There is no food safety law that prohibits food handlers from growing beards. Food handlers can have beards while working around food, provided that they ensure that there will be no contamination due to hair. To prevent this scenario from happening, food handlers with facial hair must wear beard restraints.
Hair/Beard Nets
If your kitchen staff have long hair (any length that can be tied up or could fall in front of their face) or a beard (anything beyond stubble), then they should be wearing a hair/beard net.
Uncovered facial hair can fall into food and contaminate it. Use a beard net or other restraint to cover any facial hair, including beards, mustaches, and goatees. Like regular hair restraints, these are meant to hold hair so it doesn't fall into food.
Hair longer than shoulder length or protruding out of a chef's cap should be appropriately confined by a clasp, band, hairnet, or cloth when required to ensure safety and sanitation and to be able to work effectively/efficiently.
7 answers. Yes, they tend to be very lenient on facial hair.
Always maintain a clean shaving routine. No beard only a clean shave. Because beard is not allowed in hotel management.
While some jobs require their employees' faces to be clean-shaven (eg. military or police), many jobs will allow beards if they are clean and tidy. Upholding a professional appearance at work is always a must, but maintaining a beard requires some extra care.
Many chefs have cut themselves on the job, gone to get stitches and returned to work to finish out the night. Accidents definitely happen: Almost every chef we surveyed has been injured on the job in some way, and several chefs said they're missing parts of their fingers.
This skill might surprise you but chefs need to have an excellent level of physical and mental fitness. Working in a kitchen can be very physically demanding – working long shifts on your feet in hot temperatures and without many breaks – is tough.
Why do Chefs still wear hats? Modern chefs still wear hats, in part for cleanliness, to keep hair out of food and to help absorb sweat. The wearing of chef hats may also be part of a chef uniform requirement set by the restaurant, industrial kitchen, hotel or cafe or simply be the chef's personal style and choice.
Stubble, however, was singled out as a “red flag” during job interviews, suggesting that it's better to be either clean-shaven or fully bearded for those.
Other jobs where beards are discouraged are food service and retail sales, or any job where you interact with the public. This is because managers want you to look nice and neat at all times – and typically this means having a clean complexion. Plus they are aware that some customers may find beards intimidating.
Mr Abdel Haleem, along with many other Muslim scholars, says the wearing of beards should be considered a recommendation rather than an obligation.
Traditional beliefs suggest that beards aren't part of a professional look, and in the past many people were recommended to shave before a job interview. That perception has changed significantly, and a recent survey of 500 men found 90% were allowed to have facial hair at work, as long as it was kept neat and clean.
While having a nose piercing as a chef is not a problem, it is highly discouraged to be worn during service. Nose piercings, like any other earrings, can harbor germs and can cause cross-contamination. Touching the nose piercing and other facial jewelry during cooking can contaminate utensils and food.
FACT: Hairnets serve two purposes. The first is to keep hair from contacting exposed food, clean and sanitized equipment, utensils and linens, or unwrapped single-service articles. The second purpose is to keep worker's hands out of their hair. FACT: It is impossible to completely remove bacteria from hair.
Is There an Age Cutoff for Becoming a Chef? It is never too late to become a chef! This career has no age limits, and there are many successful chefs who found culinary arts later in life.
Is Being a Chef Stressful? Yes! A career in the culinary profession is a stressful endeavor that can lead to chef burnout – a real problem in the culinary workplace today. Psychologists define burnout as a syndrome resulting from unmanageable stress, exhaustion and negativism related to one's job.
It's a Physically Demanding Job
Working in a kitchen, you're going to be standing and moving around for at least 8 hours. You'll also need to be lifting heavy pots of food, carrying large bags of food, and stocking walk-ins with food, which can put a strain on your body.
You Will Work Long, Difficult Hours
It's not uncommon to work 10 to 12-hour shifts. Because chefs often have a challenging and inconsistent schedule, balancing a culinary career with a personal life can be tough.
The average life expectancy for people in this profession has risen to around 76 years the past few years, but it remains among the most vulnerable occupations. This may be due to several factors, including lifestyle. A shorter life expectancy for chefs is not limited to Norway.
As long as it looks nice, it shouldn't hurt your chances of getting a job, and it could even help convince your future boss that a no beard policy is the wrong choice. To learn more about this topic, see our more detailed blog post on changing the no beard policy in your workplace.
Another study found that men with beards may be seen as more masculine, mature and as having a higher social status. These traits are clearly important contributors to the overall sense of attractiveness.