Setting dress code requires sensitivity

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Dear Joan:
I am the office supervisor for a non-profit agency. We have 14 employees. Recently our Executive Director asked me to investigate and write a policy concerning proper dress & appearance for the office. This policy will then be added to our "Policy and Procedure Manual."

We are an extremely busy agency and have not paid enough attention to this area in the past; consequently, many employees have become lax in their attire.

I would welcome any guidelines you could offer which would assist me in writing and presenting an acceptable policy to our Executive Director.

Answer:
Telling an employee what to wear is a little like telling your sister she should lose a few pounds. The response is likely to be the same: It's none of your business and besides, I think I look fine! In addition, when you tell an employee how to dress, you are also on tricky legal ground.

Unless the job requires certain clothes, say, for safety reasons or a uniform is required for the job, you can suggest an appropriate appearance but you can't dictate it. Another way to look at it is if it isn't a job-related, enforceable requirement for everyone, you can't play judge and jury when it comes to a dress code.

Enforceable is the key word. For instance, if someone breaks a rule that is set, will you send them home? Fire them? Discipline them? And if you do, are you able to defend-in court-why that rule is necessary for the job?

Let's get even more sticky. Since you've allowed the employees to become lax in the past, you've already lowered the expected standards by implied consent. They are likely to say, "Hey, wait a minute!  What's changed all of a sudden that I have to dress differently now?"

What you can do is write a general guideline in the policy manual. Start with a statement about the image your agency is trying to establish with its clients and why that is important. Then go on to say employees are representatives of the agency and are expected to dress professionally. It's fine to say casual dress, such as blue jeans, are considered inappropriate.

If the employees make direct contact with the customer and their image can affect the customer's decision to use your agency, you can put more teeth in the policy. If this is the case, it may be appropriate to link their appearance to the bottom line, which could affect their performance reviews.

When the guideline is ready to publish, call your staff together and explain why it's important. Admit that things have been allowed to get a little lax because everyone has been so busy. Thank them for their effort and remind them that clients could think that their work is unprofessional and careless if their appearance gives that impression. You may even want to send some or all of the staff to a professional image seminar, if you think they lack some basic know-how in this area. Another good place to reinforce the dress code is during new employee orientation.

If employees continue to wear inappropriate outfits to work, approach the issue sensitively. Emphasize the importance of the agency's image as well as their own image and how it relates to career advancement. Above all, set a good example and don't forget to compliment employees when you notice them wearing a professional outfit. A little positive attention will go a long way toward solving this problem.

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