A woman has claimed she was not given a job because she didn't wear makeup to the interview. Sharing her experience on social media, TikToker Melissa Weaver alleged she was told the job wasn't offered to her because she 'didn't put enough effort into her appearance'.
The 30-year-old said she was looking to secure a position as a vice-president of HR position at a tech firm. In the video, which has now been viewed more than 800k times, Melissa said the interview went really well.
"Every question she had, I had a great question for," she said. "I used to work in recruitment, I know how to interview."
She added: "I thought it went great, but I get an email from the recruiter saying I'm not going to be moving onto the next round." Melissa says she was upset and confused.
Deciding to do something she's not done before, Melissa chose to email the recruiter back to ask for feedback. She said that while her background, experience, values and goals lined up with the company and what they were looking for, Melissa was told that the interviewer was concerned by her appearance.
"She was concerned that for my interview I hadn't put in enough effort in my appearance given the level of role I was interviewing for," Melissa explained. "For my appearance I did a blow-out for my hair, put on a nice top, blazer and some earrings.
"But I only had on Chapstick, I don't really wear a lot of makeup." She then posed a question to viewers, asking: "Does wearing make up to work make a difference?"
Thousands shared their opinions in the comment section. One viewer replied: "My question is: is that legal?!" Jenny added: "That honestly feels like discrimination. Not hiring you based on your looks?"
Abby put: "You dodged a bullet, imo." Sandy wrote: "Not reasonable. Do men get refused a job because they don’t wear makeup?"
Rose said: "Unfortunately, yes. Makeup, hair, nails, clothing and shoes all matter." Christy typed: "Yes……at that level…a polished appearance is important for some companies/position."
