Beard and Moustaches

By David J. Hahn
New York, NY

Starkey asks:

I have a question on beards and mustaches. Whats the story?

Hi Starkey – I assume you mean if, and to what degree, beards and moustaches are allowed for crew members.

That’s a good question. Some companies in the hospitality and entertainment business can get a little weird about facial hair. As I’ve mentioned a few times before, in college I worked as an intern at Disney World in Orlando. When I arrived at new employee training, they handed us a book (not a booklet or a pamphlet, but a bona fide, bound BOOK) detailing the appearance policy of the company. They had just started allowing sideburns back then – but ONLY 1″ long, and ONLY 1/2″ wide.

I’ve never seen any rules like that on a cruise ship. For instance, check out this guy, who is labeled as a captain and has that scrappy looking beard.

If you are a competitor in the world beard championships or look at all like this guy, then you may have a problem. Short of that, you’re probably ok as long as you keep it groomed.

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About the author

David J. Hahn is a music director and pianist in New York City. He co-founded MusicianWages.com with Cameron Mizell in 2008. His writing have been published in the International Musician, union trade papers and featured on the Huffington Post and About.com. Find out more at his website and follow him on Twitter.

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