Quote:
Originally Posted by nyreen
That's so silly. My work doesn't mind I've changed my hair a lot over the years and they've always been really cool about it. They don't mind peircings either. Honestly... I think it's weird when companies don't allow their employees to express themselves genuinely. :(
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I'm not saying I necessarily
agree with it, but I can
explain exactly why companies do that:
The answer is that companies don't WANT their employees to express
themselves. The employee's job is to express
the company. To the customers, the employees are the face of the company. If a customer would be uncomfortable interacting with an employee, that customer is uncomfortable interacting with the company.
Companies are very risk-averse. Every risk has a possibility to lose money. Some risks are worth it, because success means earning more money. Other risks are deemed not worth it, because success won't bring in more money or because success is too unlikely. As a result, companies enforce dress codes, because unusual dress is unlikely to earn more money but runs the risk of alienating potential customers.
Because companies are risk-averse, they also tend to be conservative. Not conservative in the political sense (although that is often also true) but in the sense of being slow to accept change. Things that seem safe -- established patterns that have worked well for a long time -- don't seem like a good idea to modify.
Companies ARE gradually learning that it's not always a bad idea to allow employees more freedom, especially in positions that don't interact with customers directly. But it still IS true that companies that serve older people -- that is, people who are more likely to have a problem with radical young people -- are going to be very nervous about looking unprofessional.