Posted on 08/23/2006 8:48:35 AM PDT by qam1
On those rare occasions when insurance executive Tara Guizot wears a suit to her Los Angeles office, "people invariably ask me if I'm interviewing for a new job," she said.
The trend toward casual dress has gone so far that Matt Smith, a 27-year-old Los Angeles lawyer, is on a quest to establish "Tie Tuesday." He would like to wear a suit to work but knows he'd be ridiculed. Instead, Smith dons a tie every Tuesday and hopes other men in his office will follow. So far, a couple have.
"It's just something fun," he said.
Forget casual Fridays. In many workplaces, it's casual everyday as corporate dress codes have gone the way of fedoras and white gloves.
Office workers, from executives to receptionists, now wear pretty much what they want, sometimes baring more cleavage, tattoos and body fat than co-workers care to see.
....
Polo shirts, sweater sets and tailored slacks -- what many companies consider "business casual" -- have given way to halter tops, rubber flip-flops, T-shirts and jeans.
The trend has even sparked a mini-backlash among professionals opting for a more buttoned-down look.
"Wearing a tie used to be a sign of conformity. But dressing down is now conformity and dressing up is rebellious," said Robert Stephens, who founded the Geek Squad, Best Buy Co.'s computer repair service. Squad members sport short-sleeve white shirts and black ties.
Credit younger workers, who bring a who-cares-what-I-wear attitude to their cubicles, for the casual-everyday trend
.....
"It really helps us, specifically with Gen X and Y workers," said Miriam Wardak, senior vice president for ICF International, a Virginia-based consulting firm, adding that some younger workers have told her they would not consider a potential employer if they had to wear a suit and tie.
(Excerpt) Read more at contracostatimes.com ...
Try a nice Toquila straw Panama hat. The nice off-white color should go with everything.
"I'm sure Bill Gates and Steve Jobs would be fascinated by your theories."
Google-image Jobs and Gates and you'll see the former in a tie here, and there, and Gates in a tie about 65% of the time.
But I wasn't referring to the very public strivers anyway. There are thousands of corporations out there run by executives who dress up in nice business attire the majority of the time.
You must be one of those FReepers who "had it up to here" with "corporate strictures" and "office politics" and therefore went out to start your own company so you can do things YOUR way...and it's you and your wife and a part-time kid from down the block. You and a vehicle with a magnetic sign on the door isn't really Diebold, y'know?
So, in your view, it's only respectable if I work for a large corporation? I'm only respectable if I work for someone else who dictates what I wear most of my life?
Sad.
Which is of course an accurate sample of how they normally dress.
You must be one of those FReepers who "had it up to here" with "corporate strictures" and "office politics" and therefore went out to start your own company so you can do things YOUR way
Um, no. Just a developer in jeans and a polo shirt, which is actually overdressed for my group. Fortunately, our company's management is not as superficial as some and evaluates us on output rather than the labels on our clothes.
If you want to be a high-powered executive, go for it. Others may not share that objective, and that doesn't make them beneath you.
bah. dress codes are womens way of saying "remember 20 years ago when you guys made more than us? now we make sure you have to spend more money on clothes"
guys around here have to wear nicer clothes, i wear a button up and khakis everyday. but the women, aside from the fact that not a single one knows what size/ age she is, can wear anything but plain jeans (coloured jeans are ok). so i see the women wearing halter tops, miniskirts, capris, shorts, half of them will be in something sleeveless, low cut or both, and there's the couple large women that wear stretch pants. mon-thurs i'm expected to have my tats covered up, but any woman can wear clothing that reveals her ankles and any tattoos around them.
what bugs me most is my office is secure, with NO public contact. should be able to wear anything we want.
It depends on the part of the country you are in. In the tech savvy regions (Silicon Valley, Austin, etc) what you know and what you've done are just about everything. Regions that are less permeated by technology companies tend to be far more interested in professional formalism and appearances. Hence the Silicon Valley wisdom that over-dressing is compensation for a lack of technical cred -- not always true but nonetheless widely believed.
Our son just transferred from an Arizona branch of his company to the Manhattan one...He had to buy a whole new wardrobe, and a quite formal dressy one. Some of these attitudes may be regional, not just generational.
Let's be reasonable--your clothing should match your job and your location. If you're pouring asphalt on a hot summer day in Phoenix, wear jeans, boots and a sleevless t-shirt.
If you're a professional however, working in an office is your primary environment. Those offices usually have climate controlled areas, and the time you spend outside is minimal. There's no excuse.
bump!
I do not know where you live, but around here millionaires, billionaires, and top executives "dress up" to maybe polos and khakis. The money made is completely independent of the dress in real-world business, and over-dressing can leave a bad impression in many businesses. There are very few businesses that I deal with at the executive level where I would dare wear a suit. My lovely suits get most of their wear at restaurants that require it. The only suit-and-tie people I see work at old school Manhattan companies that are perpetually decades behind the rest of the business world. Did you time travel here from the 1950s?
Virtually all outdoor laborers in the desert wear long sleeves...the sweat evaporation theory.
I left when the Y2K scare had companies pooring millions into IT services. They were hiring anyone with a heartbeat and a degree.
Actually a new word when referring to companies sending money into a hole.
Judges voice objection to courtroom attire by some lawyers
Monday, August 21, 2006
KYLE W. MORRISON ~ Southeast Missourian
Local judges want it to be made clear: No shirt, no shoes, no litigation.
In a letter sent last week to lawyers practicing in the 32nd Judicial Circuit, which includes Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, and Perry counties, Circuit Judge Benjamin Lewis informed them that a new rule on courtroom decorum and dress was imposed.
The rule, passed by a majority vote by the six judges in the circuit, states that "appropriate professional attire" is required when in court, including a coat and tie for men.
"Regrettably, a few attorneys have chosen to bring the general decay of civility into the courtroom, thereby making this rule necessary," Lewis said in the letter.
While not explicitly stated in the rule, the letter said socks and shoes would be required for professional attire.
"We decline to promulgate a rule, which will be published nationally, that suggests that lawyers in Southeast Missouri must be told to wear shoes to court," the letter stated.
Private lawyer Stephan Wilson said he saw the humor of Lewis' letter and believed it was a way to tell practicing lawyers they were becoming too relaxed in court.
"I do think he was being slightly facetious," Wilson said.
Lewis admitted the letter to be a bit tongue in cheek, adding no lawyer that he was aware of entered a courtroom sans shoes. The major problems recently was some who were wearing jeans and not wearing ties or socks, he said.
Professional attire was necessary from both lawyers and judges in order to help keep order in and respectability of the court, according to Lewis.
"This is one of the few places left where its important that we dress appropriately and behave appropriately," he said. "It's not a cruise ship, it's not a carnival in there. You have to maintain some kind of decorum."
The judge believed a couple lawyers wanted to push the limits of what was acceptable to wear in court, or some were simply indifferent.
"I suspect a couple came to mind that caused this thing to be handed down, one of which was me," private lawyer Malcolm Montgomery said.
There were about six lawyers who prompted the rule, but Lewis declined to provide names.
In the past, Montgomery said he has been lax on wearing a tie or socks, but agreed the judges' rule was appropriate, and he would follow it.
The rule also included a provision that lawyers should advise their clients of court formalities and proper attire.
Defendants are not required to wear a suit and tie, but they should be covered up and not wear shorts or shirts with vulgar language, Lewis said.
After receiving Lewis' letter and the ruling, Public defender Chris Davis said he reminded his lawyers of a wardrobe with donated clothing their indigent clients could use for trials or court appearances.
Lewis doubted any lawyer or defendant would in the future be held in contempt for violating the dress code. Anyone who does would likely be sent home to change into appropriate attire, he said.
"When you come into my courtroom, you will look lawyerly. That means you will wear a suit and a tie. And that suit had better be made outta some kinda cloth."
Makes sense. I'll take your word for it!
Actually ... that's a beer rest for the man.
Must have left it with the cover sheets to the TPS reports...
Actually ... that's a beer rest for the man.
That may be true but it has no place in an office or lab.
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