I wore Shorts into the office today and apparently this is an unusual decision, according to various others in my office.

We have a generally accepted informal “dress down Friday” policy in our office, but it’s quite odd how taken aback some people seem to be by the idea of someone wearing shorts in an office.

I’m just waiting or that conversation with our office manager Re: “appropriate / professional attire”…

Is anyone else getting this sort of dusty, raised eyebrow treatment from their co-workers for owning legs?

I’d be sent home to get changed and formally disciplined.

my office is very large and i’d say a very large porpotion of men have been wearing shorts every friday (we have dress down friday too) I’ve pushed the boat out even further today and wearing sandals, not with socks though!!

Yeah, at the start of the week. By yesterday, half the blokes at work were sporting shorts. I draw the line at sandals though 😆

tip for keeping cool: put your desk fan on the floor and point it at your bare legs, keeps you cool without blowing paper all over your desk. Also helps to blow away any desk bound emissions 😳

Two of our bosses were wearing shorts yesterday which sets a precedent, if I was wearing shorts today I would be stung to bits 😕

Shorts? Sandals? Pfft. Speedo’s and flip flops here. I always wear them while the tour is on. To celebrate the true heroes of the race – the drunken, overweight, mahogany French gentlemen running alongside the riders in their budgie smugglers.

One of my colleagues was out at our NZ office a long time ago.

All the locals turned up to work in below-the-knee shorts and suggested he may wish to do the same, since wearing a suit in the middle of summer was not the done thing.

The only shorts he had were a pair of VERY short running ones, but he decided those would do and turned up wearing running shorts, his shirt tucked in, his Church’s and socks!

They still mock him for it over a decade later 🙂

We have a dress down day today and I’m in shorts. I’ve never done it before so we’ll see what the reaction is when I get to the office!

I think I would last about 3 days in that environment before I realigned somebody’s shakras using the age old method of ramming a ball point pen up their nose

If you’re sporting a sober Bermuda I’d say that’s professional attire; more tricky to argue the case for gold hot pants …

Not being the sort of person that has a job but so I’ve never experienced these rituals….. what is the point of dress down fridays? Whats the point of having a dress code- then only applying it 80% of the time.

What other formal or moral codes do offices relax every week?

Fiddle your expenses Fridays?
Poor Hygiene Wedsnesday? (we’ll not shake hands on that deal)
Drunk by lunchtime Thursdays?
Incest Tuesdays?

I am lucky enough to work in quite a relaxed office. People actually pass comment when I am not wearing shorts.

if they want me in trousers then they can get air con.

Productivity goes down as the T goes up; best for all of us that we keep cool.

Drunk by lunchtime Thursdays?

With the exception of academia, where I am currently, in all my jobs as a computer programmer drunk at lunchtime Fridays has been the norm. I never drunk that much because I had to bike home though. It didn’t worry me that much when I worked in London and everyone got the tube home, but when I had the job on the trading estate in Nottinghamshire, the number of people who would happily drink 3 pints of beer at lunchtime then drive home 3 hours after was scary.

With the exception of actual alcoholics, academics don’t appear to drink during the work day very much at all, which is kind of nice in a way – I’d rather get off early than waste time with that Friday afternoon drunk in the office feeling.

Oh, and did no one tell you, British Shorts Time started on March 31st, and ends on October 27th, so obviously I’m wearing shorts today.

only been in my new job for 10 days for the 1st couple of days i was trying to be relatively smart, trousers, polo shirt etc

ive completely given up now, baggies and metallica tshirt today

With the exception of ‘public facing’ roles, I can’t see any reason for people to be smart at work – I’d rather they were comfortable and happy, producing their best work, than stuffy and uncomfortable and unable to concentrate on their job properly

years in boiler suits/scrubs might have coloured my belief though – I’ve certainly been pulled in for ‘the discussion’ in subsequent jobs!

Just wear a skirt. Threaten them with discrimination if they complain. In this office there are blokes in suits and women wearing slight summer clothes. Not fair.

Shorts & sandals are specifically banned as part of our dress-down Friday dress code, to be honest it’s a good thing IMO given the general appearance of some of the people I work with…
I don’t mind wearing a shirt/suit trousers the rest of the time, it’s tie-wearing I rebelled against (and the dress code has been relaxed since if not customer-facing), the thought of wearing a bit of coloured material around my next to look smart always seemed ridiculously out-dated to me.

I’ve got linen trousers on today, that’s working out rather well. I could do with some lighter shirts though.

I’m considering cycling to Paddington this afternoon without changing to cycling gear. If I go slow and unbutton my shirt I might be able to keep the sweat under control.

If I go slow and unbutton my shirt I might be able to keep the sweat under control.

There must be a perfect commuting speed: fast enough to generate a cooling breeze but slow enough not to generate too much sweat. I’ve yet to work out what it is.

No dress code where I work (I as a researcher in a university) but I always feel a bit awkward if I’m not wearing at least a shirt and some shoes. I could rock up in shorts, sock and sandals and an old t shirt if I wanted but it just feels a bit wrong to me 🙁

whatnobeer – Member
No dress code where I work (I as a researcher in a university) but I always feel a bit awkward if I’m not wearing at least a shirt and some shoes. I could rock up in shorts, sock and sandals and an old t shirt if I wanted but it just feels a bit wrong to me

It’s the complete opposite in my department. Anyone wearing a tie gets starred at.

our office is colder now than it is in winter – air con cranked up to the max.
my nod to dressing down (which we don’t have) is rolling my sleeves up (to show off my cycle tan).

Top tip – if your dress policy is like ours and only allows “Smart shorts”, golfing shorts do the job nicely. Cheap from sports direct too.
(ps. I chose navy blue ones and they are bit too ‘postman’ like!)

I used to wear shorts at work from around March to October. I work from home now so the rules are a little more relaxed.

I work from home now so the rules are a little more relaxed.

stark boll*** nakkid then?

It’s the complete opposite in my department. Anyone wearing a tie gets starred at.

Its weird, no one ever wears a tie or a suit unless its for official visits or interviews etc, but most of the more senior staff manage to find a suitable smart/casual mix. Maybe it’s because I’m probably the most junior member of staff, but I just feel like I’m not in work mode if I’m not in a shirt.

blokes in suits and women wearing slight summer clothes. Not fair.

Dont start me on that. Men are pretty much limited to wearing shirt/trouser/shoes combo here, not much else fits the policy. However with weather like this, some of the ladies in our office have rolled into work like they’re just strolling home from a day at the beach!

A group of boys in a Cardiff high-school wore skirts the other day to school because they werent allowed shorts. Mildly tempted to do the same… or maybe not.

My boss stuck her finger in a lamp socket the other day to check whether it was a bayonet or screw fitment.. she forgot to unplug it and got electrocuted. She also couldnt figure out how to write 2456.78 on a paying in book without it looking like 2,456,780.00
She has enough trouble making it through the day to worry about what i wear 😆

she forgot to unplug it and got electrocuted

Condolences to the family

Now and again, when we get customers in I’ve to dress up but as I’m usually on the shop floor it’s more a case of wearing long combats to keep clean and have enough pockets to carry all the crap I have to carry round with me 🙁

But this week short sleeved shirt and baggies with leg pockets have done the job nicely 😀

Drac, you need to stir up a union frenzy! I tried a few years ago to get everyone to cut down our recently replaced “slightly lighter green” trousers, and wear shorts when it was silly hot, but not enough people were willing to go for it to be effective!

On a project I was on we had a dress down friday policy. I turned up in shorts and flip flops. Got taken aside by the boss, I pointed out she was in a mini skirt and flip flops. It was agreed to drop the subject.

DezB – Member
Top tip – if your dress policy is like ours and only allows “Smart shorts”, golfing shorts do the job nicely. Cheap from sports direct too.

Thats a great idea, much smarter than my current shorts. Thanks Dez

Was at a seminar type thing yesterday with about 40 people – far too many were wearing sandals and the already stuffy air in the room was gently fragranced with the aroma of sweaty feet 🙁

Equality for all.

at mrs’ work (social services) a girl got told off for wearing a vest top with thin straps, I think one of the reasons given was what if she ended up in the same room as a sex offender alone it might enflame his passions. 🙄

They’ve also been told not to wear “nice” things as it may be demoralising for the people they help.

boss came round the other day, made a jokey comment about shorts and Tshirt, not sure how serious he was being, not heard anything since.

Kilts FTW 🙂

Good point – can a kilt be considered smart attire?