UPS bans bearded drivers
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by Derren Hayes • A Dewsbury man has been refused a job by US parcels company United Parcel Services because he has a beard.
David Harrison, a former policeman and a Class 1 FIGV driver, heard of a vacancy at UPS's Dewsbury depot from a friend. The company then contacted him inviting him for an interview, but before he attended his friend warned him of the company's no-beard policy.
"I couldn't believe it," says Harrison. "I phoned up the transport manager to check and he made it quite clear that if 1 refused to shave it off there was no job."
Harrison, who has been working part-time as a driver for a year, criticises the company's attitude as "beardism", UPS says the policy is not designed to discriminate against beards but covers general appearance. However, moustaches are allowed.
"The policy applies to beards because there is a problem of defining what's a tidy heard and what isn't," it says. As drivers are the main point of contact with the public we like them to be as presentable as possible."