It’s summer, so it’s time for the annual HRSBT flip-flop flap. This time, the furor is coming from Down Under, where the questionable attire of some employees of the Australian Department of Immigration was the subject of a hearing and a subsequent dress code change.
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Members of management of the Immigration Department testified before a Senate committee about the need for a revamped dress code because of inappropriate attire, including Ugg boots and the infamous flip flops.
Flip flops have consistently come in number one in polls on hr.blr.com® about objectionable summer wear. In our 2014 poll, flip flops were cited by 46 percent of respondents, and in our 2013 poll, flip flops garnered 51 percent of votes.
According to an Australian Broadcasting Company article, the dress code shows that “comfort dressing” is out. “There are certain things that wouldn’t constitute professional business dress,” an Immigration Department manager testified, and that would be things like jeans, thongs, Ugg boots and so on.” Jeans?
In a scene out of a Saturday Night Live skit, Department Secretary Mike Pezzullo told the senators of the day he was asked if employees who were wearing onesies to work could continue. “I didn’t know what a “onesie” was until I was shown a picture of the garb,” he said. “Tell me what it is so we all know,” one senator responded wryly.
While we don’t see too much wearin’ of the onesies at work here in the States, we do see our share of tube tops and short shorts in the summer.
So, is the wearing of flip flops (often on dirty feet) really the harbinger of summer? Not if you are wearing Uggs.
I’d love to hear the description of a “onesie.”