Why Enforcing Dress Codes Will Drive All Men Out of HR.....

I like to think of myself as a progressive guy.  Or at least a little strategic at times.  That's why dealing with items like dress code compliance (a cross that all male HR Generalists have had to bear at one point in their careers) will likely drive me from the HR game at some point in the future.  Could be when I am 60, could be next year.  Who knows?

What's the big issue?  The Consumerist recently posted a Dress code it claims is from a Comcast Call Center.  Nothing wrong with Comcast.  However, plenty of challenges when you get 1,000 employees together in 4X6 cubes.  Want to spend your time as a HR pro recruiting?  Maybe developing some management training?  Great - just go talk to Alice (in Cube 317) first about her non-compliance with the dress code.  Apparently she has on what we believe is one of the "never appropriate" items:

-Tank Top
-Midriff Top
-Body Suit
-Flip Flops
-(shudder) Spandex Pants
-Excessively tight clothing
-House Slippers with nasty toes

Could the manager have had the conversation without getting you involved?  Sure.  Without saying something to get you sued?   Hmmm.   So you walk down to Cube 317 to take care of business.  You pull out speech 17b on what's appropriate or not and BAAAM!!!!  Alice tells you she has a medical condition where the spandex in the pants helps her circulation, and the slippers are the only thing her feet will fit into because of the swelling.  You look up and - I'm not joking but you guessed it - there are 20 Call Center Reps, all dressed the right way, watching what you are going to say next.

Backed into a corner, you do what you have to do.  You tell her she'll need to work through some medical documentation to justify the exception, and 3 hours later, when you think you have that one triangulated, you have 3 more medical "necessities" on your desk.  So much for the upscale stuff you were working on.

And there goes your whole week.  If you are in a big, consumer-based Call Center, rinse and repeat.  If you are a male HR Pro, prepare to be verrrry uncomfortable.

PS - Got to love that Comcast chose to plug their corrective action steps right into the Dress Code Policy.  Now that's efficient!!!

Comments

[Paul]

My guess is that your article was meant to be primarily a tongue-in-cheek, "woe is me" lament on some of the issues HR people have to deal with.

But let me make two rather obvious suggestions for avoiding such situations in the future:

1. Move the conversation away from her cube (and the prying eyes and ears of others, whose business this isn't.) Her manager could have called her on the phone and asked her to come to his/her office, for example. That way, there's no "show" for others to listen to and learn from.
2. Don't put yourself in the position of being the "Vice Principle of Dress Code and Discipline," like you're some kind of junior high school adminstrator. It's the manager's job to enforce company polices, not yours. If you think the manager can't do it without getting the company sued, role play the situation with the manager first, then sit in with him/her when the issue is addressed with the employee. But don't allow yourself to be the designee for cruddy little jobs no one else wants to do. It just diminishes you, your role, and HR in general.

[Alan]

Paul - great comments. You hit it right on the head.

We tried to come up with a way to go a little more casual on Fridays, but decided that it would cause too many issues, mainly on the female side. All of our males currently wear a shirt and tie. It would be simple to tell them that on Fridays, they can wear a collared shirt with dockers and decent shoes and that would be that. However, try to come up with a casual dress code for women and you are all over the page trying to determine what is appropriate and what is not. We've had discussions about open-toed sandals, Capris, open buttoned blouses, etc. The variance of what the females wear without a casual dress code is much too great even though we spell out the dress code in our employee handbook. We eventually gave up on the task.

Women are very expressive when it comes to clothing. They are also a lot more judgemental of what other women wear. We've had complaints about what certain females are wearing by other females. As a male, I don't even want to step into that one, although I'm one of those males Managers who has had to have the talk with one of my female subordinates about what she was wearing.

I kind of makes you want to bring back the company uniform, but I'm sure some people would find a way to turn a company uniform into an exotic outfit.

[Michael Moore]

Kris:

I agree with Paul that, in most organizations, HR should not become the “fashion police”. But these dress code matters are not always simple “pass/fail” determinations.

Your point on getting sued is appropriate. Legal issues abound in the form of sexual harassment, religious expression, ADA accommodation, OSHA and even workers’ compensation. Issues take all forms: tattoos, piercings, perfume sensitivities, deviations from required uniforms, personal hygiene, and wardrobe malfunctions. The thing that makes these matters difficult is that they may involve emotional disputes between employees, not simply monitoring employee adherence to policies.

Yes, it may be demeaning to talk to an employee about his/her perfume or cologne, but mismanaging the issue cost a radio station $10.6 million in a jury verdict.

[Kris]

Paul/Alan/Mike -

Good comments all... I was being tougue in cheek about dealing with it on the call center floor, but even if you do it in an office, folks react based on the outcomes. So, you do all the medical work and end up with the spandex still on the floor, which causes more folks to push the limits...

I agree no one wants to deal with it. Also agree strongly with Michael that it's never as easy as coaching the manager - they still may not have the skills to deliver the message with strength, yet tact. Like Run-DMC once said - "its tricky"....

Thanks for weighing in. Fortunately I work in a position and with a company where I don't have to deal with this issue much, if at all. But I remember those call center days....

KD

[David]

I draw the line at ripped t shirts & sweatpants for a call center. Obviously showing privates are a NO.

However, as a business manager, I could care less about flip flops anymore. More people wear them than tennis shoes anymore. They don't look dorkier than wearing a dress with Nikes. It's a call center so the public is not really affected.

Styles change. If it's something that Average Joe & Jane USA can wear, I don't see a problem with it when you work behind the scenes.

[Perfumes]

Dress should be according to the post and environment...anyways thanks for sharing this...

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