One for the Main dealers on here
Discussion
JoshyS said:
You cannot choose to be black. You can however choose to either have your body permanently scared with ink and furthermore, you can also make the decision that if you want to get ink, you can put it on a piece of your body that can be easily hidden.
Well for the purposes of customers discriminating against company staff, some customers will discriminate against blacks regardless of it being illegal to do so. Some may also disciminate against tattoos. So you shouldn't employ blacks either then.Ex Car sales manager here, main dealer Ford and Rover, then Used car supermarket type sales. Hired and fired in my time.
Tattoos were frowned upon in the main dealers and to be honest not the image we would want to portray.I have two tattoos on my forearms from my forces days, and was told by a couple of SMs when i got into Sales not to show them, so in the summer when everybody wore short sleeves i was the odd one out.
However in the Used car supermarket, i employed a Salesman with swallows on his hands, he was very good selling cars on weekly payments, and always tended to approach people he sensed were that type of punter, would i have employed him at one of the Main Dealers?
No is the honest answer, don`t think George and Alice looking at a new Rover 400 would trust him, all IMO only of course.
Tattoos were frowned upon in the main dealers and to be honest not the image we would want to portray.I have two tattoos on my forearms from my forces days, and was told by a couple of SMs when i got into Sales not to show them, so in the summer when everybody wore short sleeves i was the odd one out.
However in the Used car supermarket, i employed a Salesman with swallows on his hands, he was very good selling cars on weekly payments, and always tended to approach people he sensed were that type of punter, would i have employed him at one of the Main Dealers?
No is the honest answer, don`t think George and Alice looking at a new Rover 400 would trust him, all IMO only of course.
japgt said:
Discrimination of any type is wrong in my eyes and I imagine most would agree with that, so my opinion is that society in general should not discriminate for any reason. Why does having a tattoo allow someone to discriminate against that person, do we discriminate females for having their ears pierced?? Exactly the same thing in my opinion
Most people act on first inpressions which can be often wrong.Personally Iam not keen on people with tattoos on their neck.Or eyebrow studs.Or females covered in tattoos that could be classed as prejudice.Once you start talking to people opinions can change either good or bad
If you are an employer, and you have 2 people to pick from equally qualified, neither serial killers, why would you go with the one that X% of the population may have an issue with.
There are many traits which employers will not want in certain roles, giving them the excuse not to pick you is sadly the way of the world, and I cannot believe you were not somewhat aware of this when you had them done?
There are many traits which employers will not want in certain roles, giving them the excuse not to pick you is sadly the way of the world, and I cannot believe you were not somewhat aware of this when you had them done?
To find out the legalities of this particular situation, I've just taken my life in my hands and interrupted Mrs Blib's viewing of Midsomer Murders.
She is head of the Employment Law department at one of The City's biggest financial institutions. She knows her stuff. This is her reply.
It would be within a potential employer's rights not to employ someone due to them having visible tattoos. There is no "looks" discrimination. To get anywhere in a discrimination case, he would have to show that refusal was on a protected ground eg race, sexual orientation, age etc. He may have grounds if the tattoos were part of his religious belief. Now get me a cup of tea".
That last sentence was directed at me, rather than the OP.
She is head of the Employment Law department at one of The City's biggest financial institutions. She knows her stuff. This is her reply.
It would be within a potential employer's rights not to employ someone due to them having visible tattoos. There is no "looks" discrimination. To get anywhere in a discrimination case, he would have to show that refusal was on a protected ground eg race, sexual orientation, age etc. He may have grounds if the tattoos were part of his religious belief. Now get me a cup of tea".
That last sentence was directed at me, rather than the OP.
japgt said:
do we discriminate females for having their ears pierced?? Exactly the same thing in my opinion
Unfortunately, you're not in the position where your opinion counts for much.When you're the one sat on the other side of the desk then you can employ whomever you like.
I'm sorry if that sounds harsh - it wasn't meant to.
I'd be upfront & see what they say.
Jasandjules said:
Have you a proven sales record?
Im afraid not, in fairness im probably pissing in the wind, im in a position with my current employer where im going from full time to part time like a yoyo so thought id try and find something more stable and whilst im at it change sector to something relating to cars in some way, however as part of my original thread i stated that i thought car sales was not possible due to my visible tattoo but lack of any experience is also a big factor although possibly not as difficult to overcome than blinkered peoples views of appearance.japgt said:
My question is, if a person applied for a job as a car salesman with your company and had visible tattoos even when wearing a suit, would you consider them for the job or completely discount them from the role??
I guess that depends entirely on the firm. "Premium" brand dealers like Range Rover, Porsche BMW, Audi, Mercedes dealership I doubt it's an image they'd want to project as their customers maybe of an age or generation that maybe uncomfortable around people with tattoos. Of course it depends entirely on the tats. By visible do you mean extends slightly from the cuff or facial tats and borstal biro administered "--cut here--" across the throat? 
If you personally feel unsure about it and have no previous experience is a leap into customer facing a good idea? Could you work in another part of the car dealers business first and once you've built a good level of support and friends in the management look to move into sales? By which time they'll all know you and an internal move to work under people that you know and know you is a lot easier than a blind application from an unknown member of the public. I know plenty of people in a previous career of mine that did exactly that and did very well from it.
Oh and don't mention any previous criminal convictions because, and I'm sure an employment lawyer will put me right if I'm wrong, you do not need to declare it and it is illegal for a firm to ask for it unless they are recruiting for particular jobs. eg. Childcare or general healthcare.
Edited by Agent Orange on Thursday 9th January 11:16
japgt said:
Im afraid not, in fairness im probably pissing in the wind, im in a position with my current employer where im going from full time to part time like a yoyo so thought id try and find something more stable and whilst im at it change sector to something relating to cars in some way, however as part of my original thread i stated that i thought car sales was not possible due to my visible tattoo but lack of any experience is also a big factor although possibly not as difficult to overcome than blinkered peoples views of appearance.
Can you describe your tattoo and where it is on your body? If you have tears on your face then getting a job anywhere is going to be tough, likewise 'Love/Hate' on your knuckles, but if it's a more fashionable tattoo and you dress edgily you might get away with it. Plenty of customers in BMW/Audi dealerships have Beckhamesque tattoos, and that might not be an issue if you get a 'modern' DP interviewing you.Poor tattoos indicate poor judgement I'm afraid, and so for that reason alone I tend to look on visible tattoos very badly. I have hired many folks over the years, admittedly into banking and insurance positions (which tend to be exceptionally conservative), and I have only ever seen someone with visible tattoos 3 times. On each occasion the interviewee brought it up, but in fairness their interview matched their tattoos - poor all round.
What about a job at the 'Fast N Loud' garage? :-)
If it's just on your hand I wouldn't worry too much. If it makes you self conscious cover it up make up or a fine cotton glove (one you can still write with etc)
Don't bring it up, if they mention it say "It's disfigured" I doubt interviewer will mention it again. If they do press you just say you would rather not talk about it.
Try not to get hung up on this, it's just like a girl with fat ankles wearing trousers.
Don't bring it up, if they mention it say "It's disfigured" I doubt interviewer will mention it again. If they do press you just say you would rather not talk about it.
Try not to get hung up on this, it's just like a girl with fat ankles wearing trousers.
A.G. said:
I have several tattoos and managed to sell high end cars for years. The difference is that in my work attire, none were ever visible. It is not something most of my customers would have wanted to see and I can accept and respect that.
My thoughts are that if an individual is prepared to opt out of socially acceptable mainstream norms by having their hands, neck, face or whatever tattooed, then surely they should consider that they may have also opted out of being eligible for some mainstream opportunities.
I'd say it would depend on the market the car was aiming for, a Mini dealership may be more hip and trendy than yoru local Aston Martin dealership. Gross sweeping genrealisation but would a Motorbike sales job be better? The best thing may be to put a picture up of you wearing the suit shirt and tie you would wear for interview, if you look cool and trendy rather than like the accused then the tattoos may not be an issue to many.My thoughts are that if an individual is prepared to opt out of socially acceptable mainstream norms by having their hands, neck, face or whatever tattooed, then surely they should consider that they may have also opted out of being eligible for some mainstream opportunities.
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