Whatt o do if our employertold us thateffective tomorrow we can no longer have beards?
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Whatt o do if our employertold us thateffective tomorrow we can no longer have beards?
Is that legal and can they do that? I have worked for this company for 2 years and have had a beard and mustache both are kept neat.
Asked on February 1, 2012 under Employment Labor Law, Florida
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
It is legal. Companies are allowed to put out dress codes--which can include standards for grooming, beards, hairstyles, body art, piercings, etc. Any employee who does not comply could be disciplined or terminated.
The only exceptions are:
1) A company cannot discriminate against a religion in terms of hair, etc. codes (at least not so long as the hair, etc. style does not impact safety)--so if you belong to a religion which requires men to have facial hair, they may have to let you keep it.
2) Companies might not be able to force you to shave the beard if there is a medical necessity for it--there was a case several years ago, for example, where I believe UPS had to let African American drivers keep neatly trimmed beards if they had a medical condition, more common for African Americans, where if they were clean shaven, the hairs of the beard would try to grow under the skin and irritate it.
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