Can't Be Showing Off Those Shoulders I Guess - Tumblr Posts
This is just ridiculous. I understand the need for dress codes and establishing a professional environment, but if we are actually serious about abolishing gender roles, the rules for dressing for any profession need to be 2 things: practical, and gender neutral.
By practical, I mean that the clothing should make sense for the career and the environment it is performed in. For example, it makes sense that nurses/healthcare workers wear scrubs because they are comfy and easy to move in, and it also makes sense that they ask nurses not to wear long necklaces or lots of accessories because of the risk for those items to get caught on equipment or to carry pathogens place to place. I also mean practical to include affordable and accessible, which is to say that if a job requires formal business wear, there should be no issues with someone showing up in a suit from Kohl's. People are always welcome to spend more money on work clothing if they want to, but they shouldn't have to. Looking at the nursing/healthcare example, employees can choose to buy their scrubs at Walmart, or to pay a little more at a scrubs store for slightly better quality ones, or to really splurge on websites like Figs. But as long as they are the right color, scrubs are scrubs. Finally, practical might include using uniforms to make a place more organized and efficient. You see this in Healthcare and how many hospital systems assign one color for nurses scrubs, another for nursing assistants, another for people drawing labs etc. It helps everyone quickly identify the role of another person, makes it easier to find who you are looking for, and thus makes communication between specialties more efficient.
Gender neutral: so let's start with the Missouri lawmakers dress code prior to this most recent change, which had stated that women should wear "dresses or skirts or slacks worn with a blazer or sweater and appropriate dress shoes or boots" which sounds like a fairly normal dress code to me, but what if this were the code applied to both men and women? How would it change? And what can we do to accommodate the comfort and practicality of both genders by providing more specific language that doesn't discriminate based on the male or female body? I think it's perfectly appropriate to say that your top should cover your chest and midriff in a professional environment, because frankly, I don't want to see male or female chests and stomachs in an environment that is supposed to be for lawmaking. I don't really think jackets or cardigans should be required at all, regardless of gender. The rules should be written plainly and should make it clear that the same rule applies to everyone. Instead of "No skin tight shirts for women", the rule would just be "clothing should fit appropriately (for everyone)." The only exception to gender neutral language would be to list how pregnant women can be accommodated for any policies that might be affected by a growing belly, and how she might be compensated financially if she has to buy maternity work clothes.
I understand the need for a dress code and preventing *that one guy* from showing up in pajamas or a sequined ballgown, etc. But I think practical, gender neutral guidelines would lead to a less stereotypical work environment that allows for people to look professional and show some self-expression without being the center of attention.
Lawmakers in Wyoming, which until recently was on the stricter side of the spectrum, voted last year to strip its dress code down to the basics: Members must dress in "business attire befitting the decorum of the house." Bolo ties are allowed, denim is not.
Legislators had initially set out to align the requirements for men and women, but decided to go in a simpler direction by essentially copying the dress code New Mexico implemented in 2009.
