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Do you have to wear makeup at work?
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By Brooke Foster

Can you be fired for not wearing makeup to work? That’s the question being asked in Britain after Melanie Stark, a 24-year-old sales assistant at the famous Harrods department store in London, resigned under pressure for not wearing makeup. According to the Guardian, at least one manager considered Stark to be one of the store’s best employees.

All employees at Harrods are expected to abide by a two-page “ladies” dress code that stipulates: “Full makeup at all times: base, blusher, full eyes (not too heavy), lipstick, lip liner and gloss are worn at all times and maintained discreetly (please take into account the store display lighting which has a ‘washing out’ effect).”

Stark reported for work au naturel for four years without a word from upper management. That all changed when she was spotted by managers during a “floor tour”; a Harrod’s spokesman says they didn’t see her before then.

According to reports, Stark’s manager sent her home twice because she was not wearing makeup; on one occasion they sent her to the stockroom. They even offered her a makeup workshop.

"I was appalled,” she told the Guardian. “It was insulting. Basically, it was implying it would be an improvement. I don't understand how they think it is OK to say that.”

Stark was given an ultimatum: Put on makeup or leave. She resigned. She could see how the store could dictate a dress code, but a makeup code is different, she says. You can’t tell someone what to do with her hair or face.

Says Stark: "Make up can change your features completely, especially if I was to wear all of what they were asking. I would look like a different person to me. And I never chose to look like that."