Superficial Much? Beauty Bias Can Harm Your Organization

Here are some examples of comments or thoughts that can signal beauty bias:

• ”They are so attractive! This job seems to be beneath them. They would be better suited for a higher-up position.”
• ”They don’t ‘look the part.’ Maybe we should consider someone else.”
• ”Their hair was a deal killer for me.”

In and outside the workforce, beauty bias bars us from all of the benefits embedded in diversity while simultaneously letting superficial aspects of an individual, like appearance, detrimentally factor into our decisions.

Are you ready to combat beauty bias in your workplace? Try these steps.

1. Be Aware: Appearance-based discrimination may take the form of bias regarding weight, choice of clothing, or tattoos.
2. Ask Questions. Question Others: Don’t be a bystander, says Attorney, speaker, author and consultant Kelly Charles-Collins. “Your job is not to be the hero. You don’t have to swoop in and save the whole thing,” she told Forbes. “Employees can stand up by connecting with each other, by creating distractions, by calling for help.”
3. Get Educated: Learn about the dangers of hiring based on looks. Aside from color, physical appearance is not considered a protected class by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. But hiring a candidate based on appearance could be seen as an example of workplace discrimination.
4. Take Action! "Recruiters who present only 'good-looking' candidates, or make judgments based on whether or not someone is good-looking, shouldn't be in business," said Linda Ferrante, vice president of operations at recruiting firm RFT Search Group, in an interview with the Society for Human Resource Management. "If they can't see past the physical beauty of the candidate, how can a company be certain the recruiter is working to solve their problems and recruit the best candidates?"