There's a lot to what meets the eye at work

Casual and laid-back New Zealand may be - but not in our workplaces, thank you.
Cleavage, short short skirts, see-through clothing, bare midriffs and jandals set alarm bells ringing in every organisation quizzed last week on workplace dress codes. And it wasn't bosses telling workers to toe the line - the detailed code had been thrashed out by workplace consensus.
Staff representatives in a Whangarei firm employing more than 100 took the time to work it out. And it seems to have worked.
A company executive said: "Everyone had to agree ... it was really cool because it meant there was such good buy-in. Getting buy-in on any policy is a big help."
The team conscientiously sorted out the "why", before getting stuck into the "what", starting with a policy statement: "The policy is that each employee's dress and grooming be appropriate for our work environment. The work of the office requires organisation, co-ordination and attention to detail.
"Recognising this, we strive to have the appearance of the office and its employees reflecting the quality of our work. Visitors entering the office should have a feeling of confidence in our ability to carry out our work professionally when viewing the appearance of the staff."
This means "wearing attire that is clean, safe and in good repair; clothes that are not revealing or provocative; clothing that does not draw undue attention to one's self or create a distraction for other employees; and clothing that will not be offensive to other employees".
The devil might be in the detail, but the group did not shirk its duty. Jewellery, make-up, perfume "in moderation", no hats, caps, facial piercings (excluding ears), rubber jandals, athletic shoes, slippers, Ugg boots, beach sandals, midriff-baring tops, casual singlet tops, halter-tops, casual hoodies, skirts more than 10cms above the knee, tops with spaghetti straps, or shirts with potentially offensive prints. The team even specified the rules that can be relaxed on casual Fridays.
At the other end of the spectrum is the Whangarei District Council with a brief general statement asking employees to exercise "good judgment". The dress code says the council doesn't think it is practical or sensible to enforce a rigid dress code because staff undertake a wide range of work, from inspecting a muddy building site to working at a computer behind the scenes. "We encourage people to take individual responsibility for their appearance and in agreement with their manager, to dress in a way that presents a professional image that is appropriate for the kind of work they do."
Allan Inglis, owner of a real estate agency, requires formal dress and does not have casual Fridays. "It's expected in my organisation that you dress appropriately for the profession. For men, a business shirt with a tie and smart trousers. For women, a smart, discreet look - skirts or trousers, jacket and nice blouse.
"The general public expects a professional look. People come into our office to engage with professionals and our staff are here to do a job as efficiently as possible. We believe dressing appropriately is a fundamental requirement in business."
Clothing shop owner Briar White said a professional look was "a package" which included good posture. She said New Zealanders fall down on this. From years of judging appearance and assisting clients to get the right looks, she is a fan of having work skirts no higher than 10cm from the middle of the knee, and 5cm below for people older than 40.
"A bit of a cover-up is much more sensuous. The same goes for cleavage and bra straps."
ACC reception and frontline staff are required to wear corporate clothes at all times, whereas other staff can wear the wardrobe if they wish.
Chartered accountants are "definitely after a professional look, ideally suits, especially as staff begin to move into client contact", said an administration manager, Gayle Anderson. She said in forming policy her company considered information from a seminar on business dress that very bright colours were distracting, likewise cleavage and short skirts, and that "pretty much the more you are covered the more professional you will look - and if you look very sexy this is likely to result in not being taken seriously in the office situation". Men needed to pay attention to trouser and tie length. She said they had abandoned casual Fridays. "We found people were interpreting casual too widely ... there was definitely a big variation and sometimes they were finding they had to do a quick change out of jeans if they had formal meetings. We decided we would rather give staff other benefits."
Justine Amundson startled some people when she founded her business 12 years ago and insisted on all staff wearing smart business gear even if they were working through the night. Amundson and Amundson is a nationwide call centre and personalised reception service which counts two of New Zealand's biggest corporates as clients. Amundson provides shirts with the company logo and staff wear their own trousers or skirts. "Their standard of dress affects how they speak to clients and how they represent a business," she said. "The care they take with dress is reflected in their voices and helps them to be proud of their workplace."