Charged for towels, backbar, and credit card fees while being called a 1099 commission employee? It's not normal. It's illegal.
We sat down with Margaret, Founder of Beyond The Chair Co., the nonprofit leading the fight for beauty education reform and regulation reform. A 10-year licensed stylist who left the industry after facing zero labor protections, she went back to school in her 30s, created her own degree in Applied Aesthetics, and is now earning her Master's in Public Affairs focused on fixing cosmetology licensure.
In this episode, Margaret breaks down:
- Why most commission stylists are misclassified and have no employment rights
- The real numbers: why cosmetology has the highest student loan default rate of any credentialing program
- How federally recognized apprenticeships pay you while you learn, with a 93% pass rate vs 76% in beauty school
- Why 55% of hairdressers legally can't unionize as booth renters or independent contractors, and the worker-owned co-op loophole that solves it
- Inside Mayday Salon in Nashville - the first worker-owned cooperative salon that's already profitable in year one
If you work in a commission salon, booth rent, suite, or own a salon, you need to hear where to actually go to learn your rights: Your Department of Labor, Washington L&I, and resources at beyondthechairco.com
Have a story about misclassification, wage theft, or no HR when you needed it? Leave us a voicemail at shititoldmyhairdresser.com and we might feature you. RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Beyond the Chair Co. - beyondthechairco.com Instagram @beyondthechairco
Mayday Salon Cooperative (Nashville)
Department of Labor - For misclassification claims
L&I - Washington State Labor & Industries for commission rights
Before Beauty Nonprofit - Legal resources for stylists
And remember stay shitty!
Jason Townsend and Paula Dahlberg pull back the curtain on the beauty industry with unfiltered conversations about salon culture, hairstylist life, toxic work environments, nightmare clients, celebrity encounters, relationships, burnout, and the chaos that happens behind the chair.
From hilarious salon horror stories to serious conversations about identity, mental health, beauty standards, and industry politics, Sh!t I Told My Hairdresser says the quiet parts out loud with raw honesty, dark humor, and zero filter.
New episodes weekly featuring hairstylists, salon owners, beauty insiders, celebrities, and real stories the industry usually keeps behind closed doors.
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