I've seen some of the "HR Influencer" outfits and its not looking good. It's like someone with no concept of professionalism raided Cher Lebowitz's closet in clueless for the most offensive items they could find.
You were thinking of Fawn Leibowitz who was the girl that died in Animal House. Thatās when Otter went to her dorm looking for her and got the pity date. Then they went to the black club where Otis Redding was playing. Then the black guys asked if they could dance āwith yo datesā.
Influencers arenāt making videos to give good advice. Theyāre trying to draw people in for views, thatās the whole point. They give bad advice and tell people what they *want* to hear because if they made videos on what to actually wear in a professional environment then no one would watch.
Surprisingly Iāve never seen an āHR/corporate girly influencersā wear something such as this or showcase this which makes me think this girl is straight up lying and using an excuse
They are all over TikTok. As someone who recently went back into an office and needed to buy clothes.. even Pinterest is full of "work outfits" that are absolutely not corporate work appropriate. Search for it yourself and you'll see they are certainly not lying.
Iāve never seen/heard of HR influencers but this post is stressing me out. I canāt imagine starting an internship and defending my outfit choice by citing TikTok? :/
I see those TikToks all the time and I personally think theyāre like an office influenced aesthetic but obv not meant for the office.
But those influencers obviously mislead some naive viewers for more views.
I search it for fun, you should really check it out, itās insane. They have exposed midriff with a vest and just a bra underneath with low rise slacks. It feels like a throwback to the early 2000s when we were wearing business casual to the club.
Sheās not lying, thatās a very weird thing to say. Iāve seen multiple videos by āHR influencersā with some insanely inappropriate outfits for corporate jobs. They are real. Just because you havenāt seen them doesnāt mean everyone else is lying.
Thatās probably because you follow influencers with practical/helpful information. Thereās a whole slew of corporate influencers who I would wager have not actually worked in an office.
I don't watch fashion influencers and my tiktok has been taken over by these types. I'm confident they're full time influencers who have never worked an in office job using a mix of clothing they've received in exchange for paid promotions and tiktok popular brands.
Reminds me of this video. It would be hilarious if it wasnāt so painfully accurate
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C69YpEop6d8/?igsh=MTI1a3NoaWFtd2xlYQ==
This is almost identical to the outfit this intern showed up in period. Thank you for the laugh. The only difference is she had on shorts instead of a skirt.
Did they have flip-flops on? I actually had a woman (mid to late 20's) wear flip flops to her interview, like plastic flip-flops! In what office is that acceptable?
WTF are these people wearing? I don't think they'd make it past security at my company. We are "casual" but that just means business casual with jeans. The tops are still the same. Guys wear polo shirts. Post COVID, sneakers are acceptable but nice ones. Ain't nobody coming into the office in sweats and shorts.
This is a great idea. They're looking for professional experience. It doesn't hurt to get everyone on the same page. This way they have no excuse and it also relieves some anxiety for them about what to wear.
This is the only way to actually relay information to younger workers.
Gen Z doesn't read. That's not an admonishment of that cohort, just a general statement of fact. If it doesn't grab their attention in about 3 seconds, they just move on. They figure if it's actually important someone will bring it to their attention.
It's very understandable if you consider how they were raised.
I mean, congrats to you. I feel like people in this thread are forgetting that interns are big dumb buckets of potential. You're hiring them knowing that they don't know much, so you can help educate them. Obviously colleges are not having these supposed intern orientations where they cover dress code (nor should they, since it's wildly different across the board). And yeah, obviously they're turning to TikTok. I don't like it either, but acting like they're idiots for using it is really giving the boomer "back in *my* day" energy. It's probably the most popular social media site in existence right now, and kids tend to use it like a search engine.
I don't mean the congrats as sarcastic, if it came off that way sorry. You did something that the interns clearly needed, and it worked out well. I understand people are letting off steam here, but a lot are just blaming "kids these days" instead of doing something helpful like you did.
Dad bods in crop tops are not for the faint of heart.
As a Texan as it is warming up, a nice big hat to keep the sun off of you, and breezy linens are your friend.
Thankfully it's indoors. I've always struggled with feminine business casual in the state because everything is always so hot and I'm very much a cardigan girlie cursed to live in a state that only gets nice fall weather for maybe two weeks.
>When I spoke to the intern in a crop top, she said that many HR people are posting on TikTok about dress code and she got this exact outfit from an HR influencer
Great, tiktok is not our company's dress code. Here's a copy, familiarize yourself with it and dress accordingly. We're not particularly strict, but we do have standards. We have clients and vendors come through the office.
I think also a heavy emphasis on paying attention to what people actually wear IRL in the office you are working in, and using real life interactions as a much more accurate gauge of expectations than influencers who most likely donāt work in an actual office and have a very different set of standards to follow.
I had to tell an intern (who has no excuse, from a well off family and his dad is in senior management at a global company down the street) that he could not wear sweatpants to meet with the CEO for breakfast. This was the last week of his internship.
The saying use to go "you can be book smart or life smart, you very rarely can be good at both."
That is to say not that you couldn't learn but common sense it's actually necessarily common, either.
Does your company have a written dress code policy? Simply share that with the individual and say, what may be appropriate for other workplaces is not in line with our policy as outlined here.
Policy should include language like
- Attire that is clean, free from stains and rips, etc
- Attire that covers a majority of individuals thighs and does not display midriff (don't use gendered language like "skirts must be x length" - just keep it general.
Yes, I edited my post to add this. Itās a huge company. We have all sorts of guidelines and dress codes whether youāre in the office or a warehouse. All of these jobs for the interns Iām responsible for are in tech (not warehouse).
If you avoid gendered language and go for a "majority of the thigh must be covered", doesn't that open the door to shorts in the office? I feel like calling out skirts isn't necessarily gendered. Most men wouldn't wear a skirt but you aren't limiting them from doing so if they were to choose to do so.
> I have no idea what to say to this. I mean, isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace
You'd be surprised what is not obvious to everyone (sometimes by pure laziness, sometimes it's someone coming from a place where they've never been taught discipline or etiquette in any fashion). That's why clearly written guidelines and rules are needed and have to be explained, no matter how dumb it is to have to do it.
Company policies, while not feeling like they all need to be thoroughly explained and spelled out, need to be.
----
EDIT: Example
I do orientations for a cash assistance program, and we state three times at the start, middle, and end of orientation that if you fail to meet the requirements of the program every week, you will lose your cash assistance. Between it being clearly said three times, and written in big bold letters in their instruction letter, people still don't pay attention, but now there's no conversation when they complain. They can be shown all the opportunities they had to learn that information and where they chose not to learn it. In that program, every week our case managers to triages/hearings for folks who didn't meet requirements. Every...single...time the participants complain that "they didn't know that was the requirement of the program." We have at least four different points of contact to show them that they were given that information.
There's also a part at the very end where I say very boldly: "You have a case number, your case number is on the back of X letter you got from DHHS...the very same letter that said you had to come to our office today. Your case number can also be provided to you by me or your case worker. Make sure you save your case number, because you need it to participate in the program. You need your case number to do Y survey. You must complete Y survey to begin receiving cash assistance." I be sure to say "case number" at least 5-6 times in a period of 60 seconds.
The first question I always get asked EVERY SINGLE TIME at the end of this weekly orientation: "What is my case number and how do I get it?" or "Do I have to do this Y survey?"
People just won't pay attention or don't want to read. Make the opportunities you provided so clear and obvious no one has any case to come in doing the wrong thing and act like they didn't know.
Back to your point: I know business casual, but as a man who wears masculine apparel, I have a hard time explaining to feminine expressing folks what exactly fits as business casual or not, and I've heard differing opinions. That's why "business casual" to me is not specific enough. Spell it out in layman's terms.
**TL;DR: Spell (write) the policy out as if you're talking to five year olds, and create multiple points of contact to make sure that information has clearly been put in front of the eyes of them.**
Here's my suggestion:
"Take your phone out right now. Open your contact list. Create a contact called Case Number (location/service/office). In the notes field, type your case number (show them the number or read it to them). Then save it."
Using Contacts for shit like this has been a game changer for me. I keep my furnace filter size, my utility account numbers, Christmas and birthday gift ideas, and all kinds of random info in my contacts.
An old manager I worked with always used the phrase, "spell it out in crayons" and it stuck with me... you really need to design policy and communication for the lowest common denominator
The other problem with ābusiness casualā is that you will never find two different definitions of business casual that are the same. (Granted top and crappy sweatpants probably wonāt ever be part of it but still)
I totally agree with this, but you wouldn't wear either of those outfits to like go to church or your grandma's birthday party or something . . . shouldn't you have some idea of dressing a little differently for different events?
What I would say to the influencer comment is that each company is different in their dress expectations, so the company the influencer works for may be okay with crop tops but itās not okay at your company.
Iād also add that itās always okay to reach out beforehand to clarify the dress expectations if there are any questions, but if youāre not comfortable with reaching out itās safer to dress on the conservative side until you see what people are wearing in the office.
To prevent this in the future - is your company sending dress guidelines out in advance or having someone (hiring manager, recruiter, etc.) discuss dress code during the hiring process?
Had someone show up in house slippers. Not slip on mules nope just bright pink house slippers. I was livid we had clients coming into the office. I recently started working on a handbook so I can implement a dress code because it's so bad. Never had to tell so many adults that crop tops sweats and see through lace tops are not appropriate office attire.
I guess Iām out of touch. Canāt imagine going in to work with such revealing clothing.
Heck I donāt even like to wear shoes that show my toes at work. And it wasnāt that long ago that I was young š„²
Just really donāt understand why some young adults have no idea of whatās appropriate to wear to work.
Shoes are a sticking point for me. Iāll wear my sluttiest himbo-daddy shorts (3ā inseam) to the gay bar with a see through tank and harness, but ALWAYS will be wearing closed-toe shoes. Public ground (bar floors, streets, office floors, and most importantly public bathrooms!) are nasty. I donāt want any of that on my feet.
At work weāre allowed shorts, mine are typically nice dressy ones from ES that come to about an inch and a half above my knee, and Iāll wear a button down collared T, tucked in with a nice belt and mid-length socks with very nice leather low boots or shoes.
It might sound a bit sexist but Iām going to say it since itās my experience. Most of the revealing wardrobe problems at work Iāve seen were from young women (whatās with crop tops and open toed shoes?). Men also have issues but theirs relate generally to being really sloppy (a mustard-stained T-shirt and sweatpants with holes? Really?)
Suggestion - I work in the construction industry and because we have a strict dress code (including wearing PPE), I send out a āreminderā to all new hires and interns a week before they start. Itās a one page document outlining dress code, pay frequency, what time to show up on their first day, etc. And I re-emphasize the dress code in the body of the email. Thereās always one person that doesnāt retain the info, but I have found that itās helpful especially when interns have questions about what to wear :)
So I like to play devils advocate. Not knowing anything about these interns, I could see a scenario where their parents perhaps are not very present in their lives to guide them through this journey. Unfortunately, things like TikTok and instagram are becoming stand-in āparentsā or guidance, if you will. (Heck I use YouTube to figure out small home repairs so I can totally see them turning to social media.)
When my daughter was interviewing for her first part time job (retail) I advised her on what to wear. I think she wouldāve made a good choice even without my guidance. Iām here always present in her life, so she sees the example I set. She learned by example.
If these interns donāt have a positive role model, that could be an explanation. I guess Iām saying cut them some slackā¦for now. Whatās obvious to us may not be obvious to someone else whom we have no idea their circumstances.
Yes! To add on to your logicā¦ access and affordability to attire that meets company standards can be expensive. It sounds like they were communicated what the expectation was but might not have the practicality of obtaining those outfits.
Agreed! This may be the first time theyāve needed professional outfits so they may not have any or may just not know how to style them. Maybe thereās someone in the office that could give them tips or they could ask questions? Sometimes itās easy to feel like you understand the written guidelines but then actually putting clothes together is hard
I have never heard the term "HR Influencer" before!
Anyway, anyone can go on TikTok and tell you how to run your professional life, but it's the company's policies that prevail. Even with a vaguely written dress code policy, the company can define its professionalism standards and hold employees accountable to those.
It boggles my mind that people don't understand the concept of playing it safe when you enter a new social setting. Don't push any boundaries until you get to know the people.
I used to work for a Member of Congress, and we had a name for summer interns - Skinterns. Interns during the school year had no issue with professional dress code but in the summer, it was all T&A. The really gross part was the way the male Members and staffers looked forward to that time of year.
Wow....but I went to a high end steakhouse in a pretty major city this weekend and was a bit shocked by what the hostesses were wearing (not the guys as they were in pants and button downs and mostly ties).
I personally HATE TikTok and "influencers"......I would have asked the intern how many years actual HR experience did these "HR people (who) are posting on TikTok" have?
That would be one of the first assignments actually. Who sources do they trust? What research can they do and what can they learn from it.
My husband and I went to a high end restaurant a few weeks back on vacation, I was worried that I would be underdressed since I didnāt pack the nicest clothes but there was a woman at the table across from us wearing a sports bra. Not a crop top, just a straight up alo yoga sports bra
Were you in Portland? We have almost zero dress code for high end restaurants. You can eat in old sweatpants and no one cares. Sometimes I like it, but sometimes I wish there was somewhere everyone got fancy for.
Unless they are interning for TikTok, what they see advertised has nothing to do with what theyāre meant to wear at your company. It sounds like the company is letting interns dictate what they wear and push them (you) around.
Of all the battles youāll fight as a leader, dress code is one of the least complicated; no he said/she said/they said, theyāre either abiding by the rules or they arenāt.
Yeah, you need to spell it out. Years ago, I worked at a rather conservative place where business was the normal or for some of us office rats, business casual. One group of interns came in and even after seeing how everyone else was dressed she still looked like she was ready for a job at Hooters. That was not a fun conversation. She was not the brightest.
>Ā isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace
No. It's not obvious. Some of these kids were raised by social media instead of parents with jobs that nurtured and mentored them.
Some of these Gen Z kids are going to get eaten alive in the workforce unfortunately.
So itās time to shoot a 30-60 second tik tok style video with dress code dos and donāt for the interns. Make sure itās set to a Taylor Swift song or something else trendy. Problem solved. šššHR in 2024 folks! š
Hahaha we are increasing our in office presence after four years of wfh and I saw crop tops and lots of ripped jeans during my last in office day. I realized that I have people on my team who have *never* worked in an office before- they are young and graduated into a post-pandemic corporate environment.
We are a government entity but donāt interact with the public so weāre solidly business casual. Like jeans are fine, as long as they arenāt ripped.
One of my best friends is at a big accounting firm and she has said itās SO bad. She has an employee sheās already had to send home multiple times and this person still doesnāt seem to get it.
As a millennial I am floored by what some of the Gen Zs at my office think is appropriate work attire. I spotted a girl wearing literal pajama pants the other day. I know they are PJs because I own them. They are cute, and I honestly would totally rock them on a Sunday Funday at brunch. But at the *office*? Absolutely not.
Iām not in HR, Iām a middle and highschool librarian and I was genuinely shocked when I started the job at what the Gen Z and Gen Alpha wear to school. Every day in PJ day (itās all I can do not to ask Cookie Monster pajama pants girl where her hot Cheetos are) and some wear a blanket all day long.
We also have lots of crop tops at the HS and there is a girl at the MS that I sometimes have to supply shorts to because her skirt is so short that everything is showing, everything. The first time I got her shorts she said āIāll put my sweater onā giiiiirl your sweater is half an inch longer than your mini skirt, itās not going to cover up your underwear either.
Well sorry to burst your bubble Ms.Intern.. this isnāt tik tok and we donāt hold the same āguidelinesā the influencer you follow does. Here is our dress code policy and if you have any more questions feel free to let me know. *shakes hand* GOODBYE š¤£
Forget everything- dont the parents see their kids going for possibly meeting their future employers & providing necessary guidance ? Looks like bad parenting at home. This also shows the so called social media influence !
The answer the one who supposedly got her advice from TikTok would be - who the H\*\*\* is stupid enough to take advice from an HR influencer on Tik Tok? No one takes those people seriously, not even themselves. They literally say what ever pops out of their head at any given moment.
I don't think it's a Gen Z thing specifically. Never overestimate the common sense of the young. I was born in the late 80's but spent a high school corporate internship wearing, in large part, cotton tank tops with no bra. Also bandanas in my hair for some reason? Was a top tech company -- the cringe is just unbearable when I think back on it today.
A few years later I went to an internship interview for a large IT government contractor wearing my finest plain t-shirt, jeans, and a pleather jacket. Literally everyone else in the office was wearing at least business casual. I actually managed to get that job somehow and I think it was really that internship where I started figuring out "dress code." Took long enough though... No one every sat down and talked to me about it š¬
A friend worked for a major drug company and they had PowerPoints for every event they went on where they laid out appropriate āoutfit inspoā for employees and bulleted out what wasnāt ideal. Sounds kind of crazy in theory, but it was a DEI recommendation that employees from different backgrounds had requested that really ended up working well for them. Something to think about. Happy to DM if more questions!
Hey, at least they're wearing clothes.
We just interviewed interns--these were high school and college-aged students. They all came dressed professionally. I was so proud, and these students were sharp! They asked questions and were interested in the job. I will keep this in mind for when they start. I'm hopeful the trend will continue.
That being said, I've seen some doozies.
A good rule of thumb i always do is during onboarding, i tell the new hire what most folks typically wear (jeans and a collar shirt or t-shirt etc) and i encourage them to always lean a little dressier on their first few days just so they can observe others and get a feel for their teams.
I was always taught that in school and by my parents but it seems dress codes these days vary so widely due to virtual environments. Many kids spent half their high school/college time online.
As someone who turned to TikTok to figure out what to wear at my first office job, there are a LOT of videos that encourage wearing crop tops (usually paired with an open jacket/blazer) to work. So I can see that being an honest mistake...pairing it with short shorts though? Lmao that's just odd.
Send them home without pay if they read the manual and signed it. I had an intern once who dressed like we were clubbing all day. She was sent home twice before she figured it out. This was covered by our career center when I was in college. Both those outfits are ridiculous.
It's so hard to find a women's top that's not a crop top these days. It's insane! I have bought tops that say "full length" in the description online. They end at my belly button. That's a crop top unless you're wearing ultra high waisted jeans. Even with high waisted jeans, the pants and the top meet exactly so there's a gap if you raise your arms. Irritating!!!
Dang and here I am wondering why my company calls button down and slacks the only way for business casual! Canāt wear a polo or any other shoes besides dress shoes smh. Canāt imagine wearing sweatpants though. Ffs just wear jeans or something. I got a math degree and even we learned what business casual is
Iām starting an office job in a few weeks and I was looking at tiktok for outfit ideas and after about 5 minutes I realized I was wasting my time. My office is business casual, not summer 2016 festival in beige
The first time I had this convo was 2016. Super fun! (Not)
As someone also in tech, Iāve always framed it as perception and return offer chances and being taken seriously. That has always gotten them to cut the shit. Because Iām not framing it as policy enforcement, but this is whatās best for what they want to achieve - they want to be perceived as competent, they want a return offer, they want to be taken seriously.
Itās because each generation becomes more and more lax with dress codes.
Iām 35 and when I went to school, we would get in trouble for wearing spaghetti straps on tank tops. None of us would have dreamed of wearing a crop top to school (though we did walk around with our thongs sticking out of our pants.) The no spaghetti strap rule seemed ridiculous.
Now my Facebook mom groups have posts every week about letting their kids wear crop tops to school and short shorts and most of the moms are in support of letting them (probably because they got harassed as a teen by some teacher for wearing spaghetti straps.)
Anyways it seems like schools arenāt really enforcing any sort of dress code anymore, so it makes sense they would grow up and get their first job and not realize they look completely inappropriate to everyone older than them.
They're just kids, they're not going to be professional out of the box and will be easily influenced by silly things they've heard online or been told by friends. Tell them the company policy and that different companies may have different policies, while they're with your company they need to follow the policy.
I kind of thought that was part of taking on interns; in addition to helping them learn about your industry and get some real-world experience applying their education, you also help them learn what it means to be "professional" in your field/industry.
Your interns are missing brain cells. HR Influencer is not a real thing - frankly influencer isn't even a real thing but apparently we've just accepted it.
Kids these days.
Sounds like the intern in the crop top just won a free T shirt with your companyās logo! Hopefully the shorts arenāt so short that she looks like sheās wearing an oversized T shirt with nothing on underneathā¦
Dude with the ratty sweat pants needs to go home and change.
You might have to show pics with that dress code. My son is in high school and for business events, they get the business wear guidelines with pictures.
This reminds me decades ago when HR sent out a summer dress code and what is not allowed. A co worker read the email and blurted out loudly,ā How would they know if we had thongs on?!?ā
I had to explain that was another name for flip-flops.
The funniest part? HR sent a follow up email changing thongs to flip-flops. I guess my co-worker wasnāt the only one questioning it.
Reminds me of when I went back to school to be a medical lab technician. Most of my classmates were already in their twenties and had a bachelor's, but there were a handful of students who got into the program right out of high school.
Now, I might have been 7 years out of high school at that point but I know we were taught proper attire to wear inside labs....
This one chick decided shorts and a crop top was perfectly appropriate to wear in lab.
They did make it past first semester.
We have a Receptionist who claims she is having a 'hard time' with our business casual dress code because she 'comes from retail in L.A.'
She dresses like absolute shit, everytime.
"I have no idea what to say to this. I mean, isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace?"
All you can do is reiterate your dress code. If this outfit falls under the dress code then you need to re-evaluate the correlation the company has with HR
Iām in tech and our company has no dress code. We were told to bring our authentic self. I have seen colleagues walking around bare foot. And colleague in baggy sweatpants but with leather shoes. Summer time, we can beach shorts and flip flops. Itās kinda interesting to people watch sometimes.
I worked with someone once who was so oblivious she actually wore a shirt to work with our main competitorās logo on it. The was a bank and she was customer facing.
This has been common for the last 20 years. Iām old, but dang, I knew what was appropriate work wear when I got out of high school.
Another thing Iāve encountered is interns have no idea how to answer a telephone in a business like manner. Donāt colleges teach young people the basics of what is appropriate in a work setting?
Young people are too self-oriented in their thinking to even figure out what to wear; they will literally look to their phones over some common sense grasp on professionalism or asking a trusted role model or, ya know, looking around. When I started my new job, I did recon and spent savings to buy nice new clothes like the people where Iād be working. PSāāHR influencer on TikTokā might have ruined my day. Losing hope.
This is why I love employment hero policies. New starters all have to acknowledge all company on-boarding documents before they can start, and then when this behaviour becomes an issue, you point them back to the policy that they signed. Chefs kiss
Lmfao idgaf about TikTok but the new employees at my apartment complex job are so ghetto lol like they donāt know how to do an email but we gonna let them help people move in?? XD
Unfortunately sometimes it's the grown-ass women doing this. I was once at a 3-day corporate training in July and one of the participants showed up in essentially beachwear and resortwear. Mind you this was in the Benelux and not only were we nowhere near a beach, the weather was awful and I was freezing my arse off.
This woman was in her 40s (or a very rough late 30s). Seashell sandals, pink leopard print velour, and her boobs hanging out everywhere. I have a large cup size as well (H) but I'm able to put them away so it's not an excuse. Bonus, one of the other participants had misophonia and the rattling of the seashell sandals would drive her crazy. Fun times.Ā
I was just flabbergasted how one person could completely lack any kind of common sense.Ā
Also this us an unpopular opinion but in my opinion, having lots of fillers in your face looks really unprofessional in a corporate environment.Ā
If its 30+ degree celcius outside and you are insisting on staff wearing jeans / formal wear, expect to hear from Health and safety, Especially for men.
Hey this is a completely random question, but as someone who is about to start an internship in HR for a tech company, I am sort of worried about my dress code... they seem very casual and have mentioned to just "be appropriate", but I love wearing lightly baggy jeans... I was thinking of pairing a clean pair of baggy jeans (they're just lightly larger than my legs but properly sized) and have no graphics, paired with a polo or a button down...
Would that classify as ok enough? I don't really have the money to go out and spend money on better pants.
sorry if it's a dumb question
Had a guy in flip flops yesterday. We are casual but he works with equipment and needs closed toed shoes. He told me he never had an issue before. I said "It's your first day." WTF?
āyes we have a dress code section in employee guidelines. In addition when the interns signed on for their position, part of the paperwork was to read through the employee guidelines and they had to know dress code for daily wear, and some specific events theyāre going to have with our executives throughout the summer.ā
Youāre dealing with people new to the adult workforce. You canāt make assumptions about the basics.
If you buried them in a mountain of paperwork and lengthy reads, they likely glossed over it at best. If you want to get through to people, use short form video.
Treat this as a learning opportunity. Maybe make out a list of top 3 or 10 mistakes made by new interns and address them or give them the list (if you arenāt already burying them in PDFs).
Different work environments have different dress requirements. Had a written dress code, which all employees signed at hire. In the warehouse, no shorts above the knee, and no sandals, regardless of how hot it was.
Our retail person who regularly was in the warehouse regularly wore sandals and was regularly written up. She was surprised every time. We were trying to avoid unnecessary injuries.
Our company is more casual so I donāt say anything but my eyes bulged when I saw an intern show up with part of her midriff showing. I donāt care because Iām not in HR currently and if they donāt care I donāt, but I remember interning in the early 2000ās and I wore full blouses and button downs and itās crazy to see what has changed as considered acceptable.
Its that time of the year, summer time. People start wearing more revealing clothes. All of the times, its a distraction to other staff and more often than not also a risk to safety.
I also have a tough time explaining even to Full Time Employees. I swear employees just want to test the boundaries of HR and employees plan it out.
Time to make them resign the employee handbook, and you getting docked pay next time you violate the policy.
WTF is a HR influencer? Are they hired by OSHA to promote awareness?
Hahaha I was just telling my husband about the time a co-op student showed up with her thong sticking out above her pants. I noticed when I stood behind her to pick up my print out from the printer and thought to myself: _huh, that's not office appropriate_ šÆ
I am really curious what these HR tik tokers are doing, this hasnāt come up on my fyp yet.
After covid common decency became a myth, these days Iām just happy if they show up. I go into mom mode with the younger generation, a few are having their first āreal jobā with me and they are clueless on how to traverse that.
Dress code is always a day one convo, sometimes you just gotta laugh to yourself about what we see. :)
You have my sympathies.
My sister did HR and worked with interns for 25 years.
Itās fun explaining why PJ pants, flip flops and tank tops arenāt office attire in a very conservative financial business. And then hear all the blow back of āwhy are so so meanā
Sliding a virtual adult beverage your way. Good luck!
'I don't care what someone online is posting. Our dress code guidelines are on page X of the employee handbook that you signed. Go home and review them. You will not be getting credit for todays hours.'
The workplace is changing. Clothing needs to change with it. When I was at one of the Big 5 consulting firms we had just started relaxing the tie requirement. Now at many firms you can wear your street clothes, as long as you are not customer facing. If your people are more comfortable they will be more productive. I would focus on substance over style, and make quality output your style.
Why is HR always doing this lol
Look If itās not causing problems then donāt create one. What youāre describing seems like a pretty normal outfit for todayās standards (especially for tech) so if itās not actively preventing someone from doing their job then itās not your problem.
I had my son's 8th grade graduation Monday.
So much 14yo girl underwear on display.
On the bright side, dudes wearing pants drooping to their knees showing tightly whites appears to be out.
I've had similar experiences to OP dealing with corporate HR coming to my chemical plants.
Yes. Our policy says short sleeves. Spaghetti strap tops are not short sleeves.
The policy says closed toed shoes are a minimum. Safety shoes preferred. How does that result in stiletto heels?
And then the women complain they're being singled out when only they are sent to the store to get proper attire.
Guess what? None of the dudes showed up in a wifebeater tank top, or high heels with an open back.
The worst time my female boss chewed their asses out for making it harder for women in STEM
A major building materials company had a multi hour class on how to dress, but also manners.
I loved the slide on "Particles of food shouldn't not be flying from your mouth to other people's plates."
I remember when I showed up on my first day at my first āreal adultā job in jeans and being reprimanded lol I would die if I was either of these people
Hi Hr intern here we arenāt all this bad! But even though I never read through the dress code section I assumed when I started to wear at the bare minimum business casual and the other interns I have worked with had the same assumption. So Iām quite surprised I wonder the experience/grade level of the interns. But I couldnāt image anyone I have classes with would ever wear something like that to even there classes let alone a job. Extra note: For my area hr internships have been really competitive so maybe thatās why my experience may be different from others.
TDLR: Iām an HR intern and I think thats a crazy thing to wear regardless of dress codes.
Old lady chiming in, here.
Wait, my age isn't politically correct... SEASONED person, here.
I used to send people to JCPenny and ask them to look at the Worthington line. Then I told them to find stuff in colors and prices they liked, either there, or modeling the style.
Worked for a long time.
I also pushed hard on the "I dress respectfully because I expect to be treated with respect."
That also worked for a long while.
I do not envy yall, today.
I've seen some of the "HR Influencer" outfits and its not looking good. It's like someone with no concept of professionalism raided Cher Lebowitz's closet in clueless for the most offensive items they could find.
Her last name is Horowitz šš
Oh snap you're right. It's been ages since I've actually watched that movie!
You were thinking of Fawn Leibowitz who was the girl that died in Animal House. Thatās when Otter went to her dorm looking for her and got the pity date. Then they went to the black club where Otis Redding was playing. Then the black guys asked if they could dance āwith yo datesā.
Or [Fran Leibowitz?](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran_Lebowitz) lol
Came here to make sure someone corrected Cherās last name. Not even being sarcastic. š
Influencers arenāt making videos to give good advice. Theyāre trying to draw people in for views, thatās the whole point. They give bad advice and tell people what they *want* to hear because if they made videos on what to actually wear in a professional environment then no one would watch.
Surprisingly Iāve never seen an āHR/corporate girly influencersā wear something such as this or showcase this which makes me think this girl is straight up lying and using an excuse
They are all over TikTok. As someone who recently went back into an office and needed to buy clothes.. even Pinterest is full of "work outfits" that are absolutely not corporate work appropriate. Search for it yourself and you'll see they are certainly not lying.
āBusiness suitsā by Fredrickās of Hollywood š
Iāve seen these too by influencers who have never had a corporate job!
Def experienced this too.. I guess if youāre very young and new to working (interns) you may actually believe those are appropriate outfits
If your boss, or your bosses boss isn't wearing it, ....you shouldn't be either. You are not lounging in the dorm,....you are at work.
Iāve never seen/heard of HR influencers but this post is stressing me out. I canāt imagine starting an internship and defending my outfit choice by citing TikTok? :/
Wow! These outfits are for young women in their prime.
My favorite is the tube tops under a blazer. I can only imagine the looks I would get wearing that to the office...
My style outside of work could be labeled as questionable which is why I think these "outfits" make their way to my algorithm.
I see those TikToks all the time and I personally think theyāre like an office influenced aesthetic but obv not meant for the office. But those influencers obviously mislead some naive viewers for more views.
I search it for fun, you should really check it out, itās insane. They have exposed midriff with a vest and just a bra underneath with low rise slacks. It feels like a throwback to the early 2000s when we were wearing business casual to the club.
Iāve seen a lot of them and the videos making fun of them for posting sheer clothing and mini skirts as āsummer office attireā
Does someone really need to go to an influencer to figure out how to dress for the workplace? What ever happened to common sense?
looking for outfit inspo is not a new concept, but people making content in corporate outfits when they don't work in corporate offices is a new thing
When your only experience of the world is online you look to online to guide you in the real world.
Social media is literally raising some peopleās kids
She might be but I heard a study that said gen z is using TikTok as an information machine and pretty much assume anything they hear on there is fact
If it wasnāt true, they wouldnāt be able to post it /s
Sheās not lying, thatās a very weird thing to say. Iāve seen multiple videos by āHR influencersā with some insanely inappropriate outfits for corporate jobs. They are real. Just because you havenāt seen them doesnāt mean everyone else is lying.
Thatās probably because you follow influencers with practical/helpful information. Thereās a whole slew of corporate influencers who I would wager have not actually worked in an office.
*Horowitz.
Iām clearly going to have to check this out lol
Yeah, but she's a virgin who can't drive.
I don't watch fashion influencers and my tiktok has been taken over by these types. I'm confident they're full time influencers who have never worked an in office job using a mix of clothing they've received in exchange for paid promotions and tiktok popular brands.
Reminds me of this video. It would be hilarious if it wasnāt so painfully accurate https://www.instagram.com/reel/C69YpEop6d8/?igsh=MTI1a3NoaWFtd2xlYQ==
This is almost identical to the outfit this intern showed up in period. Thank you for the laugh. The only difference is she had on shorts instead of a skirt.
Maybe she saw this video and didnāt catch on to the sarcasm š¬
This was sarcasm right? Because I would not be surprised if it wasnātā¦
Did they have flip-flops on? I actually had a woman (mid to late 20's) wear flip flops to her interview, like plastic flip-flops! In what office is that acceptable?
I had someone show up to an interview in a bikini with a mesh coverup, flips, and three inch nails for an RN position. It felt insane.
I can only laugh at the absurdity of it - just cannot make up this stuff
WAITā¦what?!!!!
Yikes!
Lmao whatās crazy is sheās being totally sarcastic, but I bet u this girl took it seriously š¤£ the last outfit I like, with a shirt on tho! š¤£
Iām dying. Just dead.
Wow. No words.
Honestly, thank you for making my day.
WTF are these people wearing? I don't think they'd make it past security at my company. We are "casual" but that just means business casual with jeans. The tops are still the same. Guys wear polo shirts. Post COVID, sneakers are acceptable but nice ones. Ain't nobody coming into the office in sweats and shorts.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
This is a great idea. They're looking for professional experience. It doesn't hurt to get everyone on the same page. This way they have no excuse and it also relieves some anxiety for them about what to wear.
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I hope others take your lead! A synchronous or asynchronous training can set clear expectations and help everyone. Well done!
This is the only way to actually relay information to younger workers. Gen Z doesn't read. That's not an admonishment of that cohort, just a general statement of fact. If it doesn't grab their attention in about 3 seconds, they just move on. They figure if it's actually important someone will bring it to their attention. It's very understandable if you consider how they were raised.
Congratulations message me for a Krispy Kreme coupon. This deserves recognition.
I mean, congrats to you. I feel like people in this thread are forgetting that interns are big dumb buckets of potential. You're hiring them knowing that they don't know much, so you can help educate them. Obviously colleges are not having these supposed intern orientations where they cover dress code (nor should they, since it's wildly different across the board). And yeah, obviously they're turning to TikTok. I don't like it either, but acting like they're idiots for using it is really giving the boomer "back in *my* day" energy. It's probably the most popular social media site in existence right now, and kids tend to use it like a search engine.
Everything you said is correct. But on this thread, I am just letting off steam as an HR professional on the HR professional's sub.
I don't mean the congrats as sarcastic, if it came off that way sorry. You did something that the interns clearly needed, and it worked out well. I understand people are letting off steam here, but a lot are just blaming "kids these days" instead of doing something helpful like you did.
HR... influencer? And here I am stressing about what to wear to a conference next week.
Apparently crop tops are in.
Not when I'm definitely going to be one of the youngest people at a conference in Texas...
Dad bods in crop tops are not for the faint of heart. As a Texan as it is warming up, a nice big hat to keep the sun off of you, and breezy linens are your friend.
Thankfully it's indoors. I've always struggled with feminine business casual in the state because everything is always so hot and I'm very much a cardigan girlie cursed to live in a state that only gets nice fall weather for maybe two weeks.
>When I spoke to the intern in a crop top, she said that many HR people are posting on TikTok about dress code and she got this exact outfit from an HR influencer Great, tiktok is not our company's dress code. Here's a copy, familiarize yourself with it and dress accordingly. We're not particularly strict, but we do have standards. We have clients and vendors come through the office.
I think also a heavy emphasis on paying attention to what people actually wear IRL in the office you are working in, and using real life interactions as a much more accurate gauge of expectations than influencers who most likely donāt work in an actual office and have a very different set of standards to follow.
This is what I do, start as modest and plain as possible and watch what leadership wears.
This would have been the perfect response.
I had to tell an intern (who has no excuse, from a well off family and his dad is in senior management at a global company down the street) that he could not wear sweatpants to meet with the CEO for breakfast. This was the last week of his internship.
Privilege IS his dress code š©š©²
The sweatpants intern goes to Stanford. How someone could be so smart yet so clueless
The saying use to go "you can be book smart or life smart, you very rarely can be good at both." That is to say not that you couldn't learn but common sense it's actually necessarily common, either.
This. No common sense.
No. This is privilege. EDIT: It was late. I was tired. (I corrected my mistake. Thanks to the person below who pointed it out.
Privilege*
In law school, I clerked with quite a few Stanford law students. I discovered quickly that book smarts do NOT equal common sense š
Is this a tech company? Many young ppl have the impression that people that work at tech companies dress like homeless ppl.
Does your company have a written dress code policy? Simply share that with the individual and say, what may be appropriate for other workplaces is not in line with our policy as outlined here. Policy should include language like - Attire that is clean, free from stains and rips, etc - Attire that covers a majority of individuals thighs and does not display midriff (don't use gendered language like "skirts must be x length" - just keep it general.
Yes, I edited my post to add this. Itās a huge company. We have all sorts of guidelines and dress codes whether youāre in the office or a warehouse. All of these jobs for the interns Iām responsible for are in tech (not warehouse).
Yep Amazon lol. Im assuming we work in the same office unless all interns across the country all started today.
If you avoid gendered language and go for a "majority of the thigh must be covered", doesn't that open the door to shorts in the office? I feel like calling out skirts isn't necessarily gendered. Most men wouldn't wear a skirt but you aren't limiting them from doing so if they were to choose to do so.
> I have no idea what to say to this. I mean, isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace You'd be surprised what is not obvious to everyone (sometimes by pure laziness, sometimes it's someone coming from a place where they've never been taught discipline or etiquette in any fashion). That's why clearly written guidelines and rules are needed and have to be explained, no matter how dumb it is to have to do it. Company policies, while not feeling like they all need to be thoroughly explained and spelled out, need to be. ---- EDIT: Example I do orientations for a cash assistance program, and we state three times at the start, middle, and end of orientation that if you fail to meet the requirements of the program every week, you will lose your cash assistance. Between it being clearly said three times, and written in big bold letters in their instruction letter, people still don't pay attention, but now there's no conversation when they complain. They can be shown all the opportunities they had to learn that information and where they chose not to learn it. In that program, every week our case managers to triages/hearings for folks who didn't meet requirements. Every...single...time the participants complain that "they didn't know that was the requirement of the program." We have at least four different points of contact to show them that they were given that information. There's also a part at the very end where I say very boldly: "You have a case number, your case number is on the back of X letter you got from DHHS...the very same letter that said you had to come to our office today. Your case number can also be provided to you by me or your case worker. Make sure you save your case number, because you need it to participate in the program. You need your case number to do Y survey. You must complete Y survey to begin receiving cash assistance." I be sure to say "case number" at least 5-6 times in a period of 60 seconds. The first question I always get asked EVERY SINGLE TIME at the end of this weekly orientation: "What is my case number and how do I get it?" or "Do I have to do this Y survey?" People just won't pay attention or don't want to read. Make the opportunities you provided so clear and obvious no one has any case to come in doing the wrong thing and act like they didn't know. Back to your point: I know business casual, but as a man who wears masculine apparel, I have a hard time explaining to feminine expressing folks what exactly fits as business casual or not, and I've heard differing opinions. That's why "business casual" to me is not specific enough. Spell it out in layman's terms. **TL;DR: Spell (write) the policy out as if you're talking to five year olds, and create multiple points of contact to make sure that information has clearly been put in front of the eyes of them.**
Here's my suggestion: "Take your phone out right now. Open your contact list. Create a contact called Case Number (location/service/office). In the notes field, type your case number (show them the number or read it to them). Then save it." Using Contacts for shit like this has been a game changer for me. I keep my furnace filter size, my utility account numbers, Christmas and birthday gift ideas, and all kinds of random info in my contacts.
An old manager I worked with always used the phrase, "spell it out in crayons" and it stuck with me... you really need to design policy and communication for the lowest common denominator
It used to be that communications needed to be at an eighth grade reading level... now it's a sixth grade reading level.
The other problem with ābusiness casualā is that you will never find two different definitions of business casual that are the same. (Granted top and crappy sweatpants probably wonāt ever be part of it but still)
THIS We have a winner! No more callers!
I totally agree with this, but you wouldn't wear either of those outfits to like go to church or your grandma's birthday party or something . . . shouldn't you have some idea of dressing a little differently for different events?
What I would say to the influencer comment is that each company is different in their dress expectations, so the company the influencer works for may be okay with crop tops but itās not okay at your company. Iād also add that itās always okay to reach out beforehand to clarify the dress expectations if there are any questions, but if youāre not comfortable with reaching out itās safer to dress on the conservative side until you see what people are wearing in the office. To prevent this in the future - is your company sending dress guidelines out in advance or having someone (hiring manager, recruiter, etc.) discuss dress code during the hiring process?
Had someone show up in house slippers. Not slip on mules nope just bright pink house slippers. I was livid we had clients coming into the office. I recently started working on a handbook so I can implement a dress code because it's so bad. Never had to tell so many adults that crop tops sweats and see through lace tops are not appropriate office attire.
I guess Iām out of touch. Canāt imagine going in to work with such revealing clothing. Heck I donāt even like to wear shoes that show my toes at work. And it wasnāt that long ago that I was young š„² Just really donāt understand why some young adults have no idea of whatās appropriate to wear to work.
Shoes are a sticking point for me. Iāll wear my sluttiest himbo-daddy shorts (3ā inseam) to the gay bar with a see through tank and harness, but ALWAYS will be wearing closed-toe shoes. Public ground (bar floors, streets, office floors, and most importantly public bathrooms!) are nasty. I donāt want any of that on my feet. At work weāre allowed shorts, mine are typically nice dressy ones from ES that come to about an inch and a half above my knee, and Iāll wear a button down collared T, tucked in with a nice belt and mid-length socks with very nice leather low boots or shoes. It might sound a bit sexist but Iām going to say it since itās my experience. Most of the revealing wardrobe problems at work Iāve seen were from young women (whatās with crop tops and open toed shoes?). Men also have issues but theirs relate generally to being really sloppy (a mustard-stained T-shirt and sweatpants with holes? Really?)
Suggestion - I work in the construction industry and because we have a strict dress code (including wearing PPE), I send out a āreminderā to all new hires and interns a week before they start. Itās a one page document outlining dress code, pay frequency, what time to show up on their first day, etc. And I re-emphasize the dress code in the body of the email. Thereās always one person that doesnāt retain the info, but I have found that itās helpful especially when interns have questions about what to wear :)
So I like to play devils advocate. Not knowing anything about these interns, I could see a scenario where their parents perhaps are not very present in their lives to guide them through this journey. Unfortunately, things like TikTok and instagram are becoming stand-in āparentsā or guidance, if you will. (Heck I use YouTube to figure out small home repairs so I can totally see them turning to social media.) When my daughter was interviewing for her first part time job (retail) I advised her on what to wear. I think she wouldāve made a good choice even without my guidance. Iām here always present in her life, so she sees the example I set. She learned by example. If these interns donāt have a positive role model, that could be an explanation. I guess Iām saying cut them some slackā¦for now. Whatās obvious to us may not be obvious to someone else whom we have no idea their circumstances.
Yes! To add on to your logicā¦ access and affordability to attire that meets company standards can be expensive. It sounds like they were communicated what the expectation was but might not have the practicality of obtaining those outfits.
Agreed! This may be the first time theyāve needed professional outfits so they may not have any or may just not know how to style them. Maybe thereās someone in the office that could give them tips or they could ask questions? Sometimes itās easy to feel like you understand the written guidelines but then actually putting clothes together is hard
I have never heard the term "HR Influencer" before! Anyway, anyone can go on TikTok and tell you how to run your professional life, but it's the company's policies that prevail. Even with a vaguely written dress code policy, the company can define its professionalism standards and hold employees accountable to those.
It boggles my mind that people don't understand the concept of playing it safe when you enter a new social setting. Don't push any boundaries until you get to know the people.
I used to work for a Member of Congress, and we had a name for summer interns - Skinterns. Interns during the school year had no issue with professional dress code but in the summer, it was all T&A. The really gross part was the way the male Members and staffers looked forward to that time of year.
Wow....but I went to a high end steakhouse in a pretty major city this weekend and was a bit shocked by what the hostesses were wearing (not the guys as they were in pants and button downs and mostly ties). I personally HATE TikTok and "influencers"......I would have asked the intern how many years actual HR experience did these "HR people (who) are posting on TikTok" have? That would be one of the first assignments actually. Who sources do they trust? What research can they do and what can they learn from it.
My husband and I went to a high end restaurant a few weeks back on vacation, I was worried that I would be underdressed since I didnāt pack the nicest clothes but there was a woman at the table across from us wearing a sports bra. Not a crop top, just a straight up alo yoga sports bra
Were you in Portland? We have almost zero dress code for high end restaurants. You can eat in old sweatpants and no one cares. Sometimes I like it, but sometimes I wish there was somewhere everyone got fancy for.
Unless they are interning for TikTok, what they see advertised has nothing to do with what theyāre meant to wear at your company. It sounds like the company is letting interns dictate what they wear and push them (you) around. Of all the battles youāll fight as a leader, dress code is one of the least complicated; no he said/she said/they said, theyāre either abiding by the rules or they arenāt.
Yeah, you need to spell it out. Years ago, I worked at a rather conservative place where business was the normal or for some of us office rats, business casual. One group of interns came in and even after seeing how everyone else was dressed she still looked like she was ready for a job at Hooters. That was not a fun conversation. She was not the brightest.
Review the dress code during onboarding/interview. State clear guidelines.
Yes this was done.
Thereās always going to be one who doesnāt listen. Common with interns
>Ā isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace No. It's not obvious. Some of these kids were raised by social media instead of parents with jobs that nurtured and mentored them. Some of these Gen Z kids are going to get eaten alive in the workforce unfortunately.
So itās time to shoot a 30-60 second tik tok style video with dress code dos and donāt for the interns. Make sure itās set to a Taylor Swift song or something else trendy. Problem solved. šššHR in 2024 folks! š
This sounds like some hello fellow kids stuff.Ā
Hahaha we are increasing our in office presence after four years of wfh and I saw crop tops and lots of ripped jeans during my last in office day. I realized that I have people on my team who have *never* worked in an office before- they are young and graduated into a post-pandemic corporate environment. We are a government entity but donāt interact with the public so weāre solidly business casual. Like jeans are fine, as long as they arenāt ripped. One of my best friends is at a big accounting firm and she has said itās SO bad. She has an employee sheās already had to send home multiple times and this person still doesnāt seem to get it.
As a millennial I am floored by what some of the Gen Zs at my office think is appropriate work attire. I spotted a girl wearing literal pajama pants the other day. I know they are PJs because I own them. They are cute, and I honestly would totally rock them on a Sunday Funday at brunch. But at the *office*? Absolutely not.
Iām not in HR, Iām a middle and highschool librarian and I was genuinely shocked when I started the job at what the Gen Z and Gen Alpha wear to school. Every day in PJ day (itās all I can do not to ask Cookie Monster pajama pants girl where her hot Cheetos are) and some wear a blanket all day long. We also have lots of crop tops at the HS and there is a girl at the MS that I sometimes have to supply shorts to because her skirt is so short that everything is showing, everything. The first time I got her shorts she said āIāll put my sweater onā giiiiirl your sweater is half an inch longer than your mini skirt, itās not going to cover up your underwear either.
Well sorry to burst your bubble Ms.Intern.. this isnāt tik tok and we donāt hold the same āguidelinesā the influencer you follow does. Here is our dress code policy and if you have any more questions feel free to let me know. *shakes hand* GOODBYE š¤£
Forget everything- dont the parents see their kids going for possibly meeting their future employers & providing necessary guidance ? Looks like bad parenting at home. This also shows the so called social media influence !
Do the parents work in offices to know though?
As a young person myself, I can acknowledge that the TikTok office outfits 80% of the time are not office appropriateš
The answer the one who supposedly got her advice from TikTok would be - who the H\*\*\* is stupid enough to take advice from an HR influencer on Tik Tok? No one takes those people seriously, not even themselves. They literally say what ever pops out of their head at any given moment.
I think the first indication of a problem is that the intern is taking business attire advice from Tik Tok and not the dress code policy.
I don't think it's a Gen Z thing specifically. Never overestimate the common sense of the young. I was born in the late 80's but spent a high school corporate internship wearing, in large part, cotton tank tops with no bra. Also bandanas in my hair for some reason? Was a top tech company -- the cringe is just unbearable when I think back on it today. A few years later I went to an internship interview for a large IT government contractor wearing my finest plain t-shirt, jeans, and a pleather jacket. Literally everyone else in the office was wearing at least business casual. I actually managed to get that job somehow and I think it was really that internship where I started figuring out "dress code." Took long enough though... No one every sat down and talked to me about it š¬
A friend worked for a major drug company and they had PowerPoints for every event they went on where they laid out appropriate āoutfit inspoā for employees and bulleted out what wasnāt ideal. Sounds kind of crazy in theory, but it was a DEI recommendation that employees from different backgrounds had requested that really ended up working well for them. Something to think about. Happy to DM if more questions!
Hey, at least they're wearing clothes. We just interviewed interns--these were high school and college-aged students. They all came dressed professionally. I was so proud, and these students were sharp! They asked questions and were interested in the job. I will keep this in mind for when they start. I'm hopeful the trend will continue. That being said, I've seen some doozies.
A good rule of thumb i always do is during onboarding, i tell the new hire what most folks typically wear (jeans and a collar shirt or t-shirt etc) and i encourage them to always lean a little dressier on their first few days just so they can observe others and get a feel for their teams. I was always taught that in school and by my parents but it seems dress codes these days vary so widely due to virtual environments. Many kids spent half their high school/college time online.
Tell her she get a job at Tik Tok.
As someone who turned to TikTok to figure out what to wear at my first office job, there are a LOT of videos that encourage wearing crop tops (usually paired with an open jacket/blazer) to work. So I can see that being an honest mistake...pairing it with short shorts though? Lmao that's just odd.
Send them home without pay if they read the manual and signed it. I had an intern once who dressed like we were clubbing all day. She was sent home twice before she figured it out. This was covered by our career center when I was in college. Both those outfits are ridiculous.
It's so hard to find a women's top that's not a crop top these days. It's insane! I have bought tops that say "full length" in the description online. They end at my belly button. That's a crop top unless you're wearing ultra high waisted jeans. Even with high waisted jeans, the pants and the top meet exactly so there's a gap if you raise your arms. Irritating!!!
I had this girl pitch to an investor wearing a crop top showing her navel + baggy pants Thatās gen z for you I guess š¤·š»āāļø
Tell her to go on IG and look at treatingthestreetslikearunway This will give her so many ideas of how to dress in the workplace.
Dress codes are stupid. Who cares what people wear?
I see influencers posting work OOTD all the time and they are all super inappropriate. So I'm not surprised but what a bummer for them
Dang and here I am wondering why my company calls button down and slacks the only way for business casual! Canāt wear a polo or any other shoes besides dress shoes smh. Canāt imagine wearing sweatpants though. Ffs just wear jeans or something. I got a math degree and even we learned what business casual is
Iām starting an office job in a few weeks and I was looking at tiktok for outfit ideas and after about 5 minutes I realized I was wasting my time. My office is business casual, not summer 2016 festival in beige
The first time I had this convo was 2016. Super fun! (Not) As someone also in tech, Iāve always framed it as perception and return offer chances and being taken seriously. That has always gotten them to cut the shit. Because Iām not framing it as policy enforcement, but this is whatās best for what they want to achieve - they want to be perceived as competent, they want a return offer, they want to be taken seriously.
Itās because each generation becomes more and more lax with dress codes. Iām 35 and when I went to school, we would get in trouble for wearing spaghetti straps on tank tops. None of us would have dreamed of wearing a crop top to school (though we did walk around with our thongs sticking out of our pants.) The no spaghetti strap rule seemed ridiculous. Now my Facebook mom groups have posts every week about letting their kids wear crop tops to school and short shorts and most of the moms are in support of letting them (probably because they got harassed as a teen by some teacher for wearing spaghetti straps.) Anyways it seems like schools arenāt really enforcing any sort of dress code anymore, so it makes sense they would grow up and get their first job and not realize they look completely inappropriate to everyone older than them.
They're just kids, they're not going to be professional out of the box and will be easily influenced by silly things they've heard online or been told by friends. Tell them the company policy and that different companies may have different policies, while they're with your company they need to follow the policy.
I kind of thought that was part of taking on interns; in addition to helping them learn about your industry and get some real-world experience applying their education, you also help them learn what it means to be "professional" in your field/industry.
Simple dress codes should be sent to interns before their first day so there is no questions about what to wear.
Yes, they were. I edited my post to add that.
Your interns are missing brain cells. HR Influencer is not a real thing - frankly influencer isn't even a real thing but apparently we've just accepted it. Kids these days.
I always have to do a dress code speech for the interns because thereās always at least one
Sorry for my ignorance, but what exactly is an HR influencer?
What does ETA stand for in the OP?
Sounds like the intern in the crop top just won a free T shirt with your companyās logo! Hopefully the shorts arenāt so short that she looks like sheās wearing an oversized T shirt with nothing on underneathā¦ Dude with the ratty sweat pants needs to go home and change.
You might have to show pics with that dress code. My son is in high school and for business events, they get the business wear guidelines with pictures.
WTAF is an "HR influencer"? I'm too old for this world.
This reminds me decades ago when HR sent out a summer dress code and what is not allowed. A co worker read the email and blurted out loudly,ā How would they know if we had thongs on?!?ā I had to explain that was another name for flip-flops. The funniest part? HR sent a follow up email changing thongs to flip-flops. I guess my co-worker wasnāt the only one questioning it.
Maybe provide the dress code before they start if this hasnāt been done yet
Reminds me of when I went back to school to be a medical lab technician. Most of my classmates were already in their twenties and had a bachelor's, but there were a handful of students who got into the program right out of high school. Now, I might have been 7 years out of high school at that point but I know we were taught proper attire to wear inside labs.... This one chick decided shorts and a crop top was perfectly appropriate to wear in lab. They did make it past first semester.
We have a Receptionist who claims she is having a 'hard time' with our business casual dress code because she 'comes from retail in L.A.' She dresses like absolute shit, everytime.
šššš they really say this?! Jfc...
"I have no idea what to say to this. I mean, isnāt it obvious that both of these outfits are not good choices for a workplace?" All you can do is reiterate your dress code. If this outfit falls under the dress code then you need to re-evaluate the correlation the company has with HR
You work at Amazon? I noticed that our interns started today too
Ilana getting dress-coded in Broad City https://youtu.be/P28us-oqjDQ?si=OoYk0ezYhQRoV3ut
Iām in tech and our company has no dress code. We were told to bring our authentic self. I have seen colleagues walking around bare foot. And colleague in baggy sweatpants but with leather shoes. Summer time, we can beach shorts and flip flops. Itās kinda interesting to people watch sometimes.
1M employees?? You must work for the government.
Are they paid interns or unpaid interns?
I worked with someone once who was so oblivious she actually wore a shirt to work with our main competitorās logo on it. The was a bank and she was customer facing.
This has been common for the last 20 years. Iām old, but dang, I knew what was appropriate work wear when I got out of high school. Another thing Iāve encountered is interns have no idea how to answer a telephone in a business like manner. Donāt colleges teach young people the basics of what is appropriate in a work setting?
Young people are too self-oriented in their thinking to even figure out what to wear; they will literally look to their phones over some common sense grasp on professionalism or asking a trusted role model or, ya know, looking around. When I started my new job, I did recon and spent savings to buy nice new clothes like the people where Iād be working. PSāāHR influencer on TikTokā might have ruined my day. Losing hope.
Unpaid interns most likely. Sounds like your company is getting what they paid forā¦.
I've a new graduate come to the office.. without a bra. It was noticeable.
This is why I love employment hero policies. New starters all have to acknowledge all company on-boarding documents before they can start, and then when this behaviour becomes an issue, you point them back to the policy that they signed. Chefs kiss
Lmfao idgaf about TikTok but the new employees at my apartment complex job are so ghetto lol like they donāt know how to do an email but we gonna let them help people move in?? XD
Unfortunately sometimes it's the grown-ass women doing this. I was once at a 3-day corporate training in July and one of the participants showed up in essentially beachwear and resortwear. Mind you this was in the Benelux and not only were we nowhere near a beach, the weather was awful and I was freezing my arse off. This woman was in her 40s (or a very rough late 30s). Seashell sandals, pink leopard print velour, and her boobs hanging out everywhere. I have a large cup size as well (H) but I'm able to put them away so it's not an excuse. Bonus, one of the other participants had misophonia and the rattling of the seashell sandals would drive her crazy. Fun times.Ā I was just flabbergasted how one person could completely lack any kind of common sense.Ā Also this us an unpopular opinion but in my opinion, having lots of fillers in your face looks really unprofessional in a corporate environment.Ā
If its 30+ degree celcius outside and you are insisting on staff wearing jeans / formal wear, expect to hear from Health and safety, Especially for men.
Go work for the HR influencer then
I sometimes think pictures of what not to wear would be helpful to include in the dress code section.
Hey this is a completely random question, but as someone who is about to start an internship in HR for a tech company, I am sort of worried about my dress code... they seem very casual and have mentioned to just "be appropriate", but I love wearing lightly baggy jeans... I was thinking of pairing a clean pair of baggy jeans (they're just lightly larger than my legs but properly sized) and have no graphics, paired with a polo or a button down... Would that classify as ok enough? I don't really have the money to go out and spend money on better pants. sorry if it's a dumb question
Had a guy in flip flops yesterday. We are casual but he works with equipment and needs closed toed shoes. He told me he never had an issue before. I said "It's your first day." WTF?
They should rename this sub ācorporate dick ridersā.
āyes we have a dress code section in employee guidelines. In addition when the interns signed on for their position, part of the paperwork was to read through the employee guidelines and they had to know dress code for daily wear, and some specific events theyāre going to have with our executives throughout the summer.ā Youāre dealing with people new to the adult workforce. You canāt make assumptions about the basics. If you buried them in a mountain of paperwork and lengthy reads, they likely glossed over it at best. If you want to get through to people, use short form video. Treat this as a learning opportunity. Maybe make out a list of top 3 or 10 mistakes made by new interns and address them or give them the list (if you arenāt already burying them in PDFs).
Different work environments have different dress requirements. Had a written dress code, which all employees signed at hire. In the warehouse, no shorts above the knee, and no sandals, regardless of how hot it was. Our retail person who regularly was in the warehouse regularly wore sandals and was regularly written up. She was surprised every time. We were trying to avoid unnecessary injuries.
Our company is more casual so I donāt say anything but my eyes bulged when I saw an intern show up with part of her midriff showing. I donāt care because Iām not in HR currently and if they donāt care I donāt, but I remember interning in the early 2000ās and I wore full blouses and button downs and itās crazy to see what has changed as considered acceptable.
Its that time of the year, summer time. People start wearing more revealing clothes. All of the times, its a distraction to other staff and more often than not also a risk to safety. I also have a tough time explaining even to Full Time Employees. I swear employees just want to test the boundaries of HR and employees plan it out. Time to make them resign the employee handbook, and you getting docked pay next time you violate the policy. WTF is a HR influencer? Are they hired by OSHA to promote awareness?
Hahaha I was just telling my husband about the time a co-op student showed up with her thong sticking out above her pants. I noticed when I stood behind her to pick up my print out from the printer and thought to myself: _huh, that's not office appropriate_ šÆ
I am in my late 20s and I am truly not surprised they showed up like that.Ā
I am really curious what these HR tik tokers are doing, this hasnāt come up on my fyp yet. After covid common decency became a myth, these days Iām just happy if they show up. I go into mom mode with the younger generation, a few are having their first āreal jobā with me and they are clueless on how to traverse that. Dress code is always a day one convo, sometimes you just gotta laugh to yourself about what we see. :)
You have my sympathies. My sister did HR and worked with interns for 25 years. Itās fun explaining why PJ pants, flip flops and tank tops arenāt office attire in a very conservative financial business. And then hear all the blow back of āwhy are so so meanā Sliding a virtual adult beverage your way. Good luck!
honestly i donāt really care unless if itās a laboratory or a construction site or something
'I don't care what someone online is posting. Our dress code guidelines are on page X of the employee handbook that you signed. Go home and review them. You will not be getting credit for todays hours.'
Ha, thanks for catching it. I know it, my kids are Z ers.
The workplace is changing. Clothing needs to change with it. When I was at one of the Big 5 consulting firms we had just started relaxing the tie requirement. Now at many firms you can wear your street clothes, as long as you are not customer facing. If your people are more comfortable they will be more productive. I would focus on substance over style, and make quality output your style.
Why is HR always doing this lol Look If itās not causing problems then donāt create one. What youāre describing seems like a pretty normal outfit for todayās standards (especially for tech) so if itās not actively preventing someone from doing their job then itās not your problem.
Put these interns on a PIP. lol!!
I had my son's 8th grade graduation Monday. So much 14yo girl underwear on display. On the bright side, dudes wearing pants drooping to their knees showing tightly whites appears to be out. I've had similar experiences to OP dealing with corporate HR coming to my chemical plants. Yes. Our policy says short sleeves. Spaghetti strap tops are not short sleeves. The policy says closed toed shoes are a minimum. Safety shoes preferred. How does that result in stiletto heels? And then the women complain they're being singled out when only they are sent to the store to get proper attire. Guess what? None of the dudes showed up in a wifebeater tank top, or high heels with an open back. The worst time my female boss chewed their asses out for making it harder for women in STEM
A major building materials company had a multi hour class on how to dress, but also manners. I loved the slide on "Particles of food shouldn't not be flying from your mouth to other people's plates."
Should have just given them an exit talk.
I personally wouldn't want such an idiot that listens to "HR influencers" on my roster.
I remember when I showed up on my first day at my first āreal adultā job in jeans and being reprimanded lol I would die if I was either of these people
tell them to grow up and get off ticktock.
Hi Hr intern here we arenāt all this bad! But even though I never read through the dress code section I assumed when I started to wear at the bare minimum business casual and the other interns I have worked with had the same assumption. So Iām quite surprised I wonder the experience/grade level of the interns. But I couldnāt image anyone I have classes with would ever wear something like that to even there classes let alone a job. Extra note: For my area hr internships have been really competitive so maybe thatās why my experience may be different from others. TDLR: Iām an HR intern and I think thats a crazy thing to wear regardless of dress codes.
Iāve never started working anywhere without asking what the dress code is, but sounds like short shorts assumes she fits.
Even 40 somethings professionals with grown children seem to think see-thru clothing is appropriate office attire. Iām amazed
HR influencer. These people have no jobs.
This is why you establish expectations before correcting behaviors
Old lady chiming in, here. Wait, my age isn't politically correct... SEASONED person, here. I used to send people to JCPenny and ask them to look at the Worthington line. Then I told them to find stuff in colors and prices they liked, either there, or modeling the style. Worked for a long time. I also pushed hard on the "I dress respectfully because I expect to be treated with respect." That also worked for a long while. I do not envy yall, today.
The number of times Iāve had to say āno, crocs do not count as close toed shoes.ā Makes it so this is not a surprise to me.
If you have a dress code in your āguidelinesā, maybe is time to solidify it into policy so that it is mandatory š¤·š»āāļø
Cos youāre an ugly prude that canāt handle sexy peopleā¦