Characters, such as Blackbeard and the Seven Dwarfs, won’t be the only employees at Disney with facial hair anymore.

For the first time, the Walt Disney Co. is allowing male employees to sport beards and goatees.

Starting Monday (today), the company is informing employees of changes to the Disney Look – a strict dress code that dates back 55 years.

Employees can have facial hair starting Feb. 3. The policy includes the Disneyland Resort, Orange County’s largest private employer with 22,000 workers that has two theme parks, three hotels and the Downtown Disney complex.

“Disney Look guidelines are periodically reviewed in relation to industry standards, as well as the unique environment of our theme parks and resorts,” said Betsy Sanchez, a Disneyland Resort spokeswoman, in a statement. “While we are careful to maintain our heritage and the integrity of our brand, a recent review of our guidelines led to a decision that an update was appropriate at this time.”

The new policy allows neatly trimmed facial hair that is no longer than one-quarter of an inch, according to a notice sent to Disney employees. No soul patches are allowed, Sanchez said.

The Disney Look outlines stringent guidelines for employees, including no visible tattoos.

Up until 2000, Disney forbid mustaches as well. The last major change to the Disney Look came two years ago when female employees were allowed to forgo pantyhose. Read a story about the 2010 change to the Disney Look.

Twitter users commented about the new Disney Look, some saying they support it, while others saying they prefer a clean-shaven look.

Sandi Ecklund, president of Workers United Local 50, which represents 4,000 Disney food and beverage employees, said she was against the change. Ecklund said she found out about the new policy on Facebook.

“I see it as a way to lower their standards to keep wages down,” Ecklund said in a phone interview.

See the full guidelines of the Disney Look, which have yet to be updated with the new rules, on the Disney website.

Read more about the Disney policy and find other Disney news on the Around Disney blog.

See this post in its original form, and read more on Around Disney.