[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/","headline":"The changing image of tattoos in the workplace","name":"The changing image of tattoos in the workplace","description":"Many Singaporeans in the 1980s would avoid tattoos like the plague and tattooed individuals would be the anecdotal \u201cbad eggs\u201d \u2014 symbols of affiliations with the gangsters and secret societies.\u00a0 In a survey conducted by YouGov in 2019, it was revealed that nearly two in five (38 per cent) said they have a negative impression [&hellip;]","datePublished":"2022-02-22","dateModified":"2022-04-15","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/rachel-teng\/#Person","name":"Rachel Teng","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/rachel-teng\/","identifier":367,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rachel_Teng-100x100.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rachel_Teng-100x100.jpg","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Source-Catt-Maiyeh_Featured-Image.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Source-Catt-Maiyeh_Featured-Image.jpg","height":900,"width":1600},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/","commentCount":"719","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/#Comment1","dateCreated":"2026-09-08 01:14:21","description":"buy propecia without a prescription: <a href=\"https:\/\/hairguardrx.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow ugc\">buying generic propecia no prescription<\/a> - 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order generic propecia pill","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"AlbertNer","url":""}},{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/#Comment10","dateCreated":"2026-09-07 16:42:27","description":"https:\/\/nolvacare.shop\/# what happens when you stop taking tamoxifen","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Jamesnenny","url":""}}],"about":["Community","Local","Singapore"],"wordCount":1450,"keywords":["Art","artists","culture","doctor","gang","healthcare","inclusive workplace","Singapore","stigma","tattoos","workplace","youth"],"articleBody":"Many Singaporeans in the 1980s would avoid tattoos like the plague and tattooed individuals would be the anecdotal \u201cbad eggs\u201d \u2014 symbols of affiliations with the gangsters and secret societies.\u00a0In a survey conducted by YouGov in 2019, it was revealed that nearly two in five (38 per cent) said they have a negative impression of people with tattoos. This is particularly true for those over the age of 55, where over half (53 per cent) have a bad impression of tattooed people. This is compared to a quarter (26 per cent) of those aged 18 to 24.But how about today? Many would argue that we see a reclaiming of tattoos as an art form, self-expression, and control over one\u2019s body. Unsurprisingly, the style of tattoos people would design and go for has also evolved alongside this sentiment.\u00a0Full-time tattoo artist of two years Catt Maiyeh (@catt_ass_trophy on Instagram) says In the last five years there are fewer rules and \u201canything can be a tattoo\u201d.\u201cThere weren\u2019t many tattoo artists venturing out of what would qualify as a \u2018traditional tattoo\u2019, but now there are way more artists doing many different styles, and even trying out new approaches to traditional tattoo designs,\u201d she says.People are starting to realise that it is \u201creally not that deep \u2014 sometimes it\u2019s just fun,\u201d she adds.\u00a0But has this newfound liberalism penetrated the workplace? How do tattooed individuals navigate workplaces that have yet to catch up with this inconspicuous rebranding of tattoos, especially among the younger generation?Some Singaporean employers still less likely to hire people with tattoosA recent post on Reddit\u2019s Singapore community titled \u2018Tattoo affecting job opportunities?\u2019 had been upvoted over 216 over the past four months \u2014 an indicator that there is still much ambiguity over whether tattoos have truly found acceptance in the workplaces in Singapore today.\u00a0(Photo source: Reddit)One popular comment discerned between industries and jobs, with the commenter citing that her colleague at a conservative corporate company in the sales department was \u201cgone within one month of joining [the company]\u201d, and that could be partially attributed to his tattoos.Others suggested wearing long-sleeved shirts to cover full tattoo sleeves up at work at all times, as well as during job interviews.\u00a0This is what Dr Alex Yeo did when he first went for his interview with the Ministry of Health (MOH). \u201cI was worried, which is why I wore a suit. I did have long hair at the time as well, and they could see that. I didn\u2019t really feel the need to declare that I had tattoos at the time either,\u201d he says.\u00a0Tattoo: An art form more than skin deepNow completing his residency at public hospitals, Dr Yeo admits that he does \u201ckind of stick out like a sore thumb\u201d, being a tall, long-haired, tattooed doctor.\u00a0He spent more than 70 hours tattooing over 14 sessions and a few years and made several trips to Japan and even learnt the language to communicate with his artist. (Photo courtesy of Dr Alex Yeo)He doesn\u2019t like to cover his tattoos at work for three main reasons: He doesn\u2019t think it\u2019s necessary; it\u2019s very warm, especially being in Singapore; and with Covid -19 now, wearing long sleeves may increase the risk of transmission when interacting with patients.\u00a0\u201cIt doesn\u2019t really hold any particular strong meaning or anything, I just really like the art form and it\u2019s something I wanted to do for myself,\u201d says the British-educated doctor, who got his first tattoo during his second year of medical school.\u00a0When asked whether it ever crossed his mind that his tattoos would interfere with his particular line of work, he says he definitely took a risk in believing that it would not have mattered. \u201cTattoos to me are just another form of self-expression, and I feel that if they\u2019re not offensive and are not harming anyone, I don\u2019t see why they should be a problem,\u201d he adds.\u00a0Fortunately, his experience at Alexandra Hospital\u00a0 (AH)\u2014 the first public hospital he was attached to \u2014 did not disappoint. \u201cI got along really well with the seniors there and everyone was very encouraging, and even encouraged me to apply for residency. No one made my tattoos a thing, and I\u2019m really grateful to AH for that,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u201cI worked together with Dr Yeo at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. He is a very diligent and responsible doctor. He has a good work attitude, and doesn\u2019t shy away from taking on more responsibilities and work,\u201d says former colleague Dr Liew Mei Fong, a consultant of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at AH \u2014 a clear reflection that external appearance plays little part in the hospital\u2019s success quantifiers or selection process, tattoos included.\u00a0This is not to say that he doesn\u2019t still get raised eyebrows at work.\u201cObviously, people are curious, but they don\u2019t react badly to them. I\u2019ve had colleagues who would ask me about the background of my tattoos, and some would tell me that they wouldn\u2019t know how to talk to me at first. But I\u2019ve become really close to a lot of my colleagues who have, of course, realised that I\u2019m just like anyone else working at the hospital,\u201d he says.\u00a0Patients would periodically tell him, \u201cnice flowers\u201d or \u201cI didn\u2019t know doctors could have tattoos, that\u2019s cool\u201d, while the older patients, surprisingly, don\u2019t really care, Dr Yeo adds.\u00a0On occasions, he would be able to sense that his tattoos were making someone slightly uncomfortable \u2014 such as when nurses avoid addressing him directly, triangulating simple conversations despite being in the same room.\u00a0In such cases, Dr Yeo does not mind going the extra mile to make sure they know that he is completely approachable\u00a0\u2014 such as taking the initiative to interact more with them and asking about their day. \u201cI didn\u2019t get tattoos to make the people around me uncomfortable \u2014 and I don\u2019t really have to do it that often anyway,\u201d he says.Since his time at AH, however, he has moved on to other public health institutions, and realised firsthand that not every hospital shares the same views.\u00a0At one restructured hospital, while his supervising senior did keep an open mind about his tattoos, the culture was palpably more conservative.\u00a0\u201cApparently, some of the clinicians and nurses had sort of raised a few eyebrows \u2014 or so I\u2019m told. And I was asked if I\u2019d be willing to cover my tattoos,\u201d he says, citing his discomfort with the way the situation was handled.\u00a0While he believes that his senior did not have any personal qualms against his tattoos, he found the feedback given to him vague.\u201cAll the colleagues whom I\u2019ve spoken to are alright with it, so from my end, it seems like there is this nebulous group of people who wanted me to cover up my tattoos, and I\u2019m under the impression that this is by far the minority,\u201d he says. \u201cWe spoke a lot about it, but I still didn\u2019t know what the real concern actually was.\u201d\u00a0He ended up complying to avoid further conflict.\u00a0While he understands that they have a certain image to uphold and people to answer to, Dr Yeo\u2019s perception is that these perceived concerns come more from the organisation\u2019s rather outdated expectations on how patients might react.\u00a0\u201cThe reason why tattoos have a stigma in the first place is that they used to be associated with people of shady backgrounds in the past, but that is obviously not the case now. Sure, people in illegal organisations still might have an attachment to tattoos, but so do a lot of other groups of individuals now,\u201d he says.\u00a0\u201cThe conversation around my tattoos has been a lot more extensive than I would have liked it to be. For me, I just want to come to work, tend to my patients, hopefully, do a good job, and then go home,\u201d he adds.\u00a0Further, if tattoos were truly a concern for the exceptional patient, Dr Yeo would have liked to see the organisation that he works for step up and in the testimony of his capabilities, instead of his appearance \u2014 and be part of the narrative change for individuals like himself, who get tattoos purely for the art of it.\u00a0\u201cMaybe it\u2019s a bit of wishful thinking on my part, and maybe we\u2019re not that progressive yet, but hopefully we\u2019ll be able to see that happen someday,\u201d he says.\u00a0Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia&#8217;s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The changing image of tattoos in the workplace","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/the-changing-image-of-tattoos-in-the-workplace\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]