A severely tattooed lady recently complained online about TJ Maxx turning her down for a retail position in one of its stores. Instead of encouraging her, the internet community reminded her that “facial piercings and tattoos” are “career enders,” rendering her “unemployable.”
Ash Putnam, also known as ashxobrien on TikTok, recently claimed on the platform that TJ Maxx had rejected her for a retail position.
“I applied to TJ Maxx a few weeks ago, and they denied my application,” the 24-year-old said in the TikTok video, which has been viewed over 7 million times. “They couldn’t even contact me. “They just sent me an automated email.”
Putnam, who has prominent tattoos on her face and body as well as multiple facial piercings, said she chose to contact the hiring manager in order to get some explanation.
“So I walked in today and asked, ‘What was the reason I didn’t get hired?’ And she said, ‘Oh, you just don’t have enough experience. “There were candidates with more experience than you,” explains the young woman.
“I asked her if it was due to my tattoos. Tattoos are clearly not popular in many places. She stated that it wasn’t the cause. I don’t think that’s accurate, but whatever. “I’ll leave it at that.”
‘Does not make sense.’
Putnam, hoping to gain advice from the internet public, asks in her video, “I’m just wondering how teenagers and young adults who haven’t had a job before are supposed to get employed.”
“How can they find a job if these places only hire people with experience? “It just does not make sense to me.”
Before she ended her video, she encouraged her followers to share their job-searching experiences and any challenges they encountered.
“I want to see if I’m the only one going through this right now. “I hate that my tattoos have been such a defining factor in whether or not I get a job,” Putnam added. “Just because I have tattoos doesn’t mean that I’m not going to be a good worker.”
‘Unemployable’
Her tale resonated with many viewers, resulting in an outpouring of comments from people expressing their thoughts.
“Maybe it’s the demon spider??” one user asks, referring to the prominent tattoo that runs from her neck to her lower cheeks.
A second TikToker jokes, “[You] can be a bartender, tattoo artist, an extra in a prison movie, or a bassist for Motley Crue,” while a third simply says, “Unemployable.”
Others stated that it is the arrangement of Putnam’s tattoos, rather than the actual body art. “There’s a reason that tattoo artists refer to face tattoos as career enders,” according to one user.
@ashxobrien I want to know who is also having a hard time finding a job right now! #jobs #jobmarket ♬ original sound – Ash Putnam🩷🕸️
A second person responds, “I don’t think it’s because you have tattoos…”I believe it’s where you have tattoos. A third person writes, “I have tattoos everywhere except my face, but I can get a job anywhere.” “Be [real].”
One netizen provides some expert counsel, writing, “HR supervisor here. No corporation would put you in front of customers like TJ Maxx.”
Next, a former hiring manager at TJ Maxx confirms the suspicions about facial art in the workplace: “I used to be a hiring manager for TJ Maxx and I will tell you it’s the facial piercings and tattoos.”
‘Shows inventiveness.’
Tattoos have gained widespread acceptance in the workplace over the last decade. However, even for those with extensive ink, such as Putnam, the job search can be difficult, particularly for customer-facing positions.
And if her body art is the reason she was denied a position at the business, Putnam told the Daily Star that employers need to reassess their hiring process.
“If they think tattoos determine job skill and qualifications they really need to rethink. Tattoos, piercings, and dyed hair are not unprofessional. It demonstrates creativity and uniqueness.People should get over their dislike of tattoos.”
If you were in charge of finding a suitable candidate to fill a position, would you hire someone with visible tattoos and piercings? Please let us know what you think, and then share this story so we can start the conversation!