Do you have a dress code/uniform for work?

I was thinking only yesterday how it would be cool to work somewhere with an uniform. I wear office wear to work. How smart or casual it is depends very much on the weather and who I know I'm seeing that day. When I have clients booked in, I tend to go a bit smarter. In the summer, I go a bit more casual and wear nice sundresses with flip flops. The men wear suits and the other female solicitor dresses a bit more smartly than I do, but she goes to court whereas I don't.

ETA - I've never been told what to wear at work, but it's pretty obvious. Everything I wear is bought by me. I currently hate my work wardrobe, but then again, I currently hate my work, so perhaps I'd be a bit more bothered if I enjoyed going to work in the morning!

With my business I have two extremes, super smart business dress (although I much prefer a softer, more fitted feminine look with killer heels to a normal suit) or very casual (yoga pants, pyjamas etc). I set aside some of budget each year for certain things to do with my more professional outfits but the majority is funded by me.

My new work shoes arrived this morning and I'm pretty pleased with them. I expense all of my show repairs (new heel tips etc) as I only wear certain shoes for work.

I'm the same. It depends on whether I have clients or not, and even then I'm not usually in a full suit. I have never seen my boss in a suit jacket, which is odd for a bloke I suppose.

I wear casual smart for work, trouser and top generally if I am visiting customers then I wear a suit, all my work wear is funded by me and I am very lucky that I have never in my 11 years of work have had to sport a uniform.

I am meant to wear smart business wear but I tend to wear stuff this and no one seems to mind. I'd feel like a prat if I wore a suit.

We wear these shirts with unflattering straight leg navy trousers.

100% polyester and manages to be both too short and too baggy. It looks awful so we're trying to convince the directors that we need a new, smarter uniform.

Who do you work for, Cat? Presumably you're given your uniform?

This was our uniform when I was a trolly dolly (awful but not as bad as slEasyjet)

I work in an office and requested wear is smart casual. I would prefer to have a uniform though and then I wouldn't need to worry about what to wear each day

I work in a 4-star hotel, and they do provide the uniform. The directors want to improve the image of the hotel and alongside the ongoing refurbishments we're trying to convince the directors that as first point of call for guests, we need to look smarter!

I work from home so can wear what I like. My first job was in a super market and had an awful stripy dress that made your eyes go funny. My next job was in Gap so had to wear there clothes at a discount. I also worked at a nursery and had a t shirt and fleece with a logo.

I have to wear NHS blue tunic and navy trousers if im working in the clinic or ante/post natal wards , so unflattering and uncomfortable. If im in labour ward or special care nursery then we are allowede to wear scrubs, theyre much more comfy. This is what i wear:

Yikes sorry its so big!

I am very lucky not to have to wear the gorgeous NHS uniform. I get £120 a year top buy my own clothes. I wear pretty much what i want as long as it does not show off boobs or legs.

No fair! I wear this beautiful tunic for work...

I wish we had a uniform!!!

I tend to go smart/casual unless I have an external meeting booked then I go a bit more smart. Our receptionist doesnt interpret "smart casual" very well - even as the first port of call for all staff, visitors, customers and everyone else, she often wears ripped jeans, flip flops, vest tops, or the other extreme and hoodies. She is tattooed, pierced and currently had pink hair (it was purple last week, blue the week before.... )

It frustrates me that I have to salvage the reputation of the company after they have faced her.

I'm sorry, but I find this attitude discriminatory. Why should someone who has tattoos and piercings and pink hair be any less capable than someone with blonde hair and a business suit? Personally I find insipid receptionists who smile like it's painted on really annoying. You don't have to 'salvage the reputation of the company' if she's efficient at her job. Obviously her managers don't have an issue or they would ask her to alter her work clothes.

I have 5 t-shirts and 2 skits exactly the same, and wear the same thing every day. If I have to go to high level meetings or court I do have a suit.

I think we are supposed to be smart casual but everyone just wears what they want really, they save football tops and mini skirts for fridays tho and exercise common sense. theres no reason jeans cant be smart.

HOW RUDE!

I cannot beleive that you have just said that- why on earth would anyone think any less of the company because of how your receptionist looks? As a tattoed,pierced person myself I have never found it hinders me to to a job? Or has ever scared any customers of mine when I have been in customer facing roles.

Anyway in reply to the OP- ours is "where what you like" as long as its not offensive! Management are supposed to dress smarter than normal staff but I cannot always be bothered to. I only do full on business dress if I have an important meeting (as opposed to the normal ones I go to alll the time)then I may chuck on some smart trousers and some heels. So much nicer than when I was in recruitment- our boss insisted on skirt suits for all of the ladies- yes he was eventually done for sexual harrasment.

"business dress", though my interpretation of that tends to be a bit loose - usually smart trousers and a jumper of some description. We do dress down fridays where only denim, trainers, large logo sweatshirt and football shirts are banned though (and obviously anything that would be considered inappropriate even in a casual workplace). I'll be a bit smarter if I've got a client meeting but I stopped wearing suits very quickly after I started the job because the first thing that happened when I got to the office was the jacket came off, so what was the flipping point!?

When I worked in a shop we had a badly fitting (on ANYONE!) blue shirt which we had to wear with black trousers. The first incarnation had a logo on but they removed that for the second batch. Half the staff breathed a sigh of relief that they were no longer branded but I was horrified that anyone might not realise it was a uniform and think I'd actually chosen such a horrible garment myself!

If I owned a business, I wouldn't really want my front of house to be wearing ripped jeans and flip flops. And unfortunately, like to or not, if you have pink hair, piercings and tattoos, some people will judge you and find it that look unprofessional. I'm not saying it is right that people judge but it's a fact of life.

I came to this role in a construction firm from a large corporate company where suits and tailored worked clothes were a must...on my first day here i was SUPER overdressed and have actually had to spend more money on 'casualising' my wardrobe to fit....i could actually come to work in flip flops and casual baggy trousers..i dont cos then i wouldnt feel in the right frame of mind!!

There are whispers of us all having a 'polo shirt and black trousers' uniform...i am DEAD against this..

Re the receptionist with pink hair, piercings, tattoos, ripped jeans and flip flops - plenty of places wouldn't employ someone like that if they undermined the brand of the company.

Eg, I can't see her fitting in as the first face you see at a city law firm. My old firms had a pretty conservative dress code which extended to hair, make up and jewellery - for both men and women.

Choosing to present yourself like that would limit several more mainstream avenues of employment. The law allows for the to happen (slightly different but same principle - how you can ask for a white man to play Jesus but could turn away a black man for the role).

Interesting? Whenever I have recruited someone in either of the jobs I have had where thats been my role thier appearance has never been an issue at all? Ive hired people with all sorts of "looks" and purley based my choice on thier skills and experience and whether they will be suitble for the role. Be that fat/thin old/young pink or blonde hair!

I can appreciate that some industries and sectors have stronger dress codes then others but tis the insinuation that this ladt with the pink hair has somehow ruined the customer experiance? Surely if it was that much of an issue for her employers then they would address it with her? Set out clear boundaries etc for what she has to wear? If she is flouting those then its doen to her manager to deal with this surely?

It's only a fact of life because people don't challenge it enough. People only continue with an assumption like that because they aren't put in a situation that would show them the assumption is wrong. I accept that there are certain standards of dress in certain professions but hair colour or piercings shouldn't be used as a reason to believe someone would be unprofessional. We have several lawyers in our firm who have a range of brightly coloured hair between them and you'd be a fool if you thought this meant they couldn't do their job.

I would say it was more unprofessional as a company image rather than that they weren't capable of their job. Just like you would question a solicitor who wrote to you by hand on pink paper with a crayon. Does that make sense? The words would be the same but the look of that letter would have you believe they were unprofessional.

Very true!!! Before I had my youngest son, I got laughed out of a couple of potential jobs I went to apply for.

Luckily, being a SAHM means I can get away with pink hair, piercings and tattoos. Also means I don't need a uniform.

NHS uniform for me - White tunic and navy blue trousers and I love it! Apart from the trousers, which are awful and horribly uncomfy, but it always makes me feel smart and professional, and I'm very proud of it.

Re the tattoos, I have some (quite big) which are visible with the tunic. Before I started I was expecting to get loads of negative comments about them, and totally accept people have varying opinions on them and wouldn't be offended if someone did say something. But I have been doing it a year now, and have literally only had two negative comments about them, and find that on the most part it serves as an ice breaker and something for the patients to talk to me about! So I have learnt from experience that the public do not judge to the extent that people think they do and are a lot more open minded ? And you never know, maybe I might have changed the odd person's preconceived ideas about people with tattoos!

We dont have a dress code. some days i'd be in jeans, blouse and heels, others more casual with trainers. there are others in the office who are super smart.

in the summer i've worn shorts before - as have some of the men.

This is based on feedback given to me by potential customers.... not something I have plucked out of thin air. I have had numerous comments after building up a working relationship with our customers. I personally have nothing against her, we are good friends, however many people who I encounter at work feel that her appearance is not befitting of a receptionist.

I used to hate my white tunics/dresses as I always had to wear white underwear, and it was a nightmare to keep clean! When I got promoted last year I rejoiced and bought some nice coloured undies!

Our uniform policy says that we can't have brightly coloured hair, have to wear hair off the colour and have plain hair bobbles. My friend had tattoos done on her wrist and was told she had to cover them for work

I'm currently sitting in work with 'boyfriend' jeans, my new fave converse and a black zippy top. Yesterday i had work trousers and a dress jumper on for an interview ( i was offered the post, but declined because of the hours). I can pretty much wear what i like to the office, but if we are holding an event or something that has us mixing with external clients, then i make sure that i'm well presented. But i was never told this was the case, i made that assumption myself.

I'm with Sparkles on this one. If you're a professional company then particularly your front contact staff like receptionist should be professionally dressed. I wouldn't want to work for a company that tolerated that sort of slackness, if they allow people to do things like that then what else is wrong with the company.

If it's a company that's pretending to be all hip, edgy and 'cool' then maybe but in very few cases would I consider that acceptable I hate tattoos and piercings, also disagree with hair dye, particularly silly colours. Thankfully my b2b has more respect for herself, and me, than to mess about with her appearance like that.