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Employee appearance and the Americans with Disabilities Act: An emerging issue?

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Abstract

The recent passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), considered the most far-reaching civil rights legislation since the Civil Rights Act of 1964, promises to raise demanding new challenges for employers. This article alerts readers to one example of what may prove to be a long list of unanticipated, but potentially onerous, repercussions from this legislation. Specifically discussed is the role of the ADA in the likely emergence of the issue of employee physical appearance. In addition to the role of the ADA, we explain how other legal forces, as well as organizational and economic forces, may propel physical appearances to the level of a formidable social issue.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Management, University of Northern Iowa, 50614-0125, Cedar Falls, Iowa

    Tony McAdams & Farzad Moussavi

  2. Department of Marketing, University of Northern Iowa, 50614-0126, Cedar Fall, Iowa

    Michael Klassen

Authors
  1. Tony McAdams
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  2. Farzad Moussavi
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  3. Michael Klassen
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McAdams, T., Moussavi, F. & Klassen, M. Employee appearance and the Americans with Disabilities Act: An emerging issue?. Employ Respons Rights J 5, 323–338 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01388308

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