Engineer Calls This Scientist ‘Unprofessional’ Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Thankfully, the days of strict dress codes at work are slowly disappearing in most industries. Bosses have finally cottoned on to the fact that forcing people to sit at a desk all day sweltering in a rigid suit and tie just doesn’t make any sense.

Some work environment habits die hard, however, and in traditionally male-dominated areas – which science still is, for now – women boldly expressing themselves at work are apparently seen as ‘unprofessional’ for some.

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

So when environmental scientist Joleah Lamb started a Twitter thread asking for stories and biased opinions about men commenting on women’s dress in the scientific community, she certainly got some eye-opening responses.

One, in particular, stood out, however – an exchange between Stephanie E. Suarez and an engineer from Chevron.
Stephanie received a message on LinkedIn from the engineer, criticizing her red hair dye and tattoos likening her to a “waiter of Midtown,” whatever that means. To which Stephanie gave the good comeback that he deserved.

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

Why do some people feel the need to share their unsolicited opinions about others’ appearance? Do they think they are doing a favor or something? Stephanie’s looks are utterly irrelevant to her job, and it is nobody’s business to suggest what she wears at work, interview, or otherwise!

The exchange sheds some light on the issues that some women scientists are faced with. Rather than allowing their work to speak for itself, some men still expect women to justify themselves through their appearance. That is asking that they ‘fit in’ with old-fashioned views on what is acceptable in the profession. Who are you to decide what is ‘professional’ and what is gender equality?

Stephanie went on to give some further background on the situation

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: docsnowtx

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: geologiststephy

While people were quick to offer their support

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: Geology_456

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: fen_ken

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: Nazegoreng

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: RaquelKWilliams

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: Jet_Blakk

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: rstoneham77

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: mlleech

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: JenLovesBugs

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

Image credits: DawktaJawlz

What do you think? Does your job have expectations of how you should dress at work? Why do you think that some people need to tell others how they ‘should’ look? Share your own stories in the comments below!

Engineer Calls This Scientist 'Unprofessional' Because Of Her Red Hair And Tattoos, She Bashes Him On Twitter

I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

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James is a Bored Panda reporter who graduated with a BA in Peace And Conflict Studies and an MA in African Affairs. Before Bored Panda, he was an English teacher and also travelled a lot, doing odd jobs from beer-slinging to brickie's labourer and freelance journalism along the way. James loves covering stories about social and environmental issues and prefers to highlight the positive things that unite us, rather than petty internet squabbles about fictional characters. James is the grumpy, contradictory one who thinks that Bored Panda, due to its large audience, has a social responsibility to inspire and inform its readers with interesting issues and entertaining, well-researched stories. Let's do our bit to make our little corner of the internet a smarter, more truthful and less angry place!

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What do you think ?

POST

Yaz Cam 5 years ago

He did all of that because she called him out for trying to hit on women on LinkedIn. He was embarrassed and attempted to hurt her feelings, which he failed at big time while digging himself into a hole.

128points

Wanda Queen 5 years ago

Exactly.

26points

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Grumble O'Pug 5 years ago

creeping on linked-in is so common. It's disgusting.

14points

Han 5 years ago

This happens to most women regardless of working in STEM fields.

5points

Neon Petra 5 years ago

Why would anyone think this is even slightly okay? Just because someone chose to have tattoos and red hair does not mean in the SLIGHTEST that they are unprofessional or uneducated. It isn't a random guy's job to tell her what she can and can't do with her body!

37points

Rissie 5 years ago (edited)

It's not ok and he knows it. He acted unprofessional (hitting on someone in LinkedIn...) and got called out. That hurts and is a reminder of his own unacceptable behavior. So in order to counter it, he tries to twist his own widely considered inappropriate behavior to make it her problem by pointing out something that's actually fine (but is still frowned upon by some people that hang onto believes that will not survive) in hopes of touching a weakness (and clearly she had to put up with people like this before or it would not have hurt her). And the best part is how this creep makes something he probably thought of as attractive (why hit on her other wise) into something to hurt her. Bottom line; he's someone with low self-esteem and low integrity, might be connected and and she's a smart expressive woman with absolutely normal emotional responses.

31points

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