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 ...
These clothes say "I will be a grumpy clerk forever. Treat me like ear wax."
These clothes say "I am bound for management. Pretend you like me because I could be your boss someday."
These clothes say "I'm the only one who understands the computer system. Worship me."
Thank you.
And I too think, as everything else, that "casual" has been DUMBED DOWN to mean "!#$!$#-hole street-punk homeless". It used to mean NOT suits, but still NICE and sharp.
My daughter just took a job with a company run by an old dude, kind of a Sam Walton type, and they have a strict formal dress code. Men and women have to wear suits. Woman are allowed pantsuits, but have to wear hose and nice shoes.
(she had to buy everything new) It'll take a month of paychecks to get back in the black)
The biggest problem with womens' dress was prior to the biz casual move. At that time, they were dressing casual while men were still having to wear a tie.
I write the dress code now and I can assure you there is no sneaking around it, gender wise. Of course, it isn't very hard to follow (fairly casual), but it is strict. Flip flops are an obvious no-no.
My husband started wearing a nice fedora to work, and has gotten a lot of compliments and queries as to where he bought it.
that's funny. Especially the last one,
ROR <-- This post says, "I am a lame jokester. Indulge me."
Yeah, those are stylish and actually marketed as "fasionable" shoes. Funny people pay for clothes that look like rags.
"The philosphy of my boss is: your clothes reflect your attitude and focus"
You're correct. And it reflects your respect for others around you (nevermind yourself). Despite all the denials, it really does. That is the point of dressing for public. Show it some respect.
As it is, it won't be long before people at funerals (and I've seen it already at weddings) will be looking like !$#@!$#@. FGS people, it's a sign of RESPECT. You show up looking like a gangsta when you meet me for a date the 1st time - you're history. You didn't care enough about me to dress up - well, that's just it.
Incidentally, the "comfort" excuse is way overrated. The only thing about looking really nice that's uncomfortable for me is "high-heeled" shoes (which are often optional).
Agreed. We happen to not interface with customers very much. When we do, it's over the phone and not face to face, as our customers are scattered around the world. Also, another advantage we have is that our product is the best in the world. Others try to implement some of our features, but no one comes close to what we are able to do. As a result, customers come to us, and we don't have to impress them with psychology quite as much.
Sorry. I saw the keywords and the title, and I thought he was one of the hate filled-boomers that usually overrun these threads.
I'm sitting here in my office in my standard everyday IT work garb, jeans and a silk Hawaii shirt, thinking to myself ... my SS kicks in in 5 years ..
Thanks for being there for me.
I've worked in environments where suit and heels were the norm and now at 43 I work in an environment where I can wear shorts in the summer and jeans and sweaters in the winter.
I work in IT and occasionally have to go into situations to find network connections that can be rather messy. And in the fours years I've worked for this company they've never figured out climate control.
I work more efficiently in comfortable clothing, and while not every day has me on the front lines of tackling malfunctioning equipment I don't have to worry about ruining something nice when I do.
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