Fed employees: Dress code is next wave of annoyance

[Anonymous]

I hope not. I have a physical disability with my left arm/shoulder, and I hate the way it looks in a suit jacket- it attracts a lot more attention to it than just a blouse. Obviously I don't need an accommodation, because I can perform my job regardless, but I feel very awkward about the appearance.

[Anonymous]

I started a job at GS7 in 1999 and no one then was wearing business attire daily (maybe one real old guy). It was all appropriate business casual, not suits. This is dumb and window dressing to have people essentially cosplay as old-fashioned “business persons”.

[Anonymous]

They want the US back in the 1950s, which is why they are stopping research and development and kicking out any scientists who are trying to promote anything that we have learned past 1950.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe it or not pre wfh people with GS5 and GS 7 first jobs had to put together a business office wardrobe. I doubt it was at immense expense. But they were proud to have those jobs and looking forward to being professionals.

There’s a big difference between a business wardrobe (i.e. suits every day) and a business casual wardrobe. The latter is what most federal jobs required pre-COVID. Very, very few GS-5’s and GS-7’s were wearing suits 5 days a week, even in 2010.

Business dress is a big step up from merely professional. I've never worked anywhere with expectations below business casual - never jeans, for example - but also never worked anywhere that expected business formal on a daily basis. Private firms weren't doing that 20 years ago and neither were agencies. What you typically saw in both places was varying degrees of business casual, plus a blazer that lived at the office in case you needed to dress up for something.

Yeah, only place I’ve worked that required business formal daily was a federal court. Almost no law firms do. My lawyer-heavy agency has been business casual since at least 2005.

That said it’s not the end of the world. My usual uniform is black skirt or pants with a nice top. Easy to throw on a black suit jacket and call it a suit. If you’re more fashionable than I am it might be boring or more difficult I suppose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe it or not pre wfh people with GS5 and GS 7 first jobs had to put together a business office wardrobe. I doubt it was at immense expense. But they were proud to have those jobs and looking forward to being professionals.

There’s a big difference between a business wardrobe (i.e. suits every day) and a business casual wardrobe. The latter is what most federal jobs required pre-COVID. Very, very few GS-5’s and GS-7’s were wearing suits 5 days a week, even in 2010.

Business dress is a big step up from merely professional. I've never worked anywhere with expectations below business casual - never jeans, for example - but also never worked anywhere that expected business formal on a daily basis. Private firms weren't doing that 20 years ago and neither were agencies. What you typically saw in both places was varying degrees of business casual, plus a blazer that lived at the office in case you needed to dress up for something.

Yeah, only place I’ve worked that required business formal daily was a federal court. Almost no law firms do. My lawyer-heavy agency has been business casual since at least 2005.

That said it’s not the end of the world. My usual uniform is black skirt or pants with a nice top. Easy to throw on a black suit jacket and call it a suit. If you’re more fashionable than I am it might be boring or more difficult I suppose.

DOD civilians still have to wear suits at the Pentagon while their military counterparts are in flight suits...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe it or not pre wfh people with GS5 and GS 7 first jobs had to put together a business office wardrobe. I doubt it was at immense expense. But they were proud to have those jobs and looking forward to being professionals.

There’s a big difference between a business wardrobe (i.e. suits every day) and a business casual wardrobe. The latter is what most federal jobs required pre-COVID. Very, very few GS-5’s and GS-7’s were wearing suits 5 days a week, even in 2010.

Business dress is a big step up from merely professional. I've never worked anywhere with expectations below business casual - never jeans, for example - but also never worked anywhere that expected business formal on a daily basis. Private firms weren't doing that 20 years ago and neither were agencies. What you typically saw in both places was varying degrees of business casual, plus a blazer that lived at the office in case you needed to dress up for something.

Yeah, only place I’ve worked that required business formal daily was a federal court. Almost no law firms do. My lawyer-heavy agency has been business casual since at least 2005.

That said it’s not the end of the world. My usual uniform is black skirt or pants with a nice top. Easy to throw on a black suit jacket and call it a suit. If you’re more fashionable than I am it might be boring or more difficult I suppose.

DOD civilians still have to wear suits at the Pentagon while their military counterparts are in flight suits...

Not universally! Jacket hanging up in your cube/office for meetings (and the heels under your desk if you're a woman).

[Anonymous]

It has its purpose even though most don't understand. Most people have small brains.

An example I worked in a department of 40 where my Boss was very strict on dress code. Suit and Tie, sharply dressed. No ever walking the hallways to a meeting with Jack off. Women had to wear business suits, NO PANTS, pantyhose. High Heels, make up. I used to have a Barneys suit, Seiko Watch, Johnston and Murphy Shoes shined to the max by shoe shine guy before any big meeting, my white shirts starched to max, even my Belt was designer and my suits I had 10 were rotated and professional dry cleaned regulaly. My boss tried to hire no slobs. He used Head Hunters to clean out the slobs. He also has us 50/50 men and women and we were diverse but diverse like a macys catalog.

So why was he doing this. Why it got us on Executive Floor on 50 Floor on Wall Street. We were on same floor as CEO and where Board met. Where the EVPs and SVPs had meetings. We shared bathroom and coffee section with CEO and CFO. Are whole department became the future leaders of company. We got best raises and promotions and bonus.


The say showing up and appearance was 99 percent of success. My boss was Extremely fierce on work house. Show up one minute late get in trouble. At lunch no more than 1.2 could do lunch at a time and had assigned lunch times. He did not ever want CEO, COO, CFO walking by our dept not seeing busy people in suits working.

Sounds crazy. But was hard to last in that department. Everyone in company tried to steal the staff and we promoted a lot.

He retired and next person went casual route, flex hours, hybrid did not care about appearance and looked like a lot of sloppy folks with department 2/3rds empty every day and eventually it became a dead end where careers go to die.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It has its purpose even though most don't understand. Most people have small brains.

An example I worked in a department of 40 where my Boss was very strict on dress code. Suit and Tie, sharply dressed. No ever walking the hallways to a meeting with Jack off. Women had to wear business suits, NO PANTS, pantyhose. High Heels, make up. I used to have a Barneys suit, Seiko Watch, Johnston and Murphy Shoes shined to the max by shoe shine guy before any big meeting, my white shirts starched to max, even my Belt was designer and my suits I had 10 were rotated and professional dry cleaned regulaly. My boss tried to hire no slobs. He used Head Hunters to clean out the slobs. He also has us 50/50 men and women and we were diverse but diverse like a macys catalog.

So why was he doing this. Why it got us on Executive Floor on 50 Floor on Wall Street. We were on same floor as CEO and where Board met. Where the EVPs and SVPs had meetings. We shared bathroom and coffee section with CEO and CFO. Are whole department became the future leaders of company. We got best raises and promotions and bonus.


The say showing up and appearance was 99 percent of success. My boss was Extremely fierce on work house. Show up one minute late get in trouble. At lunch no more than 1.2 could do lunch at a time and had assigned lunch times. He did not ever want CEO, COO, CFO walking by our dept not seeing busy people in suits working.

Sounds crazy. But was hard to last in that department. Everyone in company tried to steal the staff and we promoted a lot.

He retired and next person went casual route, flex hours, hybrid did not care about appearance and looked like a lot of sloppy folks with department 2/3rds empty every day and eventually it became a dead end where careers go to die.

Ok well we're all way ahead of you on being where careers go to die as of January. A dress code isn't changing that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It has its purpose even though most don't understand. Most people have small brains.

An example I worked in a department of 40 where my Boss was very strict on dress code. Suit and Tie, sharply dressed. No ever walking the hallways to a meeting with Jack off. Women had to wear business suits, NO PANTS, pantyhose. High Heels, make up. I used to have a Barneys suit, Seiko Watch, Johnston and Murphy Shoes shined to the max by shoe shine guy before any big meeting, my white shirts starched to max, even my Belt was designer and my suits I had 10 were rotated and professional dry cleaned regulaly. My boss tried to hire no slobs. He used Head Hunters to clean out the slobs. He also has us 50/50 men and women and we were diverse but diverse like a macys catalog.

So why was he doing this. Why it got us on Executive Floor on 50 Floor on Wall Street. We were on same floor as CEO and where Board met. Where the EVPs and SVPs had meetings. We shared bathroom and coffee section with CEO and CFO. Are whole department became the future leaders of company. We got best raises and promotions and bonus.


The say showing up and appearance was 99 percent of success. My boss was Extremely fierce on work house. Show up one minute late get in trouble. At lunch no more than 1.2 could do lunch at a time and had assigned lunch times. He did not ever want CEO, COO, CFO walking by our dept not seeing busy people in suits working.

Sounds crazy. But was hard to last in that department. Everyone in company tried to steal the staff and we promoted a lot.

He retired and next person went casual route, flex hours, hybrid did not care about appearance and looked like a lot of sloppy folks with department 2/3rds empty every day and eventually it became a dead end where careers go to die.

He should have had you spend a little less time shining your shoes and a little more time perfecting your English. Your post is almost unreadable.

But style over substance is what you’re talking about, and that’s exactly what this administration values, inasmuch as they value anything.

[Anonymous]

My non-public facing partner at IRS has always had to wear business dress. No business casual for them. They don't even have a dress down Friday option.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They want the US back in the 1950s, which is why they are stopping research and development and kicking out any scientists who are trying to promote anything that we have learned past 1950.

This seems to be the case. Everything back to the 1950a, except the tax rate on the rich that made the 1950s possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh come now. People won't take you seriously if you start complaining about minor things.

Troll.

I'm not a troll, and I am scandalized at all the cuts (I've got neighbors and friends who were let go), the RTO, and the general nastiness and humiliations.

But to the honest, I applaud a more professional dress code for the federal government. Americans are notoriously lax in dress and I don't think it's a good thing.

And for the people who need to buy stuff... I buy my clothes on Poshmark.

Advocating according to your fashion preferences instead of costs to workers hurts feds. Dry cleaning is also expensive and not great for the environment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They want the US back in the 1950s, which is why they are stopping research and development and kicking out any scientists who are trying to promote anything that we have learned past 1950.

Back in the 80s men in the government wore short sleeve dress shirts and a tie all summer long just like NASA Mission Control engineers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If we have such a dress code imposed I will be creative with it! In fact, it might be time to dust off my retired husband’s suit jackets, shirts and ties. Maybe I will splurge for a fedora to really make a statement. B

Watch out - they might accuse you of being trans!

Is it really that scary to be “accused” of being trans?

[Anonymous]

In this administration? I wouldn’t want it.