What were the rules when you started work?

[QuickGuide]

I worked in a bank from 1988. For men shirts must always be white, socks must never be white. For women, no open toed shoes and tights at all times.

But you were allowed to smoke at the counter whilst serving customers 😆

2001. Knee length skirts, tights, tops must have collars, groomed and presentable, no weird hair styles or colours, no ripped clothes, no visible tattoos, no cleavage. Banking

Late 1980s in accountancy then advertising. In accountancy dark suits. Women had to wear skirts.

Advertising was more flexible. Again, smoking in the office, and no issues getting drunk at lunchtime occasionally

1998 I was a very junior office junior at a big insurance company. We’d go out for a drink on Friday lunchtimes. There was one broker who was particular entertaining 🤨when drunk so on his leaving do he got completely plastered (drinks bought by management). That afternoon he told a major client to F off and hung up on him, then put his fist through his computer screen 😳

Not me but my sister, went to work in an office in a large local sausage factory in the late 80s, she was told me had to wear a skirt. No questions, women had to wear a skirt. I don’t think she lasted long lol 😂

First job as a receptionist in the 70s. If my bf came to pick me up or drop me off he couldn’t give me a kiss goodbye. As I found out when he parked 50yards away and gave me a peck on the cheek. Doctor’s bitch of a wife saw me and marched me in to tell me off. Mum and dad were on his side, until I got bollocked for kissing mum goodbye (she was off into hospital).

That took me back, I was also working in a bank in the late 80's, our manager was a lunchtime drinker, I learnt it was best not to stand next to him during a group discussion as any praise he gave you might be accompanied by a discrete tap on the bottom. I also remember the day I was talking to the deputy manager in his office when we heard an almighty crash coming from the branch manager's office. We both rushed in to find an upturned chair and him picking himself up off the floor. His explanation was the had chair collapsed but it was obvious he had actually fallen asleep drunk.

This is hilarious!

2 staff rooms. The one with white walls (non-smoking) and the one with yellow walls (smoking allowed).

People smoking at their desks regardless of those around them. Trousers for women were frowned upon. Smart clothes with jackets, court shoes and tights. Life is far more comfortable clothes-wise now.

Late 1980s, big financial organisation - all the senior managers were men, and each had a female PA. PAs were not allowed to wear trousers.

Was teaching in the late 1970s in a Catholic secondary school. I was called in for being seen walking in from the car park with a male member of staff and we were laughing. It would give students the wrong impression.

Not my place of work, but this reminded me that when we registered with our GP after moving house in the mid 80s we saw a Scottish GP who chain smoked through every consultation, including those with babies, pregnant women and asthmatics. He was actually a very good GP if you could get past that!

Smoking was fine at my place of work too - big accountancy firm, large open plan office, only one smoker that I can recall, but I am extremely sensitive to cigarette smoke and it made my nose and eyes stream. Fortunately, before too long (late 80s?) it was banned inside the building, probably a little before it was banned on the Tube and on railway trains, after the horrific Kings Cross fire, which started when a discarded cigarette stub ignited a wooden escalator and the accumulated detritus between the slats.

I remember a fellow trainee (female) wearing a leather skirt and that caused raised eyebrows. Other than that, it was all fairly common sense stuff - you had to look smart, and a few trailblazers were wearing very smart trousers/trouser suits instead of skirts/dresses with jacket or smart cardigan/jumper. There was no requirement for women to wear heels or makeup that I can recall (I wore neither, nobody ever commented). Men had to wear smart shirt, tie, suit, polished shoes. I can't remember any colleague with long hair but I doubt that would have passed unremarked.

Male colleague! Fine on women.

I don't recall any particular "rules" like that when I started in the early 80s.

It was a "professional" office (accountant practice), but we basically just dressed smartly, not because it was written down in a rule book, but it was just "normal" to do so back then. Men usually wore suit (or jacket/trousers), shirt and tie. Women wore either a skirt or smart pants along with a blouse or other form of smart top. There was no "rule" that we didn't wear jeans or T shirts, but no one did.

Smoking at desks and in meetings was commonplace (much to my disgust as I was stuck in a tiny office with 2 chain smoking blokes!).

I started working for a bank in 2002(still work there tbf) and you HAD to open a staff bank account

being the gobshite I was I challenged them not to pay me for my work by putting in such a hurdle. Actually got away with it and I’m still with the same competitor bank

yes to calling the credit managers Mr Taylor et al

Late 80s - large accountancy firm (one of the Big 8 in those days.....). Women were not allowed to wear trousers and had to wear fine dernier tights (either flesh tone or black) and court shoes (heels not needed). We didn't have computers - tax computations were written out by hand, the arithmetic had to be checked by the comptometer team and then the computation was typed up by your secretary on a word processor. All the office based professional staff had a secretary. Internal messages were typed up and circulated around the office in large envelopes with boxes on the front to write the name of the next recipient in. Post boys were usually 16-18 year olds straight from school and the only male members of staff who didn't have to wear a jacket (did have to wear a tie though). They came around every couple of hours or so to bring you your post and empty your out tray. Senior partners were referred to by their intials. You had to work overtime in the week to achieve your chargeable hours target before Friday lunchtime as one or two of the partners would sweep everyone out for lunch and no one was in a fit state to do much afterwards.

I started working in a bank too. From the vague recollections I have from circa 1980, women had to wear skirts, tights and court shoes, and if you were a cashier serving customers the manager didn't like you to wear bright nail varnish.
When you got married it was assumed that you would be resigning to become a housewife. You had to fill in a form asking if you could keep your job.
And once you were married and wanted a mortgage, the man's salary only was taken into account when calculating how much your own bloody employer would lend.

I worked in a supermarket in the late 90s. Women had to wear these ridiculous front fastening dresses with an apron on top with tights and shoes. The manager was referred to as Mr . There was a smoking room upstairs. A glass box within the canteen of all places.

Primary teacher in the early nineties. The teachers would smoke while on playground duty in morning break with the dcs.

@Onehappymam ...I worked in a small, family owned supermarket in 2004 and we were still wearing that ensemble then...the dresses were so wide and long, paired with the aprons we all looked like extras from Little Orphan Annie.

Hotel reception 90's we had to wear stockings and heels. No smoking behind reception but we could smoke at the bar. We also got a free meal and a lift home every night

I worked in a bank in the 80s. When the cheques arrived from the clearing houses all staff issued cheques were handed to the manager to review, as well as inter account transfers. Cash withdrawals over the counter had to be done at lunchtime by joining the queue with the customers. (I used to draw most of my wages in cash and pootle over to my building society and pay it in.).

First job mid 1970s Civil Service - no rules about dress that I recall but by mid afternoon it was like working in a fog bank with all the cigarette smoke. Clothes used to reek.

Second job was working in an American bank - was sitting in front of the front door where customers could see me so no trousers and however cold it was no big sweaters to be put on until the front door closed at 3pm. The drinking culture was insane - there was one manager who if you wanted to talk to him after 11am you went to the nearest pub, which was where he spent his afternoons. Business lunches could end at 5pm 😮

Moved from there to another American bank, late 80s got a mortgage in my own name at preferential rate of 5% - don't recall any rules about having it on my own as a woman, perhaps American banks had different rules. They did have an earlier retirement age for women - you could only pay into the pension up to 60, 65 for men.

My career started in computer technology, in 1985.

All first name terms, no official dress code but everyone wore suits, and trouser rather than skirt suits for women felt a tad racy until 2005.

Nearly forty years later, the technology sector is still desperate for qualified staff so not likely to have conditions worsen anytime soon.

I've never understood why more people don't go in for technology. I highly recommend it.

1987

Smoking in the back office

Tea twice a day brought by Bert the messenger

Pub on a Friday lunchtime

Full on parties for leaving and Christmas. I had a kissergram in the Banking Hall on my 18th

Massive hair, bigger than an MN salad

Exponentially high heels and breathtakingly tight skirts.

I started teaching in 2003, when section 28 still existed 😢