Looking for a Promotion? Chose Breath Mints Over A Tattoo.

Employees concerned about job security and advancement might want to minimize body art, maintain a neat appearance and keep their office clean.

“When it comes to career advancement, you want to stack the deck in your favor,” said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for the online employment service CareerBuilder.com. “While strong job performance and leadership skills will weigh heavily on prospects for upward mobility, employers will also look at whether the employee conveys an overall professional image both internally and externally.”

Millionaire Corner research shows that job security remains a significant concern for affluent investors during the current jobless recovery characterized by unemployment rates above 9 percent. A June survey by Millionaire Corner finds that more than 45 percent of investors, ages 41 to 50, worry about someone in their household losing their job.

Employees can improve their perceived value by presenting themselves in the most professional way possible, according to the Career Builder survey, conducted in June, which identified the personal attributes likely to make a bad impression on the boss.  

Body piercings topped the list of traits most likely to send a negative message with 37 percent of employers saying they would be less likely to extend a promotion to an employee with piercings. Bad breath ranked as the next highest liability and was listed as a deterrent to job advancement by 34 percent of the nearly 2,900 employers surveyed.  

Visible tattoos and wrinkled clothes were offensive to 31 percent of employers, as were messy hair (29 percent) and dressing too casually (28 percent). Too much perfume or cologne, too much makeup and a messy office could also cost an employee a promotion. Chewed fingernails and excessive tanning were also considered liabilities.

The message is particularly relevant as body art and modifications grow in popularity, particularly among young Americans. A 2010 Pew Research Center profiled the  Millennial Generation found that four of every 10 Americans, ages 18 to 29, have at least one tattoo. Current employment law for the most part supports company policies requiring certain dress codes or limits on allowable body modifications in the workplace.

Negative attitudes toward tattoos appear to be fading, according to human resource expects, but a prejudice against body piercings and tattoos still exists in corporate America.