[Publib] Casual enough for you?

[backwage at aol.com]

Regarding casual Fridays:

Many years ago I was a union steward in an electronics factory.? The management was a collection of aerospace sliderules--old geeks who wore clip-on neckties with a threadbare suit and the same shirt they'd worn at their high school graduation.? Fashion-challenged as they were, they insisted that we, the unionized underclass, wear neckties and collared shirts.? 

Most of us proletarians chafed at this.? But nearly everybody complied, for no particular reason other than that somebody like your dad would give you the hard eye if you didn't.? I know you find it hard to believe, but I decided not to go along with the regime.? I looked in the collective bargaining agreement:? no mention of neckties.? I looked in the company rules:? likewise.? Apparently it was just a ruling class affectation.? All we had were rules about safe clothing, goggles and that sort of thing.

So I quit wearing ties.? When my boss griped, I wore string ties with little scorpions preserved in faux amber; leather ties with riveted accents; cravats that would have shamed Oscar Wilde.? I owned a scarlet waiter's coat (in alpaca with embroidered signet crest) and matched that with an electric blue blouse.

[Recently I purchased a few items from the thrift store which recall that era:? http://librarydust.typepad.com/dust/2009/05/dressing-the-part.html]

The consequence of all this fashion activity was that the Company simply gave up.? None of us had to wear neckties anymore.? The old guys ground their teeth for a bit, and then went silent.? 

The lesson here is that you've got to look at the rules before you demand anything, or for that matter, before you refuse to do anything.? What does your personnel manual say?? What about the union agreement?? Simply because the boss says so is no reason at all.? If you let that sort of thing go, you'll find yourself under some nutcase who wants older women to color their gray hair, or else.? 

Some of us remember when "ladies" were required to wear heels at work, no matter what the task.? 

Moral of the story:? no rule, no compliance.? This is still America, and there are actual rights in the workplace that can't be taken away by the boss without good cause.

M. McGrorty
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.webjunction.org/wjlists/publib/attachments/20090504/f2e0e3a1/attachment.htm