Help - Is this discrimation ?

dmg24

annaabc wrote: »

Bigoted ? ( I must be related to Gillian Duffy) - I find that very offensive. You might as well call me racist as well.

I have not come here to be insulted. I have been honest with the facts and the situation. Maybe this situation is not about discrimination but equality?

Anyway, enough

Why would I call you a racist? You do understand that Muslims are members of a religion, not a race?

The ignorance of some people really concerns me ...

Premier_2

annaabc wrote: »

...My son needs his job ...

... but obviously not enough to bother making the effort to turn up clean & tidy. :cool:

I blame the parents.

Oldernotwiser

dpassmore wrote: »

One of the guys I used to work with a couple of years ago would start work at around 5:30 in the morning and by the end of the shift, he had the appearance of requiring a shave - I am not exagerating!

It would certainly be unreasonable to expect someone like this to shave during the day surely.

Now would he be deemed as 'unkempt' despite being clean and smart but his hormones are such that he possibly needs two shaves a day?

As I stated earlier, it is too subjective an issue without a defined policy.

"Five o'clock shadow" is not an uncommon problem and men whose appearance is important would be likely to keep an electric razor at work to tidy up when it happens, just as a woman with oily skin might freshen her makeup in the afternoon.

getmore4less

annaabc wrote: »

Well as his mother I think it is well kept stubble and that my son is quite gorgeous and is wasting his time stacking shelves and
can`t wait for him to be discovered:D

Whats the plan escort work?

I bet he will feel a right fool when finds out his mum is on the internet trying sort out his problems out for him.

Let him grow up and fight his own battles.
That way he will learn which battles are worth fighting,

HINT: this is not one of them.

dickydonkin

annaabc I bet you wished that you never even registered and posted.

A reasonable question has degenerated into accusations of racism, bigotry and unhelpful responses (not all I might add).

Whats the plan escort work?

I bet he will feel a right fool when finds out his mum is on the internet trying sort out his problems out for him.

Come on - Sarcasm and assumption is not really helpful.

anaabc You cannot win here. If you were an uncaring mother who did not give a toss about your son and 'let him fight his own battles' you would be criticised for not keeping him under control.

He might indeed feel a fool if he found out you were fighting his corner but that is an assumption from someone who does not know you or your son.

It may transpire he is proud of his mum and will be grateful for attempting to help him out.

Martha66

This isn't exactly answering OP's query, but come on!

I genuinely cannot think of one person I know (from all different generations) who actually cares whether a shelf-stacker in their supermarket has a stubble.

I personally don't care so much about little things like that - but accept that some people do have issues with appearance and wish people to conform to an accepted "norm". Even so, in a front-of-house heavy on customer/client contact position such as receptionist, maybe so. But a shelf-stacker in a supermarket. Who spends time looking to notice a stubble?!

Possibly an over-zealous - and imo, very pernickty - mystery shopper mentioned stubble. But unlike mystery shoppers, who specifically check for all kind of details not noticed and/or quickly forgotten by everyday shoppers, most shoppers are only interested in the products for sale - the quality and price.

Okay, perhaps if a member of staff was very noticeably eccentric or different from the norm in appearance, perhaps some customers might complain. But a bit of stubble?

I barely notice the shelf-stackers. This isn't intended to offend shelf-stackers - simply that I am too busy shopping and looking for decent affordable produce (with an eye out, as a moneysaver, for special offers/reduced items ).

Having said that, however unfair your son finds this, is it really worth losing his job over a bit of stubble? Hopefully when he finishes his studies, he can find a new job without such petty restrictions (I've worked in a number of different offices in various industries including supposed staid occupations such as banking and law - and there are plenty with stubbles there.

Raksha

As an ex professional Mystery shopper, I can say that if I am asked to notice if the staff member has a full beard or is clean shaven, I will note what degree of facial hair they may have - it's not up to me to discuss why they want to know that information. If the Company handbook says clean and tidy, then I would class neat designer stubble as clean and tidy - as other's have said, it's subjective - when does stubble become a beard?

Could your son lay his hands on a company handbook and ask for clarification of 'clean and tidy' (or whatever phrase they have used) from his HR dept?

ankspon

For the muslim to grow a beard he had to have stubble at one point,was this acceptable?

SarEl

Are we not getting somewhat (way) off the point here? Is an employer allowed to state that men must either be clean-shaven or have a full beard - yes. Is it discrimination in law (because that is all that matters) - no. So it comes down to a very simple position. The employee in question either complies with the employers "dress code" or they find another job.

Zazen999

In the greater scheme of things; is this really a battle worth fighting?

If the OP and their son wants to make an issue; then the OP's son could end up losing their job [which is sometimes not so much of a problem] but also losing a good reference. The new HR manager is just finding their feet and possibly has been asked to sort out the staff and their appearance. Is being neat and tidy really so hard to muster?