A woman was left horrified and ‘crying’ when she was confronted by a senior manager about how much make-up she wore when she was representing the company she worked for at a conference
It’s 2024, and rules and regulations that used to be upheld are long outdated, including certain professions requiring women to wear heels and make-up.
But one woman found herself up against her boss when he told her that it was “unprofessional” for her not to wear make-up when she was at a conference, saying that her “face is part of selling the company and it needed to look professional”.
The woman was dumbfounded by his comment and spent time “crying” over what he’d said as she was so shocked by it, wondering whether she was wrong for feeling comfortable enough to present to others with minimal make-up on.
Taking to Mumsnet, she explained the situation, penning: “I [recieved a] promotion and I am super happy about this… however, I have had a meeting today about a complaint from one of our senior managers. Before coming back from maternity leave I liked to be very glamorous, high heels, make-up, etc.
“However, since coming back from maternity I prefer a nice flat shoe or a small heel and minimal or no make-up. If I am at home doing video conferences I will rarely wear make-up, when travelling I will wear a bit (lots of photos taken). Last week I was taking part in a training conference for managers across the world. It was a 5-day conference and on 4 of the days, I wore no make-up.”
She explained that when she presented at the conference, she “decided to wear some make-up”, but she was hauled into a meeting with a “senior manager” who told her it was “very unprofessional” for her to “not wear make-up” and that her “face is part of selling the company and it needed to look professional”.
After the dressing down she received, she said she felt “absolutely awful” and “cried” the whole way through her lunch break. She then asked for people to “reassure” her that she wasn’t in the wrong, and that it was her senior manager being inappropriate. She finished the post by adding: “I haven’t seen him since I was four months pregnant so I know my look has changed a lot.”
In the comments, someone fumed: “Gov.uk advice states: It is advisable to avoid gender-specific prescriptive requirements. For example, any requirement to wear make-up, have manicured nails, wear hair in certain styles or to wear specific types of hosiery or skirts is likely to be unlawful, assuming there is no equivalent requirement for men.”
Another responded: “Exactly what do they think is ‘unprofessional’ about not wearing make-up? I’m assuming your male colleagues are not expected to wear blusher and lipstick at these events?” A Mumsnetter referred to the man as a “t**t”, saying that they’d be asking him why he doesn’t wear make-up.
One woman raged: “I’d check with HR because it sounds to me that he just doesn’t like that you don’t look like the office eye candy anymore. If you looked neat, clean, and tidy, then you looked professional, unless it’s company policy to wear make-up, in which case I hope he was wearing his.”
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