Full head of hair can help job search

Jan 2009

Plug-In For Success: Looking for a job? Don that suit — and be hirsute.

One expert says the balding are at a distinct disadvantage, especially in today's tight job market.

"If you're looking for a job right now, if you match up a person with hair to a non-hairy person, the competitive marketplace tends to favour the people with hair," said Dr. William Rassman, a hair restoration surgeon and author of "Hair Loss & Replacement for Dummies."

Increasing the hairs on one's head, he said, can boost self-confidence and even a career.

Rassman, who has been transplanting hair for 18 years, said his patients, especially those in the performing arts, have benefited from the surgeries, which are usually done in several sessions over the course of about a year.

And a full mane can help propel one even to the highest office.

"Take a look at all the presidents of the U.S. How many of them were bald? Eisenhower was the last one. Hair like Clinton's helps a lot; hair like Obama's got helps a lot," he said.

Hair restoration can cost anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000, depending on the amount of hair that needs to be transplanted. Drugs to slow down hair loss, such as Propecia, made by Merck & Co., meanwhile, would run about $900 a year, he said, and are not covered by insurance.

But a hairy head's value is incalculabe, Rassman said.

"If you land the executive job you want because you look good, I don't know how you put a value on that."