Editorial

Getting ink, tattooed, body art. It’s a practice that spans the ages,

yet it’s still considered cutting edge -- acceptable in some circles, not

so acceptable in others.

In a traditional business setting, some might find it off-putting to

spot an employee whose arms show more ink than pink. But in a place such

as Mother’s Market, you’d think the edge, the individuality and just the

color would be embraced.

Not so.

Because of a customer complaint, Mother’s in Huntington Beach has

started cracking down on its employees, asking them to follow its

3-year-old policy of ensuring tattoos don’t show.

This has meant having certain employees wear long-sleeve shirts in

summer heat. Others have worn bandages to hide their ink.

The policy seems almost, well, un-Mother-ly.

We love Mother’s, and part of the reason is the help. For some reason,

the tattooed and pierced workers seem to fit with the tattooed and

pierced clientele of the market. Not that everyone who goes to the health

food market has either or both, but a number of them do.

It’s the owner’s right to enforce the no-tattoo look. It’s a policy

that was in place before most of the employees started, and it’s not an

uncommon rule in the working world. But it seems to go against the

alternative image the store enjoys.

Mother’s isn’t a place to find Redbook and People at the checkout

counter. It stocks the Fortean Times and Yoga Journal.

While store management would not comment on how many customers

complained about the angels, tribal patterns and flora printed on its

employees’ bodies, it’s hard to imagine there were many.

Perhaps a small minority shouldn’t dictate policy for all shoppers.