Aspiring Barbers and Cosmetologists in Iowa Can Now Learn on the Job Instead of Paying Thousands for Classes

Nearly 20 percent of Iowans must obtain an occupational license before they can work. A new law is lowering barriers to employment in the Hawkeye State.

Last week, Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed House File 711 into law, creating an apprenticeship program that allows unlicensed individuals to provide cosmetology and barbering services under the supervision of someone who is licensed and after completing two hours of education on sanitation rules. Businesses that participate in this program are required to register with the state's Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Arts and Sciences and comply with safety and sanitation requirements. Consumers must also receive written disclosure that the services are performed by an unlicensed provider partaking in an establishment training program.

The enactment of this bill will significantly reduce the barriers to working in Iowa's barbering and cosmetology industries. Under previous regulations, an individual required a license before making an income from providing salon and barbering services. But to obtain a license, one had to first graduate from a board-approved cosmetology program (with an average tuition of $19,508), complete 1,550 hours of supervised practice, and pass an examination—all to enter a profession in which half make less than $25,990 a year, according to the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit public interest law firm.

But now unlicensed employees will have the opportunity to immediately earn income while learning how to cut, color, shampoo, and style hair under licensed cosmetologists who own the establishment training programs. These business owners, rather than a board-approved school, are "responsible for ensuring education, training, skills, and competence of persons who provide services in the owner's establishment." And while those in the program may use the experience to take the licensing exam and obtain a license after completing 2,000 hours of supervised practice, it is not a requirement to continue working.

Iowa's barbering and cosmetology industries are divided on the impact the legislation will have. Kristen Van Hauen, a stylist and hair salon owner, told WHO-13, the local NBC affiliate, that "giving people the opportunity to just start doing hair, [is] not going to help strengthen our industry as a whole." She's also concerned that the professionalism of the industry will be diminished. But others disagree. Lindsey Mollenhauer, another hair salon owner, believes the law will offer more specialized education opportunities. "If anyone had a bad haircut, which a lot of us have. I think we need to consider that it was given by a licensed cosmetologist or a licensed barber," she told WHO-13. "So, the license doesn't necessarily speak to quality or craftsmanship."

The Professional Beauty Association (PBA), a membership organization for beauty professionals, opposed the Iowa legislation, along with a similar deregulatory bill in Arizona that failed earlier this year. The PBA's director of government affairs, Myra Irizarry Reddy, told American Salon that "the current licensing process ensures beauty professionals are educated in sanitation, chemical safety, and client protection." Lowering cosmetology standards and "allowing untrained individuals to provide salon services," Reddy said, would expose "businesses to lawsuits, liability, and uninsured workers."

But business owners are in a better position to know which risks they are willing to take on to meet their customers' demands. Iowa's sweeping change is a good start, and hopefully a sign of more occupational licensing reform to come in the state and across the country.