Casual Friday Inflation

What is it with "Casual" Fridays any more? Don't people have pride in their appearance, their roles in their organization, or even the organization itself? As with most other aspects of our economy, inflation seems to have affected the way many people dress on the last day of the work week. What used to be grubby is now considered casual and what was casual is now business casual - at least through the eyes of some.

I remember when Casual Friday in most companies meant, "lose the tie." At my employer, that wasn't actually the case because we didn't have Casual Friday. It was "tie day" every day. However, in June of 2001, my employer changed to "casual business attire" which meant losing the tie completely, unless of course if there was an event or visitor that warranted a knot. The quote from our CEO's email announcement:

"As another step toward making our company a more open and congenial place in which to work, I would like to announce a change in the dress code -- to casual business attire (which of course, does not mean sneakers, jeans and shorts.)"

Now, I have not seen shorts (unless you include women's Capri pants), but I have seen my share of sneakers and jeans, many of which have seen their own share of miles traveled. I just don't get it. We (and I use the collective "we") strive to be treated like professionals. We complain when we are not respected as valued members of the organization. Then on Fridays, instead of tastefully dressing down to "casual business attire," we act as if we are about to change the oil in our cars.

If this is what people wear to work on Fridays, what do they put on to become more casual at home? If the proportions hold true, that level of "casual" would allow them a second job of standing on the freeway off-ramp with a cardboard sign, indicating, "will work for good clothes."

I'm sorry, but keep the slacks, keep the dress shoes and keep the collared shirts. Lose the jeans.

Dave