One of the big differences I’ve found between working in an office in New York and L.A., is what people wear to work. Maybe because it’s a much older city, or maybe because it’s the business capital of the world, but New York dress codes are a bit more conservative, a bit more old school than L.A. where “business casual” now seems to include overpriced, designer sneakers.
Jeans have been de rigueur in the workplace here for some time—other than a select group of film/tv agents, almost nobody in L.A. is required to wear a suit and tie. Even the Wall Streeters here can get away with business casual most days.
At my office, one of the more conservative orgs in the city, we’re business casual 4 days a week and casual-casual on Fridays, which is supposed to mean jeans that haven’t been distressed and a nice pair of shoes but that doesn’t stop some from wearing inappropriately short skirts and Uggs.
I’m not sure how you all feel about Uggs in the workplace, but I can tell you, they certainly wouldn’t have been tolerated even 20 years ago. A cursory look at the last 10 decades of office attire history reveals the following:
Early 1900s: Men were all about frock coats, vests, watch fobs, and, of course, the old top hat.
1920s: Wristwatches were issued to men in the army during World War I. When the soldiers came back from the war, they went on wearing those wristwatches, doing away with fobs, but, more interestingly, vests, too. Why wear an uncomfortable vest if you don’t have to put your fob in it? Also, the stiff, starched detachable collar was still popular around this time, but softer ones that—look out!—attached to the shirt were gaining in popularity.
1930s: While The Depression forced many into unemployment, it also allowed more women to enter the workplace because in some households, if the wife could find work, one income was better than none. Suits were ubiquitous at the office; so working women adopted their own versions, which they complemented with matching hats, gloves, bags, and shoes.
1940s: Here’s an interesting fact from work attire history: Before the war, double-breasted suits made up almost 50% of all suits made; by the end of the 40s they accounted for only 12%. Why? Simple: Wartime cloth restrictions squeezed the second breast right out of the suit.
1950s: Two things happened after the war: women celebrated the end of restrictions by opting for small-waisted, billowing skirts (One of Dior’s used 20 yards of fabric!). Chanel’s knit suits also became popular during this time. For their part, men continued wearing the same old drab Brooks Brothers suits, but, hey, at least the suits were getting smaller with each passing decade.
1960s: JFK, trendsetter that he was, shook office wear up by appearing in a two-button suit on a televised debate with Richard Nixon. From that day on, three buttons were for old people. Also, some say that when JFK went to his own inauguration hatless, he killed off an entire industry.
1970s: My favorite fact about this earthshaking decade: In 1970 about 80% of shirts sold by Arrow (the largest shirtmaker at the time) were anything but white. Six years earlier the reverse had been true.
1980s: Wall Street and Trump took over in the 80s, bringing with them suspenders and contrasting collars. Maybe it was because men thought women should look like men, or because MTV-influenced fashion spread to the workplace, but women’s suits all had large shoulder pads stuffed in them by the mid-80s.
1990s: the decade can be summed up in one word: Dockers. The suit finally gave way, first to khakis and then to jeans. Blame it on all those Gap ads, or just the culmination of changes started in the 60s, but all forward-thinking tech-geeks hung up their suits for good in the 90s and many others followed.
Other than in L.A., it seems today the trend in offices is moving back to more conservative attire. At least a little bit. What about you all? What does your office let you wear and, more importantly, what do you WISH you could wear to work?
Past Office Rat-A-Tats:
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Dangerous Jobs
America’s 10 Worst-Paying Jobs
When typos get in the way
Is it okay to steal from your office?
Mac vs. PC
Our office (a small chemical plant) is from another decade. Most of the front office people smoke. At their desks. I always feel like I’m walking into NASA mission control in 1972. It’s hazy.
The official dress code is casual, but it doesn’t really get enforced. One of the lab guys often wears his biker gear or a wifebeater. The Prez wears slacks and a tie most days but the CEO is casual casual unless we’re having guests. Then there’s the senior VP, who wears his UniFirst ‘executive’ uniform EVERY day, even to church.
posted by Bran on 12-3-2007 at 6:37 am
I got pretty lucky with my latest job. We’re allowed to wear jeans and sneakers any day of the week, though I (generally) try to keep that down to 2 days a week. But when I do wear jeans, nobody gives me problems for them being distressed. And yes, I do work in an office–I’m a tech writer. :-)
posted by nutmeag on 12-3-2007 at 7:26 am
My job has a casual dress code. Jeans and T-shirts are OK. In the summer time, it’s not uncommon to see shorts and sandals. Only occasionally, when potential customers are visiting, are we required to do the business casual thing.
posted by Scott A. on 12-3-2007 at 7:30 am
my previous job was casual dress … we would wear jeans to work daily. Sometimes we’d even come in with flip-flops. And yet, the company had the gall to “talk” with one of the co-workers because he came in wearing shorts. It was absolutely ridiculous! I’d think flip-flops are worse than shorts…! I guess it was all about who you were at that place - if you were friendly with HR, you could get away with murder there. Poor Andy.
posted by mor on 12-3-2007 at 7:31 am
My office is business casual. Every once in a blue moon they will let us wear jeans. Even then, we get about a thousand emails reminding us that the jeans need to have no holes in them.
In a former job I worked at a hospital. That was the best dress code, scrubs. Wearing scrubs is like wearing your pjs to work.
posted by Dusty on 12-3-2007 at 7:40 am
My office rules. I working at an automotive advertising agency and we wear jeans and t-shirts everyday. Some of the girls wear cute little skits and the bosses wear khakis but everyone else is in jeans and T’s. If I didn’t hate working in an office environment so much it would be the perfect job!
posted by Marta on 12-3-2007 at 7:50 am
My dress code is the same as yours, with the stipulation that we donate to charity on fridays for the priveledge of wearing jeans if we choose to do so.
I am very jealous of the flip-flop wearers in this thread. I would love to hang up my heels in favor of the glorious slap-slap of the flops. *sigh*
posted by Ashley Keen on 12-3-2007 at 8:34 am
Working from home, I find on normal days sweat shorts and an undershirt will get it done - sans footwear, of course. Though on colder days sweatpants might sub for the shorts and I’ll put on some slippers to keep my toes warm. If I’m going out that evening I may go as far as putting on jeans.
If I am on the road, meaning getting in front of Fortune 500 customers for a meeting or product implementation, business casual is fine (khaki pants, button down shirt). Anything more formal takes away from my “techniness.”
Personally, I despise wearing suits. It does nothing to help me act more “professionally,” whatever that means.
-Andrew
posted by Andrew D on 12-3-2007 at 8:48 am
In Seattle Microsoft sets the trend for most of the companies here. There are a few businesses that are old school, but jeans or shorts and free T-shirts are often the norm. More often than not folks in Marketing and Sales will dress up. Most geeks wear whatever they want.
posted by WendyB on 12-3-2007 at 9:07 am
We’re business casual at my office. I generally wear khakis and a polo. Not sure I’ve ever worn a tie in my 7 years here. Fridays we get to wear jeans…and collared shirts. Although every once in a while, if there’s a holiday (4th of July, Christmas, etc.) or a major sporting event (Super Bowl, World Series, Mizzou v. Kansas, etc.), we can wear our team’s gear on Fridays. It’s like Hawaiian Shirt Day only more annoying.
posted by SpaceMonkeyX on 12-3-2007 at 9:07 am
My current job’s dress code is business casual, which essentially translates to “comfortable.” I’m pretty sure I could wear tenners and get away with it, and I’ve definitely worn jeans without realizing it and no one said anything. Pretty nice.
However, my last job… I worked at an all boys’ high school. This was fresh out of college for me. The d.c. was business casual again, but I was warned by a friend of mine who worked there (male) that I should DRESS CONSERVATIVELY. He didn’t have to tell me twice. I tried to dress as manly as possible, but unfortunately, I’m kind of curvy… I was possibly a few freshmen’s favorite teacher.
posted by M. W. on 12-3-2007 at 9:12 am
My dress code is casual which means jeans every single day. However, seeing that I work in fashion, the rest of the ensemble rarely includes tees and flip flops. My jeans are usually paired with a cute top and pretty flats or heels. Still comfortable but trendy.
posted by GTT on 12-3-2007 at 9:34 am
Maybe it’s because my friends and I are in creative fields, but we all dress casually to work (in NYC nonetheless): jeans, sneaks and t-shirts (or the equivalent during the winter).
The only time we’d ever feel underdressed is going to a swank bar for happy hour.
Of course, if you’re in the financial industry, you’d be singing a different tune.
posted by Jeff on 12-3-2007 at 10:31 am
I work in a small town, so anything goes, for the most part. I wear jeans or khakis most days. I don’t wear skirts much, cause even if it’s casual, someone’ll ask me if I’m going to an important meeting.
When I lived in Washington, DC, I wore business suits, nylons and heels every day, and I worked for a small casual non-profit. It’s a very conservative city as far as fashion is considered.
posted by Jenny on 12-3-2007 at 10:32 am
the joys of being a grad student :)
jeans and sneakers in the winter, shorts and flip-flops in the summer
t-shirts: wide variety, from the simpsons to mentalfloss t-shirts
posted by Jocelyn on 12-3-2007 at 10:34 am
Company policy is business causal Mon. - Thurs. and casual on Friday. Business casual means nice shoes, slacks and a nice shirt. There are some times when a suit is expected (”special visitors”) and dress code is pretty lax on Friday. Most people wear tennies and several wear flip-flops. They’re not supposed to wear flip-flops, but being in San Diego, there’s not much you can do about that.
posted by Erin on 12-3-2007 at 10:36 am
When I was in the Navy it was uniforms (obviously), but the variety was astounding. Dungarees, “utilities,” tropical dungarees (with shorts!), summer working whites, dress whites, working blues, dress blues, and coveralls on the submarines. The best part about being onboard a sub was the rest of the dress code. Sneakers (because nobody wants people clomping around in boots when you’re trying to be stealthy), any t-shirt you want, and any ball cap you want to go with your coveralls.
On shore, they would occasionally let us wear civvies on Fridays once a month for a fee, until we got a new CO who realized that it was actually against regulations to charge money for that sort of thing. You either had to let everyone do it for free, or not at all. After that, there was a “suggested donation” for wearing civvies. The suggestion was so strong it may as well have been an Executive Order.
Now I’m a law student, procrastinating from studying while writing this in my PJ’s.
posted by Jeremy on 12-3-2007 at 10:49 am
I work in the fashion industry, and let me tell you, it’s a whole ‘nother animal.
Our dress code is vague, we’re told we can wear “fashion casual” which can get interesting. Then when customers come to visit, we get an email to dress appropriately; amazingly the skirts get shorter, the shirts lower and the heels higher.
posted by SaiSai on 12-3-2007 at 10:50 am
One of my work friends was told by our boss that the long sleeve t-shirt he was wearing was a little to casual for casual friday, but a lady in my office get away with wearing these track suite outfits on non casual days. No one ever says anything to her. It seems that the standard for guy casual is different from girl casual.
posted by Jonathan on 12-3-2007 at 12:22 pm
I own two businesses- one is completley casual: jeans, sweater (I live in the snow), comfy dansko’s and no one thinks ill of me. the OTHER business REQUIRES that I dress in a skirt suit, nylons, and heels. I think they are both nice because I get to dress up a couple time a week, but mainly get to remain casual for most of the day.
posted by Ashley Daily on 12-3-2007 at 12:54 pm
We have no dress code. Sounds great until your coworker wears the same pair of cargo sweatpants for the third day in a row.
posted by Rebekah on 12-3-2007 at 3:41 pm
It’s “business casual” at my job. No jeans, shorts, or flip-flops, but you can get away with most anything else. The guys mostly wear khakis and polos or button-down shirts (no ties), the ladies wear pretty much whatever looks nice as long as it’s not too “revealing” for the HR manager’s taste. Every so often they try putting a suggestion box in the lunch room, until everyone “suggests” jeans on Friday, at which point the box dissapears.
I was in Paris recently and was ASTOUNDED by what some women were wearing to work. I’m talking pinstripe short-shorts with over the knee boots. And no, they don’t work in the red-light district ;)
posted by Sara on 12-3-2007 at 9:16 pm
I worked in NYC for almost twenty years, and never wore anything but a suit, tie, and polished shoes. I left New York in 1999 (for the suburbs of NJ) and went to a large company with a “business casual” code. I am convinced that my work ethic suffered because of wearing khakis and no tie. (Call me crazy, but…)
I got laid off with a bunch of others about a year and a half ago. Now I’ve been asked to come back, to a different department. I’m determined to dress better, including a tie most days. There’s something about dressing for work that changes one’s mindset. No more polo shirts at the office!
posted by BigWilly on 12-4-2007 at 12:29 pm
I think casual has gone to far in most offices. I hate to sound stuffy or prudish because I am neither, but I think it is a good thing to look smart when you’re working with others. While I don’t think suits are necessary — short, sweats and flip-flops should all be left at home. When you look better, people take you more seriously.
If you work from home — do whatever you please, of course!
posted by Marcy on 12-4-2007 at 2:21 pm