For good business reasons, many professional employers adopt
policies regulating dress and appearance in their
workplaces.
These policies can help enhance an office's public image,
promote a productive work environment, comply with health and
safety standards, and even prevent claims of unlawful harassment
and discrimination. While no law requires an employer to maintain a
dress/appearance policy, some laws are relevant to such
policies.
Draft A Dress Code That Conveys Your Expectations
A dress code or appearance policy should be drafted with several
goals in mind. It should clearly state the employer's
expectations, based on its own view of professionalism in the local
community. It should preserve the employer's flexibility
to make decisions and its authority to interpret ambiguities. It
should also inform employees that it will be applied consistently
and without regard to any protected categories.It should state that
if employees violate it, then they
