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38 Urb. Law. 593 (2006)
Generation Y: Tattoos, Piercings, and Other Issues for the Private and Public Employer

handle is hein.journals/urban38 and id is 605 raw text is: Recent Developments in Government Operations and Liability Generation Y: Tattoos, Piercings, and Other Issues for the Private and Public Employer Ronald J. Kramer* WITH EVERY GENERATION OF EMPLOYEES, there is a new set of issues facing private and public employers. The current new generation of employees has put a modern twist on an old problem. Instead of facial hair policies and requirements that women wear dresses, however, to- day's legal disputes surround tattoos and piercings. Courts in the past have addressed issues involving uniforms, dress codes, grooming stan- dards, and appearance rules on several grounds: the Fourteenth Amend- ment guarantees of equal protection and due process, First Amendment protections of religious and other expression and free speech, federal and state law protections against employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, and disability, etc.' Prohibiting tattoos or piercings can raise both discrimination and constitutional issues, as the following cases demonstrate. I. Discrimination Issues Because most employers who prohibit the display of tattoos and the wearing of facial jewelry do so without regard to sex or race, discrim- ination claims by employees that have arisen usually center around claims of religious discrimination in violation of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act or a state law equivalent. Title VII prohibits employers from discharging or otherwise discriminating against an employee based on the individual's religion.'2 Broadly defined, religion in- cludes all aspects of religious observance and practice, as well as belief, unless an employer demonstrates that he is unable to reasonably *Ronald Kramer is a partner of Seyfarth Shaw LLP in Chicago, practicing in labor and employment law matters. J.D., Chicago-Kent College of Law, with high honors 1992; B.A., Michigan State University, magna cum laude, 1988. 1. See generally J. BAIRD, D. KADUE & K. SULZER, PUBLIC EMPLOYEE PRIVACY: A LEGAL AND PRACTICAL GUIDE TO ISSUEs AFFECTING THE WORKPLACE (1995) (ch. 7). 2. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(l) (2006).

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