To wear leggings to work

[parrotsummer]

We have a uniform and it's just a tunic black or navy trousers. Most people wear leggings and trainers. One woman has been complaining saying it's not professional! AIBU to think if they want professionals they need to pay professional salary not £6.90 an hour!

rain Mark Zuckerberg has a trademark grey marl tshirt and jeans look. I'm sure that's what he wears to work. It does not make him less professional. And we expect people to be professional. You don't need a dress code or strict office hours to make your staff productive.

AIBU to think if they want professionals they need to pay professional salary not £6.90 an hour!
have you ever hear of the advice: "dress for the job you want, not the job you have"?
If you want to earn more money then dress more professionally and wear trousers. If you are happy to be receiving just above minimum wage and not looking for promotions then wear the leggings if its what you are most comfortable in x

Not sure dress for the job you want applied to a carer. What's the career path?

Maybe trousers was the wrong term. They are leggings, an item of clothing in their own right. They are outerwear though, you thinking they don't look right doesn't change that. You might wear them instead of tights, that doesn't make them hosiery. I wear leggings to run in, it doesn't make them a tracksuit. They're still leggings.

I don't understand why people are focussing on what they look like with short tops anyway as the OP clearly stated several times she wears a tunic

notaprincessbutaqueen

Are you for real? That is without a doubt one of the most ridiculous posts I've ever read on here.

Not sure dress for the job you want applied to a carer. What's the career path?
Promotion? Team Leader? Management? Eventually running her own care agency? there is still plenty of progression available to carers

YANBU. Completely agree that you can't expect professional dress without a professional wage. Leggings are perfectly acceptable with a tunic imo.

And you get to achieve that progression by not wearing leggings?

well there you go.

A tunic in the same vein as those worn by nurses, beauty therapists etc? If so then definitely not long enough to wear with leggings.

Leggings really aren't suitable for trousers in all situations - even if you are a primary aged child or younger. Unless you are a gym instructor, or a leggings model, I can't think of many workplaces where they are appropriate without being "under" something.

Have to say I normally agree with the "dress for the job you want" adage.

I'd wager notaprincess has, or ever will be a carer......

I've just checked the Oxford English Dictionary. Leggings are: 'tight-fitting stretch trousers worn by women and children'.

BUT I always wear leggings under a dress. So much more comfortable than tights. Hate tights.

I'm a nurse. I wear a tunic and trousers and I wouldn't dream of wearing leggings to work. They are not appropriate workwear in my job.

I spend a lot of my day on my knees, or bending and stretching and running the risk of being splashed with wee, vomit, blood and pus. I wear stretchy jersey trousers or cargo trousers with my tunic and not leggings as I don't want to go to work looking like I've only got half dressed.

(And out of work I wear leggings with tunics or dresses a lot, usually with boots or ballet flats. Again neither of which are something I would wear to work).

Joins Quiero awaiting promotion (minus leggings) because of course it's that simple

There is a real underlying snobbery on here and threads like this bring it out. It's not overt but they way people talk about 'minimum wage jobs' and how those people should operate or act is very worrying.

I think some people need to remember that their way isn't the only way and we are a vast community with people from all different backgrounds and I personally don't want to see hard working women hounded off here because they don't fit the MN middle class stereotype.

I have worn leggings to work. But where I work nobody cares what you wear as long as you are decent.

Agree Quiero. And sadly, I don't think that even if the OP started wearing trousers or a fucking business suit, her employers would be queuing up to pay her any more than her current wage until they legally have to.

Or that someone will look at her and say 'do you know what, we were going to make you team leader, or chief carer but we won't because you wear leggings not trousers'. What matters in the OPs job is that she cares for her clients with professionalism and dignity, always turns up, is polite, does the tasks she needs to do etc etc. What exactly she wears on her bottom half has absolutely no bearing on it whatsover.

Where I work, we measure people on what they do, how they do it etc, not what they look like. Many of our best staff are quite scruffy even when meeting clients, but are also extremely well thought of, to a level where they are at the top of the profession on a world-wide level. if someone had looked at them and thought - your face/image doesn't fit, our industry wouldn't have benefitted from some of the finest minds out there.

Caring isn't a profession so going on about it looking unprofessional misses the point.

No, you're missing the point. You still need to look professional and take care of your appearance. You wouldn't turn up in a tracksuit would you? It doesn't look professional. Or appropriate. Neither do leggings.

I don't really care how I look

Yes, I've noticed most carers aren't bothered. Some of the sights I've seen are terrible.

LoveChickens - As someone who is disabled, what I care about from carers is that they are kind and are god at their job. I don't give a fuck what they wear. Unless they are wearing a t shirt with say a racist slogan, it is none of my business.

And my partner works with lots of people who are really struggling financially. He is quite scruffy and gets much much better feedback from employer surveys of people using the service, than those staff who dress smart and quite often look down their nose at clients coming in who are scruffy.

PS I was a carer for about 8 months before I handed in my notice. Nobody caring about how they represented the company was one of the things I mentioned. Piercings everywhere, tattoos on necks, see through leggings, patterned leggings, trainers in bright colours, long bright colours false nails. Hair dyed in wacky colours scraped back on the face so it looked like they had a facelift, big gold jewellery. Spending 5 minutes at a service users house instead of 30. Slagging off colleagues and service users constantly. Low paid low skilled jobs seem to attract these sorts of people. Not everyone, as I stuck out like a sore thumb. But in general this is what I found. It was hideous.

I would expect a carer to be clean and dressed for the job they are going to do. Clean black thick leggings and a tunic with flat shoes sounds about perfect to me.

That's great margeys. My MIL is severely disabled and has carers many times a day. She does find appearance important.