Co-op pink-haired worker must wear wig and cover tattoos

Trudy Moorhouse now wears a wig to work and covers her piercings with plasters

A woman has had to cover her tattoos and wear a wig over her pink hair to appear "more normal" while working at a Suffolk shop.

Friends said Trudy Moorhouse, from Badingham, had been at the Co-op in Laxfield for eight years without any complaints about her appearance.

Yolanda Howard said after a shop refit Mrs Moorhouse was asked to "dress more appropriately".

The Co-op said it had a "clear dress code". Mrs Moorhouse would not comment.

Hundreds of people have signed a "Let her be the person she is" petition launched by Mrs Howard, who is also a customer at the Co-op store.

She is calling on the supermarket giant to reverse its decision.

The employers of Trudy Moorhouse, the pink-haired woman who was told to wear a wig and cover her piercings while at work, say they have reached an "amicable agreement".

When the store was refurbished Mrs Moorhouse was asked to appear more "normal"

A Spokesman for The Co-operative Food said: "There is a clear policy in place regarding dress code and how colleagues present themselves in our food stores. An amicable arrangement has been put in place at the store with Trudy."

A petition has been set up calling for the store in Laxfield to change its policy.

Plasters on piercings

She said: "Trudy is being made to change who she is after eight years of working for the Co-op.

"The shop was recently refurbished and afterwards they just wanted Trudy to be more 'normal'."

Mrs Moorhouse chose to wear a black wig as she "did not want to get rid of her pink hair", Mrs Howard said.

She is also wearing long sleeves to cover her tattoos and has put sticky plasters on her face to cover her piercings.

Customers considered Mrs Moorhouse "one of the most caring, helpful, gentle and kind people you could meet," she added.

A spokesman for The Co-operative Food Group, said: "There is a clear policy in place regarding dress code and how colleagues present themselves in our food stores.

"An amicable arrangement has been put in place at the store with Trudy."