Monrovia – The October 1, 2018 action by the Ministry of Finance Development Planning concerning the hair colors of its female employees has now been changed.
Reported by Bettie K. Johnson-Mbayo, [email protected]
The Ministry recently barred its female employees, who were wearing colored hairs other than black and natural from entering their offices in the name of implementing a policy against such dress code.
Alice Swen, a senior student of the United Methodist University (UMU), said the policy should not only affect females but should also include males and their facial appearances.
Swen said the ministry should focus on issues affecting female employees rather than attacking them.
“I was surprised reading such article; the Ministry must focus on how females are protected from abuse rather than restricting them on their appearance,” she noted.
Williete Dahn, another student of UMU said the policy is meant to target only females.
Dahn urged those females, who were humiliated by the policy to institute a court action against the ministry.
She also stated that President George Weah must cite the Finance Minister for questioning.
“President Weah must cite the Ministers Gender and Finance to immediately change the policy; we have not resolved the crisis about the reported missing L$16billion and here is a Finance Minister trying to distract the country’s attention from the crisis to restricting female employees to not wear unnatural or colored hair. What does he want them to wear?” she asked.
Agnes Tarr described the policy as “sexism” adding that men are not restricted on what attire to wear.
Policy Revisited
On Tuesday, October 9, the MFDP Deputy Minister for Administration held a large meeting with all female employees. In the meeting, Deputy Ministers Samora Wolokolie and Rebecca McGill apologized; adding that they did not expect their actions to have gone internationally.
The two ministers accepted recommendations from female employees upon which they agreed that colors such as pink, blue, red, yellow, grey and lousy purple will not be allowed.
Female employees and administration agreed to make a revision to the handbook in making the policy gender sensitive.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) issued a release prior to the meeting at MFDP.
According to the MoGCSP, when they engaged authorities at MFDP, they confirmed that the policy on hair color and styles were a part of their Employee Handbook published in 2014; Section 7.4 of the Employee Handbook discourages the use of unnatural colored hair (such as Green, Pink, etc) and extreme hairstyles.”
They urged the Finance Ministry to revisit the policy and ensure that an amended version is in conformity with this present government’s own agenda for the protection of women’s rights given the fact that both President Weah and Finance Min. Samuel D. Tweah, Jr., are avowed He4Shes.
Gender, in their release said they frown on all workplace regulations that discriminate against women.
“The Decent Work Law of Liberia clearly defines discrimination as the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex,” the release stated. MGCSP also called on “all public and private institutions to harmonize their policies in line with the National Code of Conduct and Decent Work Bill, and make necessary amendments, to avoid the violation of women’s rights.”