Cosmetic Surgery - A Solution To Get A Job?

By Margarita Nahapetyan

In the current state of crisis in economy and global recession, people tend to believe that appearance and good looks strongly influence the hiring and firing policy at workplace. They are confident that investing in cosmetic surgery in order to improve their looks can give them a great advantage when interviewed by an employer. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) recently released a survey, according to which women in the United States were going for cosmetic surgery just to get a competitive edge in the workplace and secure their careers.

The number of plastic surgeries went down 9 per cent to $11.8 billion in 2008, according to numbers released by the ASPS, though minimally-invasive procedures rose 5 per cent, such as wrinkle-blasting laser treatments which increased 456 per cent among men in the last 3 years. However, some surgeons and patients are now citing increased interest in surgery among individuals who desire to look younger and "fresher" for the ever-competitive job market.

The ASPS survey involved more than 750 women with the ages between 18 and 64 years and found that many of them agree that cosmetic plastic surgery plays an important role when it comes to achieving professional success. 73 per cent of working ladies have a feeling that appearance and good looks can help them get hired, get a promotion, or climb up the career ladder, especially in times of the global financial crisis. In addition, 80 per cent of working American women said that they are sure that cosmetic surgery can do wonders for an individual's level of confidence. Nearly 13 per cent of ladies who work said that they would spend as much as it takes for plastic surgery in order to become more confident in the competitive job market and 3 per cent of working women admitted to having already invested in cosmetic surgery to increase their perceived value in the workplace.

Several surgeons from New York said that they have seen increases as big as 40 per cent in individuals looking to improve their looks for a job. A bump in business was seen mostly from female executives or attorneys in their 40s or 50s. These women, the experts said, are competing with women in their 20s or 30s who may appear more energetic. They want to look younger, and they want to have better appearance and not to look tired, said Dr. Mauro Romita, plastic surgeon in Manhattan, NY. "If you look older than you really are and you look exhausted, employers may think you are not capable of handling a busy schedule," he added.

Another Manhattan plastic surgeon, Dr. Stephen Greenberg, who has performed 60 cosmetic surgeries so far, even came up with a "Job Fighter Package" for men and women after witnessing such a bump in job-seeking patients. He and his colleagues said that people looking for an edge in an interview are more likely to opt for less-invasive surgery, skin resurfacing procedures and cosmetic injections such as Botox or fillers. People are also spending big money for their procedures, seeing it as an investment, and while cost is a concern for people without a job, so is the recovery time.

However, president of ASPS, John Canady, MD, has a word of caution for those who long for such surgeries. and see them as a salvation. Individuals should never forget that while cosmetic procedures might help them in the job market, they are still medical procedures, he said. "Patient safety is ASPS' number one concern. Women need to do their homework. Go to the ASPS website at www.plasticsurgery.org to find an ASPS Member Surgeon in your area," added Canady.