip.

Thank you all for your replies. I didn't think it would attract much interest!
I am upset because I am not 'unprofessional', I have been dyeing my hair since I was a teenager - it is part of who I am. I used to wear it very short and got lots of unnecessary comments then too.
I am very professional in my job - in my attitude, attention to detail, relationships with clients and other agencies. I go the extra mile, I support colleagues, I take on extra responsibilities and voluntary duties. But actually all of that is counted as nothing against my hair colour.
And that is really demotivating.
The objection seems to be because it is red - there is apparently no problem with the obviously bottle blondes, or with augmented lips, artificially white teeth and overdone Botox - the latter two also being obvious in male as well as female colleagues. It is very strange and actually quite unsettling.

Tattoos aren’t ok though as any that may offend still need to be covered. The men and women aren’t allowed to wear hair down if it’s past their collar - men and women do dye their hair but stick to the guidelines as should the OP. I agree that it has no impact on their ability to do the job, I’m not saying I agree with the policy but that if you get a job with a dress code or rules regarding appearance you are agreeing to it when you sign your contract. It’s hair colour regarding uniform standards of appearance. Maybe you should DM the OP to represent her in her discrimination case and let us know how that goes.

I sympathise op but if it's a disciplined uniformed service I'm afraid thems the breaks. Id love mermaid hair but I can't . I do have tattoos but they're covered.

Tattoos don't tend to cause as much of a stir as bright bright red/pink hair does and it's likely while a bit draconian it may detract from the job you're doing .

Is it a disciplined uniformed service ? It's the same with army , police , all have codes of dress .

I am very professional in my job - in my attitude, attention to detail, relationships with clients and other agencies. I go the extra mile, I support colleagues, I take on extra responsibilities and voluntary duties. But actually all of that is counted as nothing against my hair colour.

If you did all of those things but turned up in a mini skirt or with a face tattoo or slept with a client you'd be breaking the rules too. You know what they are. You agreed to them.

Do you have natural red hair & you dye it to make it more vibrant? Or are you naturally fair/dark & this is a total radical colour?

It is very vivid - beautiful but I can see why they won't allow it .

My friend was in same job as me and had 3 colours in her very short spikey funky hair do, she was told despite having her hair like that for years that if she was public facing she would need to
Change it .

@IntegrityisDead have you missed a chunk of your op? Have you been asked to change it or have you just got your knickers in a twist about a policy that you have read?

FWIW I don’t agree with you. If you accept any job with a uniform policy then you have to abide by the policy.

I feel for you . Hair can be such a part of self expression .. and we are not at work all the time are we ?!
The other side to that is is there an importqnt reason for no bright / artificial colurs( blone can look v unatural too!) .. is it a profession where you have to engage people v quickly or something and they feel that apperance can be an initial barrier ( not that' barriers' cant be addressed? !

I use copper coloured henna. A lot of people think it's natural, but it's bloody bright. A good compromise?

They’re not saying that your hair colour must be natural, just that it must be on the range of colours which could conceivably be natural (eg I have always dyed my hair and am dark brunette but god knows what my own colour would be these days).

If you regularly change your hair colour, this probably isn’t a hill to die on, just tone it down a bit. If your relatives’ hair is “extreme red” like your hair dye, then I hate to break it to you but they are not natural redheads either!

Some of us have had to go and "have words" with young female staff who come to work looking like they are going clubbing, with a full face of really heavy makeup, or with their hair hanging round their shoulders. Ditto male staff with ridiculous facial piercings, stretched earlobes, etc. Far too many people don't seem to understand why we have uniforms, and think they need to express themselves at work like they did in Y10..

Just to digress, where I come from, "spitting feathers" means ragingly angry.

Within about a week, it goes from 1980s bathroom tiles to a sort of depressed, mouldering peach with hints of green - so, no, don't do it. It's totally different from hair that on top of the most obvious tones, has what looks like spun gold threads through it and what look like colourless strands (DD1's natural colour).

Mine is/was more of a squirrel dunked in a muddy puddle full of conkers (red turns white first, so I'm now a mid blonde, much to my disgust), but the colour you're talking about is a composite of red and golden blonde/nothing and absolutely no dark hairs whatsoever. DD's eyebrows and eyelashes are almost invisible unless it's summer and her freckles provide a dark enough background to be able to see them - there is just no relation between her type of hair colour and a dodgy orange out of a tub.

She was refused a job as a 16 year old because the interviewer thought she'd dyed it, by the way.

It's not difficult to understand the appearance code - eg, pink or blue means 'if it's a colour you'd get from a tube of acrylic, it's not acceptable', so feigning ignorance is ridiculous.

But then again, I took my piercings out when I wanted a job that carried different standards and wear clothing that covers up a tattoo. It's not hard unless you want to make it difficult for yourself. I also don't wear low cut tops, micro skirts, 5 inch heels, ballgowns or a lime green and purple tutu with dayglo yellow fishnets to work, either. Because I like having a job and they have decided anybody who works for them has to conform to certain appearance standards whilst they are working.

Spitting feathers means angry!!
Never heard it used to mean thirsty 🤔

angry or thirsty apparently

www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-spi4.htm

Unnatural hair colours do look unprofessional 🤷🏽‍♀️

I would not be impressed if my children's teacher came in with bright green hair. I'd think she's lost the plot.

Around here, only the unemployed have wacky hair colour. The rest of us generally care how we present ourselves.

''@ronniecat
Unnatural hair colours do look unprofessional 🤷🏽‍♀️''

Because you think the colour of people's hair directly impacts their ability to do the job and magically affects their skills and experience?

It doesn't. It is completely irrelevant.

Plus you see a lot of women with platinum bleached blond or other very light shade of blondes and they are totally unnatural too, yet no one is going to object to that because this is considered ''desirable''.

As some people have mentioned this just smacks of trying to tell women how they should look based on the patriarchal idea of what looks attractive and what doesn't.

Some workplaces used tell women they had to wear heels, skirts and make-up if they wanted to look ''professional'' which was just sexist rubbish and thankfully we have moved on from that.

I have bright red hair and I’m bloody good at my job. I was more worried about a recent piercing and check with my manager who reminded she had one too. Oh yeah I hadn’t noticed. That’s because I don’t judge people on their appearances but their actions in the work they do.

As some people have mentioned this just smacks of trying to tell women how they should look based on the patriarchal idea of what looks attractive and what doesn't.

Women can wear dresses of various lengths, pinafores, jumpsuits, skirts, culottes, trousers, cropped trousers, tops, jumpers, blouses, vest tops in an office environment as well as numerous different types of footwear. Men in an office wear trousers, shirt and tie and a formal shoe. Yet if the OP can’t have scarlet hair it’s the patriarchy.

The policy is bonkers. I don't understand why the job should dictate something this personal.
Is the policy which considers your shade of red (which is generally a natural hair colour) a problem well motivated and explained? Is it clear which goals it pursues? I'd be asking for a written explanation. Jobs or schools shouldn't limit personal freedom just because they like to write policies.