Should Wearing High-Heeled Shoes Be Mandatory?

[jim360]

I mean... really?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-36264229

[jambutty]

Me too ladybirder, Ive got lovely bunions!

[jim360]

You're welcome!

Seriously, can anyone so vociferously defending the obligation to wear heels explain what the problem is with wearing flat shoes -- or, more to the point, for giving women a choice on this matter? Some can manage with heels. Some can't. Why should the latter group be excluded from jobs in which they are all other ways qualified?

[mikey4444]

Ellipsis...well deserved BA !

....common sense, which sometimes doesn't go down too well here on AB !

[DTCwordfan]

not really, mikey, PwC have a suit and tie policy for their male staff - my g-daughter's bro works for them as one of their consultants.

[mikey4444]

DTC....I don't have a problem with suit and tie, but if it also included a rule on wearing Cuban Heels as well, I would object, and this is exactly what is happening with this women.

[albaqwerty]

I was thinking along the lines of winkle-pickkes for the men Mikey :-)

[shoota]

It isn't PwC's policy, it is the policy of Portico who supply the temps.

[naomi24]

Mikey, //This is all about making women the centre of attention......a position insisted on by men and maintained by women. //

No it isn't. It's about maintaining the smart standards that many city offices require. I know some that require women to wear business suits too. It's just the way it is.

This is not a member of the permanent staff complaining - she's a temp who was under no obligation to stay there. She's simply making waves.

[shoota]

From the article:
A PwC spokesman said the company was in discussions with Portico about its policy.

"PwC outsources its front of house and reception services to a third party supplier. We first became aware of this matter on 10 May, some five months after the issue arose," the spokesman said.

"The dress code referenced in the article is not a PwC policy."

[naomi24]

It was the policy of her employer and clearly the client expected her to conform.

[DTCwordfan]

PwC's policy is the same as I had in London, suits except for dress-down Fridays.

http://www.graddiary.com/interview/550/pwc/

[Bazile]

naomi24

//This is not a member of the permanent staff complaining - she's a temp who was under no obligation to stay there. She's simply making waves. //

Maybe so - however it's entirely likely that some of the permanent staff , do have a genuine concern/problem , with wearing high heeled shoes , but however are too scared to complain ; because of the risk of suddenly
' not performing well ' in their next performance assesment

[shoota]

//clearly the client expected her to conform. //

Without becoming boringly argumentative Naomi, I think that is an assumption on your part.

[jim360]

Doesn't seem unreasonable to complain about a policy that has no obvious grounding in anything other than age-old convention. Sometimes we *need* people to "make waves".

[DTCwordfan]

However, they do request that they dress as appropriate for their clients....so it's a question of doing your client homework - just as it ought to be if you are in professional sales....

[shoota]

Baz - see my post at 15.12


(It's happening isn't it, I'm becoming boringly argumentative...)

[naomi24]

DTC, I only joined in with Dress Down Friday once. I found I couldn't work properly out of 'uniform'. So uncomfortable! It threw me completely!

[mikey4444]

But Naomi....you have still failed to have explained why smart flat shoes for women, are not as smart as shoes that have heels on them, and why they are not unacceptable ?

I am sure I am not the only man on here today that doesn't see the difference.

[naomi24]

Bazile, for big city companies it is the norm, really it is.

shoota, I don’t see how it’s an assumption. The client sent her home.

[albaqwerty]

let me get this straight in my sun-frazzled brain
Portico is the temp agency who sent her to PwC

PwC said that the dress code is not theirs, therefore it must be the the Temp Agncy's policy and they should have told her before she accepted (or declined)