Page 314 - Discrimination at Work The Psychological and Organizational Bases

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Looking the Part: Bias Against
the Physically Unattractive

as a Discrimination Issue

Robert L. Dipboye
University of Central Florida

The ideal public and private organization for the 1990s has been described
as multicultural in that it not only tolerates but openly embraces differences
among employees (Cox, 1991; Cox & Blake, 1991). This chapter focuses on a
barrier to achieving the multicultural ideal that has been largely ignored in
these discussions—bias on the basis of appearance and in particular against
the physically unattractive. At first glance, this may seem peripheral to the
issue of workplace discrimination. Yet, appearance standards and norms in
organizations can have the effect of favoring the White, the young, and the
physically unimpaired. Those who violate these norms can be subjected to
severe sanctions. Take, for example, the following incidents.

A TV anchor on a local station is fired because she is "too old, too ugly, un­
feminine, and didn't dress right."
A black employee of a national pizza chain, cannot shave because of a skin
disorder that is more common among Blacks than Whites. Nevertheless, he is
fired for wearing a beard in violation of the corporate dress code.
A manager of a car rental agency is dismissed from his job for being obese,
despite receiving high performance ratings and eight commendations over a
five-year period.
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