Woman fights back with ‘terrible wigs’ after employer bans pink hair

Article content

One woman is taking malicious compliance to another level after she was told by her new employer that she is not allowed to have pink hair.

Article content

Emily Benschoter, 29, explained there was no in-person or virtual interview for the front-of-house role in the hospitality industry that she eventually landed — meaning the manager had no idea what she looked like.

Before her first shift, Benschoter mentioned her hair colour to feel out the situation and learned that it would not be allowed.

So she suggested she would wear a wig.

Correction. Wigs.

“When you have pink hair but corporate does not approve so you wear terrible wigs,” she wrote in the first of many TikTok posts showing off her latest head-covering: A blond, layered, choppy ‘do to go with a blue golf shirt with the nametag “Ugly” on it.

Article content

“When corporate won’t allow my pink hair I serve malicious compliance by wearing terrible wigs,” she wrote in another video in which she sports a ginger curly wig with the same shirt, but a different nametag — this time, “Hideous.”

Indeed.

The wigs have gotten increasingly appalling with one inspired by I Dream of Jeannie, complete with a bald cap and brunette ponytail.

Another one gave “George Washington realness,” commented one fan.

Fans who loved a black, curly, rocker wig that had to be from the Slash from Guns ‘N’ Roses collection even asked to see it up in a ponytail.

Then there’s the Peggy Bundy flip, complete with platinum and dirty blond streaks, a brassy, spiky number that gives Cynthia from The Rugrats vibes and a wavy brown-haired one with a thick, curly beard that is the piece de resistance to any Jesus Christ costume.

Article content

The only wig that actually received decent reviews was a dark bob with bangs (think Edna from The Incredibles) with the nametag “Hard worker-ish.”

The nametags have also changed, saying “NO,” “Founding mother” and “My own person.”

“Dying my hair for a job I work at for 40 hours per week wasn’t an option,” Benschoter told Newsweek.

“I am a self-expressive person and I feel very confident with pink hair, so I came up with a solution to keep the job and my hair.”

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

She continued: “It’s dehumanizing that I can’t be accepted at face value because my hair is a non-traditional colour. It’s so superficial that my hair colour is an obstacle.”

Benschoter, who has not named her employer, explained, “I prefer my pink hair, it’s me to my core. So now I purposely pick wacky wigs, which is quite funny.

“The worse the wig, the better. It is a way to open up the conversation with the customers who think it is insane that I have to cover my pink hair.”

On her TikTok, Benschoter reassured fans that the wigs aren’t just for clicks and she wears them throughout her entire shift.

As for the reaction she gets at work, she said, “Loud laughs and very difficult to not crack up when we make eye contact.”

Article content

One woman is taking malicious compliance to another level after she was told by her new employer that she is not allowed to have pink hair.

Article content

Emily Benschoter, 29, explained there was no in-person or virtual interview for the front-of-house role in the hospitality industry that she eventually landed — meaning the manager had no idea what she looked like.

Before her first shift, Benschoter mentioned her hair colour to feel out the situation and learned that it would not be allowed.

So she suggested she would wear a wig.

Correction. Wigs.

“When you have pink hair but corporate does not approve so you wear terrible wigs,” she wrote in the first of many TikTok posts showing off her latest head-covering: A blond, layered, choppy ‘do to go with a blue golf shirt with the nametag “Ugly” on it.

Article content

“When corporate won’t allow my pink hair I serve malicious compliance by wearing terrible wigs,” she wrote in another video in which she sports a ginger curly wig with the same shirt, but a different nametag — this time, “Hideous.”

Indeed.

The wigs have gotten increasingly appalling with one inspired by I Dream of Jeannie, complete with a bald cap and brunette ponytail.

Another one gave “George Washington realness,” commented one fan.

Fans who loved a black, curly, rocker wig that had to be from the Slash from Guns ‘N’ Roses collection even asked to see it up in a ponytail.

Then there’s the Peggy Bundy flip, complete with platinum and dirty blond streaks, a brassy, spiky number that gives Cynthia from The Rugrats vibes and a wavy brown-haired one with a thick, curly beard that is the piece de resistance to any Jesus Christ costume.

Article content

The only wig that actually received decent reviews was a dark bob with bangs (think Edna from The Incredibles) with the nametag “Hard worker-ish.”

The nametags have also changed, saying “NO,” “Founding mother” and “My own person.”

“Dying my hair for a job I work at for 40 hours per week wasn’t an option,” Benschoter told Newsweek.

“I am a self-expressive person and I feel very confident with pink hair, so I came up with a solution to keep the job and my hair.”

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

She continued: “It’s dehumanizing that I can’t be accepted at face value because my hair is a non-traditional colour. It’s so superficial that my hair colour is an obstacle.”

Benschoter, who has not named her employer, explained, “I prefer my pink hair, it’s me to my core. So now I purposely pick wacky wigs, which is quite funny.

“The worse the wig, the better. It is a way to open up the conversation with the customers who think it is insane that I have to cover my pink hair.”

On her TikTok, Benschoter reassured fans that the wigs aren’t just for clicks and she wears them throughout her entire shift.

As for the reaction she gets at work, she said, “Loud laughs and very difficult to not crack up when we make eye contact.”