U.S. male air traffic controllers wear dresses to work to protest dress code

Canoe Network ^ | 6/28/2007 | AP

[Utah Girl]

Air traffic controllers locked in a staffing dispute with the U.S. government are upset about a dress code and have shown their displeasure in high-flying fashion, with some men protesting by wearing women's clothing.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's dress code, instituted in September, bars jogging outfits, halter tops, shorts and jeans. Approved clothing items include dress slacks, casual shirts with collars and sweaters. Midnight-shift workers are exempt.

"From our point of view, not a big deal," FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro said.

But a few times in the last year, male controllers have worn dresses or kilts to work, the controllers' union, the 15,000-member National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said. The point was to illustrate the silliness of the dress code because nothing bars male controllers from wearing dresses, union spokesman Doug Church said.

The dress code is typical of professional environments, said FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory.

At the FAA's Cleveland Air Route Control Center in Oberlin, Ohio, one controller was disciplined because he wore an orange shirt a supervisor said "looked like a highway traffic cone" and another was told his aquamarine pants were "not gender appropriate" for a man, Church said.

Cory said she was unfamiliar with that situation but there have been rare instances of outrageous outfits meant to create a stir while technically complying with the dress code.

Under the FAA-union contract, first-time dress-code violators may be sent home to change on their own time. Subsequent violations would be handled as employee misconduct through the agency's disciplinary process.

There have been 15 to 20 disciplinary actions across the country, ranging from letters of reprimand to a three-day unpaid suspension for a worker in Chicago who wore a yellow suit, said Bryan Zilonis, vice-president of the union's Great Lakes region. All are being contested.

In their larger negotiations, the controllers are upset about changes in schedules, no mandatory breaks every two hours and pay issues, including a pay cut for new hires, Church said.

And though the dress code is a smaller issue, Zilonis said for the FAA, "it's just an opportunity to be oppressive."

[Tokra]

I say that as someone who has worn a kilt to work a few times and more importantly to afterhours military functions (dining ins and dining outs). Got a few smart ass comments from a JO who was Mr. Vice, until I buried the dirk I was wearing in the tabletop in front of him, for which I was sent to the grog bowl.

I've been sorely tempted to wear a kilt to work. I work in an office with a large number of black women, who come into work in these bizarre Halloween costumes they call "Afro-centric" clothing. They say it's "their heritage".

I'm thinking of coming in in a kilt or maybe a toga and when my boss tries to send me home for inappropriate office attire - I'll tell her it's "my heritage". (It is since I have both Scot and Italian ancestors)

[Starwolf]

Utilikilts.com has some interesting ones for office wear. They used to have tie died ones that made quite an impression at the Celtic Festivals

[MEGoody]

I’m not sure why controllers shouldn’t be permitted to wear jeans. Do they have contact with the public or big wigs or something? At any rate, the dress code doesnt sound too stringent to me, so I don’t understand why they are so bent out of shape.