Stay away from the Bagelheads, kids.

I would say that it just usually doesn't look professional or particularly classy. I personally don't care about those types of things, though I'd never do them to myself.

Its strictly business and your personal preference in dress and "body modification" aren't going to change decades (centuries?) of what is considered acceptable in a professional workplace. "Greasers"/rockers in the 50s didn't. Hippies in the 60s didn't. Punk Rockers in the 70s didn't. Madonna wannabees in the 80s didn't and Grunge aficionados in the 90s didn't. The the tattooed/pierced crowd of the current day isn't going to either. While the workplace is more casual now (thankfully) there are certain things that will never be deemed appropriate. If you have a certain style you enjoy you had better make sure its easily "modifiable" to fit the workplace. If its not, that's your problem and you can't blame employers.

Honestly? People who are massively modified (like those bumps to look like horns, massive earlobes, lots of piercings in the nose, lips, eyebrows, cheeks, neck etc.) scare me a little. I find it intimidating - which I think was the original purpose of this type of thing? Not sure. Especially if they have coloured contact lenses in as well. Most companies don't want to scare their customers off. Plus, if someone was giving me mortgage advice with all that stuff in their face/neck/wrists, I'd wonder whether they were the best people to ask about long term investments/life choices. Prejudiced maybe, but that's how I feel, and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one. Why not just take out whatever stuff you've got in your face or elsewhere for an interview? Jobs seem to be scarce everywhere and you'd just be putting yourself at a disadvantage.
I think the same thing applies to managerial jobs too, not just ones where you'd be dealing with customers - if you're supposed to be a team leader, and able to motivate and guide your employees towards certain goals, it's probably best that you seem approachable. I don't think masses of body mods does that for a person.

It also depends on what field you want to work in. Doing science in Scandinavia, nobody really cares.

I can understand that, when hiring for a job that's very much public-contact oriented with an older and more conservative clientele, some businesses might worry about such things.

But I don't get the general stigma against piercings and whatnot. Pretty much everybody in this thread seems to agree that such a stigma is a bit arbitrary and stupid. And yet, the consensus seems to be that 'that's just the way it is'. Which makes it kind of difficult for us to evolve as a society.

Discrimination is human nature. We're just looking for a reason to hate on each other.

Having said that, tattoos and piercings are pretty mainstream now. Just don't expect to become the president, wearing torn jeans, flaunting Travis Barker-like tattoos and a padlock for a piercing.

Words of wisdom.

The fun part is: people think it's bad because people think it's bad. Seriously, ask someone who has no reason to lie to you. That's why most employers don't want to hire someone with visible body modifications. People in general will see it negatively (because everyone else sees it negatively because everyone else sees it negatively because everyone else see it nega-- you get my point) and you've just given your employer a touch of bad reputation for nothing. To stand a chance with any visible body mods, especially the exorbitant ones, you need to have another means of NOT scaring off clients/customers and sinking that hook in deep so they like you, stick around, and tell your boss that you're a fantastic employee. So, have a blue ribbon smile and a warm, cuddly personality, as well as solid knowledge in your field/expertise.

Sadly, that's the world we live and die in. "If it isn't what I expect, or what I'm told is ok, then I don't like it". Too many sheeple like that for any employer to take such a risk. Well, any except those who represent a company where visible body mods are expected. You any good at tattooing? Mind selling the latest fad to non-conformists?(Yes, you, Hot-Topic) Anywhere you want to work that you're momma won't lie about to her friends, and your self-expression is gonna count against you. Sorry, brother.

Also, this topic reminds me of Surrogates. I get the feeling this "social delinquency" won't become "acceptable" until it's ubiquitous.

Agreed.

To me, it is very unattractive, and I tend to have the same reaction to it as I would to seeing people perform self-mutilation (like the people that put hooks in their bodies and hang themselves from them, etc.). My reaction is that the "modifications" are unnatural and therefor unattractive/ugly/repulsive. I don't see any beauty in them. I have similar reactions toward tattoos and excessive piercings, and other permanent "modifications" to the body.

EDIT: That's just my opinion. I'm sure you're a nice person and all, but appearances have a huge impact on initial impressions and the snap-judgements humans make (necessary mechanism to cope with processing information).

I dunno what you expect. Unlike racial/gender discrimination, body modification is a choice. You made that choice knowing the consequences.

Well, being a man who loves tattoos I wouldn't hire someone with extreme body modifications to interact with customers, hell I probably wouldn't hire them anyway because I dislike large discs in the ear/lip or the crap that people put under their skin.

Lesson: It's all about the field of employment and the preference of the person doing the hiring. svck it up and either get rid of em or look else where

Yeah -- there are some jobs that I won't get simply because I'm a man. Not for particularly negative reasons, but because some places (cafes, restaurants and the like, mostly) have a particular image/atmosphere they want to maintain. I'm not bothered by that, since women have me beat when it comes to the skill of being a woman . Same applies to other stuff.

Its one of those things where as long as the reason are shallow (just looks and such), its acceptable .

It is human nature to judge someone based on their appearance, and many body modifications have a stereotype about them. :shrug:

Because it isn't conservative, and anything that isn't conservative is generally looked down upon.

That is hardly an accurate blanket statement. Many progressive things are embraced, including appearances, the question is, is it really progressive?

body peircings? no, I would say they aren't progressive. While their certainly not something conservative elements would approve of, there's nothing about them that is progressive in nature.

Yeah I would hope giant holes in your ears was not progressive.

I can't really see body piercings as progressive, or advantageous to have in any sense. They don't improve you in anyway, and give your enemies more places to latch onto. If anything, body piercings produce a weakness.

But acceptance is going to vary from culture to culture. In the ancient Middle East, body piercing was pretty common. Isaac's wife, Rebecca, is described with having a nose ring, given to her by Abraham's servant. But in Europe, body modification seemed to not catch on, except for ear-rings.

your right verlox. My doctor is a middle eastern woman and she has a nose ring.

depends on the culture.