Where once men were expected to wear suits and ties for all sorts of professional and white collar jobs, now they're often in open-neck shirts and loose-fitting pants. Women might be wearing something similar rather than tight skirts and high heels.
There's no longer a strict ban on fancy hairdos, excessive jewellery, unusual nail polish (i.e. not red), unusual tights (i.e. not flesh coloured), flashy earrings, tattoos and piercings (though a tattoo reading "I'm overworked and underpaid" might raise a few eyebrows).
Anyway the change is fine by me. I'm not bothered by people's clothing so much as whether they can do their job efficiently. Obviously I would draw the line at pyjamas or dungarees or bikinis but comfortable, easy to wear clothing seems better than formal clothing that's restrictive and annoying.
I know some people aren't happy with the changing expectations, and insist formal clothing makes them more confident in the wearer's abilities, but I think that's more a lingering opinion than a serious argument.
Even on special occasions like funerals and weddings, where dark suits and formal clothing used to be obligatory, many attendees now dress quite casually or even flamboyantly. I once felt embarrassed that all I had to wear for a funeral was a bright green jacket, but today nobody would bat an eyelid.
What's more, suits can be very pricey and tough on your budget, so making them optional is a positive step forward.
Luckily I've mostly had jobs where casual clothing is the norm, so I haven't actually owned a suit since my early twenties. I was glad to get rid of it.
I agree that it’s really not necessary to dress up, unless one enjoys it. I do think some professions need to look a little more ‘professional,’ but for the most part, it’s not needed. However, I’m still not a fan of people wearing pajamas out in public.
ReplyDeleteBijoux: I wouldn't be surprised if pyjamas became routine outerwear. I'm sure the casualisation trend has farther to go!
DeleteYears ago, we had to wear a white dress shirt and a tie when working in the control room and, as an instructor, a dress shirt of any color with a tie to be added when actually teaching. During plant maintenance periods, more casual attire was "allowed." Eventually, it evolved to where the casual attire was the norm all the time... except for control room staff. They have to wear button-down blue dress shirts. Other operators wear blue polo-style shirts.
ReplyDeleteI do have a couple of suits gathering dust in a closet. We've a wedding to attend next week, but I won't be wearing one of them... probably just a dress shirt and blue jeans.
Mike: Your company certainly had a rigorous dress code! Crazy that the control room staff are still bound by it. A dress shirt and blue jeans for a wedding sounds fine to me.
DeleteMy husband keeps one sport coat and dress slacks (no ties) but he hasn't worn them in several years and I'm not sure they still fit him. I don't ask him to try them on for fear he will want to buy new ones. :)
ReplyDeleteLinda Sand
Linda: A wise decision not to ask him to try them on!
DeleteWhen working it was sober suits - obigatory for court - and from respect for the client, but now I am dealing with animals with muddy paws and hoofs my style might be best described as bag lady chic. At my mother's funeral some years ago we had everything from an ex RSM in blazer and gongs to a young lady in a silver crop top and high boots...just as mother would have liked.
ReplyDeleteFly: It looks like the funeral was a very colourful occasion. And I'm all in favour of bag lady chic!
DeleteIndia, thanks to its climate has never been one for suits and ties except in the very formal corporate corridors which I inhabited during my later working years. Since retiring however, I have switched over to our Indian attire which is comfortable, all white so, no great choosing colour combos, and acceptable in all situations. Urban men folk still use trousers/jeans with open collar shirts which is acceptable just as women do with salwar kameez or saris.
ReplyDeleteRamana: It sounds like India has a very relaxed dress code. Ditto yourself.
DeleteI keep waiting for weddings to stop this dress up nonsense. Including the bride. It appalls me the level of spending it involves which could be used as a deposit on a home or travel.
ReplyDeleteXO
WWW
www: As you say, people waste so much money on over-elaborate weddings and wedding clothes. And it's money down the drain if the marriage ends in divorce.
DeleteI can't imagine Rees-Mogg in anything casual - he probably looks like a poisonous snake in anything he wears.
ReplyDeleteSx
Ms Scarlet: Very true. Can you imagine him in a Sex Pistols tee shirt and ripped jeans?
DeleteMary's comment didn't appear on the post. She said: "I would rather be comfortable than have to dress up."
ReplyDeleteMary: Absolutely. Why do employers insist on uncomfortable, restrictive clothing?
DeleteMany years ago, when I was in the so-called corporate working world, women dressed in only dresses or skirts and dress shoes. Later, when I worked for a weekly newspaper, I was more comfortable in pants, but not quite jeans at that time. In retirement for many years now, I am most comfortable in jeans, which are worn most days now. Pajamas or sweat pants are only worn in our apt or when going to the gym.
ReplyDeleteBeatrice: I remember that when jeans first became popular in the 1970s I predicted that they were a passing fashion and would soon vanish again. How wrong I was!
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