help - question re uniform (or not)

[jbob]

I can think of better things to take a stand on than wearing a t-shirt.

I'd rather wear a t-shirt than be suited and booted.

There are, and were, in my particular case, but that's not what this thread is about. It's about being forced to wear uniforms without consultation.

 

[beeboo]

Well, library staff don't wear uniforms and there never seems to be much of a problem there. Or pub workers (on the whole), for that matter.

Staff in bookshops can normally be identfied by the fact they'll be shelving books and serving behind the counter, activities which customers on the whole do not engage with. Their 'anonymity' is perhaps due to your own perception of retail staff, (a view which is shared by the majority, I find), as identity-less automatons.

It's interesting to note the implicit hierarchies of occupation that are used to judge whether people should accept whether they are corporately branded or not.

Ever been to the City? ne'er a more identity-less bunch of automatons did you see than crossing London Bridge of morning, generally being paid handsomely for the priviledge of looking like clones of each other.

oh and I always get customers and staff muddled up in bookshops too - admittedly standing behind a till is a bit of a give away but walking round will a pile of books and taking things off shelves is fairly commonly associated with both

 

[FridgeMagnet]

I can think of better things to take a stand on than wearing a t-shirt.

I'd rather wear a t-shirt than be suited and booted.

If my work told me I had to start wearing a suit - despite the fact that that's better than being dressed up like a performing monkey - I'd still cause trouble, because that's not the basis that I was hired on.

Okay, I am a bit of a bolshy git. But there's no reason for this, it's insulting, it's treating people like they're comedy characters instead of anybody worthy of respect, based on some stupid idea somebody had in a meeting... bugger that. A badge with "IT" on it and an email saying "people will be going around with badges saying IT, feel free to ask them about the IT setup in the new building" would be quite sufficient.

"Happy to help", fuck's sake. Why not tell them to say "have a nice day" after plugging in somebody's ethernet? Thin end of the wedge.

It's just a symptom of the class divide between management and people who actually do shit, if you ask me.

 

[jbob]

Ever been to the City? ne'er a more identity-less bunch of automatons did you see than crossing London Bridge of morning, generally being paid handsomely for the priviledge of looking like clones of each other.

oh and I always get customers and staff muddled up in bookshops too - admittedly standing behind a till is a bit of a give away but walking round will a pile of books and taking things off shelves is fairly commonly associated with both

Yes, been to the city. Worked there, in fact. I never noticed anyone wearing 'Happy To Help' slogans emblazoned across their backs, with corporate logo's on the front. Funny that.

Yes, it is difficult identifying people who work in bookshops, it must be really traumatic As a tip, in general, look for the bored looking people who are merely putting books on shelves and not shopping. It's really not that difficult; I've been buying books for years and I've never struggled. But then, I always manage to negotiate that tricky process of going to the bar and ordering a drink from the uniformless bar person quite easily too. It's a gift, I suppose.

 

[beeboo]

I ain't saying that city workers generally have the words 'happy to help' on their suits. Just pointing out that being expected or obliged to conform to a certain appearance is isn't confined to retail or perceived 'lower rung' jobs.

 

[jbob]

I ain't saying that city workers generally have the words 'happy to help' on their suits. Just pointing out that being expected or obliged to conform to a certain appearance is isn't confined to retail or perceived 'lower rung' jobs.

But where's his 'Happy To Help' slogan? I suspect M'Lud might complain if he was asked to wear one. A fatuous comparison.

And, I see what you mean from earlier - is he working in that library, or is he a customer? It's very confusing

 

[beeboo]

But where's his 'Happy To Help' slogan? I suspect M'Lud might complain if he was asked to wear one. A fatuous comparison.

And, I see what you mean from earlier - is he working in that library, or is he a customer? It's very confusing

If someone told me to wear a t-shirt that said 'happy to help' I'd tell them where to stick it whether I was a judge or a bookshop employee The phrase is corny and frankly a bit embarassing.

All I'm trying to say is being expected to comply with certain rules and norms about appearance and uniform isn't the sole preserve of people in more lower tier jobs, plenty of high-ranking jobs are just as restrictive

 

[jbob]

Yeah, I know what you're saying, but I don't think you get where I'm coming from, which is summerised more eloquently in Fridgemagent's post (33). I think it unlikely that a person in management 'brainstorming' will practice what they preach to the 'plebs'.

(And btw, the bloke on your photo would look better with 'Happy To Judge' printed on his sash. At least the court wouldn't get confused as to his function.)

 

[beeboo]

Yeah, I know what you're saying, but I don't think you get where I'm coming from, which is summerised more eloquently in Fridgemagent's post (33). I think it unlikely that a person in management 'brainstorming' will practice what they preach to the 'plebs'.

(And btw, the bloke on your photo would look better with 'Happy To Judge' printed on his sash. At least the court wouldn't get confused as to his function.)

Sometimes management do have to 'manage' though - it's what they're employed to do after all (not that you'd always know it). And sometimes that means expecting other people to do things they don't have to do themselves - because they're not doing the same job.

But...

-a crap idea is a crap idea, no matter who comes up with it

-enforcing crap ideas without listening to the feedback of staff is just poor management, especially when the net result (making staff unhappy to help by forcing them to wear 'happy to help' t-shirts) is entirely counterproductive for the staff, the management and the company as a whole.

 

[Radar]

one idea we had was to order size XS (or whatever the smallest option is) - if they want us to look ridiculous we may as well go the whole hog

IT in our firm has a surprisingly good reputation. It's not about it being "just a fucking t shirt", it's about us being undermined by wearing it with a stupid slogan. It'll make us a laughing stock when we've worked very hard to turn the reputation of IT around.

Get other support staff to do the same.

How about beancounters with "Happy to fuck up your expenses" tees. Why not have the CEO wear a "Happy to be growing rich on your labour" tee.

Why, it's a brilliant idea Holmes

 

[Miss Potter]

OK here's the latest on the shirt saga:

Black polo shirts (marginally better than t-shirts) printed with:
"Team [initials of the law firm I work for
IT Support
Here To Help"
along with a picture of a computer

 

[beeboo]

OK here's the latest on the shirt saga:

Black polo shirts (marginally better than t-shirts) printed with:
"Team [initials of the law firm I work for
IT Support
Here To Help"
along with a picture of a computer

marginally better - sort of the difference between death by hanging or electric chair.

Thing is won't this be confusing - if you start out wearing a 'uniform' then people would expect you to *always* be wearing a uniform. So it will actually be counterproductive as people won't actually get to know you, only your polo-shirts.


I still prefer my cheese on sticks idea.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

Yes, been to the city. Worked there, in fact. I never noticed anyone wearing 'Happy To Help' slogans emblazoned across their backs, with corporate logo's on the front. Funny that.

Yes, it is difficult identifying people who work in bookshops, it must be really traumatic As a tip, in general, look for the bored looking people who are merely putting books on shelves and not shopping. It's really not that difficult; I've been buying books for years and I've never struggled. But then, I always manage to negotiate that tricky process of going to the bar and ordering a drink from the uniformless bar person quite easily too. It's a gift, I suppose.

You're just being facetious.

There's a world of difference between a non-uniformed staff member who is actually standing behind a cashier's desk or standing behind a bar, and a random member of staff, dressed like Joe Public, wandering through a store. Staff don't always look officious y'know.

How is a shopper to know, for example, that the staff member with a couple of books in hand, walking from one department to another isn't another customer going to the cashier's desk? How is the customer to know whether that person faffing about with clothes on a clothes rail is another customer looking for their clothing size, or a member of staff straightening up the merchandise?

Yes, it's easy to tell, if you're lumping a box of books and stacking a whole load of them, but that's not always the case. It can be hard to make the distinction. I asked a woman in a clothes store a couple of weeks ago if they had a top in different colours, and she was another customer. It happens.

Staff do get confused for Joe Public and vice versa when they're dressed like Joe Public and out on a shop floor as opposed to behind a counter or bar.

You seem to have some kind of weird chip on your shoulder about retail staff being lowly or something if they wear something that marks them out as members of staff. I'm not saying everyone should have to walk round with 'Happy to help' t-shirts, or have to wear something that they feel uncomfortable with, and which they feel makes them look ridiculous. It would help, for example, just to have a badge with the name of the store on it, worn on their civvy gear, to help customers identify who is and isn't staff.

I've worn uniform myself, on numerous occasions; I've worked in an hotel, for example. If I was walking through the hotel dressed like Joe Public, then guests wouldn't have stopped me to ask a question or to ask for help, they would have assumed I was another customer and struggled with their luggage/room key or whatever and been inconvenienced in some way. My wearing a uniform didn't mean that I was off some kind of lower status, it meant that they were able to identify me as someone who was working in the hotel and therefore able to assist them. Simple as that.