Being Told At Work to Wear Underwear?

[D_Yowton Y Yingyang]

Well maybe his shorts were white and thin and she could see through them. I would also think any MAN would have some sensitivity if he is large hung to make sure that he isn't giving public displays of his equipment. There is a place for modesty.

 

[Principessa]

Darn it marleyisalegend, you stole my thunder! I was about to say virtually the same thing. :tongue:

There is no good way to address the situation in question, especially if there is no dress code already in place. Since the average human can no longer be depended upon to exercise good sense we may see dress codes becoming mandatory.

you're speaking hypothetically. again it's a catch 22, how do you tell a female employee that her nipples are on constant display without constituting harassment.

:lmao: Good luck with that one. Your only saving grace is that women who dress like Betty Boop in the work place are rarely smart enough to know they are being insulted and therefore won't sue you.

actually most work-places have guidelines about attire and i personally think that,

if executed properly and professionally, there is nothing wrong with a male employee telling a female that her attire needs modification. there's a difference between saying "your wardrobe is causing disturbances in the office" and "hey everybody can't stop staring at your rack, put a bra on".

I agree. this is a legit problem, as would a female employee who's nipples were visible would be a problem. it's not the fact that you address the problem that's an issue, it's HOW you address it.

it's entirely inappropriate to have your genitilia showing at work, and i beg to hear how you'd handle such a situation??

:yup:

Speaking as a woman who tends to have prominent nipples I always do a nipple check before I leave the house for work; because I have sense enough to know that the office is not the place to be showing off my chocolate drops.

As a friend of mine who is a plus sized gal often says, "If you can't have taste, at least have shame."

 

[marleyisalegend]

Speaking as a woman who tends to have prominent nipples I always do a nipple check before I leave the house for work; because I have sense enough to know that the office is not the place to be showing off my chocolate drops.

if only everyone could be as tasteful. some guys are so happy to show off their bulge that they completely ignore professionalism and workplace conduct.

 

[simcha]

This is the kind of crap that comes from some women in power that drives me nuts. If a male manager would have pulled everyone into a meeting to tell the women that they needed to wear bras and panties because he could see nipple marks on their blouses and camel toes elsewhere then he would have been reported to HR so fast it would make your head spin.

Because this is a woman, and I'm sure there is a team of other women in power there backing her, she is allowed to do whatever she wants even to the point of discriminating against men and harassing men.

I've seen this all too often in corporate America where political correctness has gone wild and everyone is afraid of being sued. People need to lighten up, regain their senses of humor, and take custody of their own eyes and thoughts. If she would have asked all of the women to wear bras and panties at the same time, then perhaps this would have been appropriate. What would be most appropriate is to have it in the employee handbook under the dress code for the office for both sexes.

If it's not in the employee handbook that men need to wear underwear under pants, and women weren't told to wear undergarments, then she is sexually harassing men. It's that simple.

Just be very careful because in today's climate the man is always "bad" in this situation. You will never catch a break when it comes to sexual harassment in the office. Women can get away with almost anything. Men need to watch everything they say, how they stand, gesture, look, and even what we wear etc.

Hopefully this politically correct crap will end soon and the pendulum will swing back to the center. Harassment is harassment. And one boss's obsessions should not rule the day. She should be trained to have custody of her eyes and she shouldn't be staring at men's crotches at work, should she? Imagine if a man were to have said that women with ample breasts need to bind them so that he wouldn't have to notice. The notion is as absurd as her calling a meeting to tell men to wear underwear.

Simply ridiculous.

I'm so glad I don't work in a corporate environment anymore.

 

[2322]

I tend to agree with Simcha. I've seen a lot of female on male discrimination up to the point of dismissal for the most ridiculous things that I refuse to have a woman for a boss or work in a primarily female office. Yup that's sexist. I admit it but experience has taught me there is a double standard in corporate America.

However, this case is occurring in Canada, not the US. So until we know what the standards are, what the legal proceedings must be, it's pointless for any of us Americans to comment.

I think it's a stupid, sexist, obnoxious comment and I would go to HR with it and file a complaint.

 

[scottbud]

I think one person on staff is obviously hung like a horse but she thinks it is simply because he is not wearing underwear that he shows so much. She handled it badly but I think her intentions where right although her interpretation of the situation was bad. If it was as easy to tell if a guy is well hung as it is to tell if a girl has huge knockers she would not have said anything as she would realise there is nothing more he can do to conseal the bulge.

 

[blackbottom2]

If you were a living in Iran or pakistan or somewhere similar you can bet your bottom dollar you would be told not to wear a skirt flashing your legs or to cover the the top half of your breasts or even not to wear tight or revealing clothing,

BUT this goes for both men and women and you dont notice very many arabs flashing thier bits in the public environment (although personally i feel thats a shame)

guess this is the same

one rule for one and another rule for another

 

[blackbottom2]

When it gets to that stage in corporate circles are we not being dictatorial

To the point of stipulating all of us should wear nothing more than black plastic bin liners (for women)

And white ones for men

 

[SpeedoMike]

She handled it badly but I think her intentions where right although her interpretation of the situation was bad.

Very wrong... and being wrong is no justification for such action. As a former HR manager, I'd expect a supervisor in that situation would be disciplined.

Dress codes are difficult to enforce in this day and age. And in a previous age I remember lotsa guys sporting bulges, especially when wearing Levis jeans and cords. And there wasn't anything wrong with it. It's much like saying a guy today can't wear Speedos because he "shows".

BTW, I think this thread was also done about two or three months ago.

 

[Ed69]

A few months ago we had a staff meeting and our boss (who is female) said that she feels it is needed to remind the male staff to wear underwear when at work, especially if wearing shorts. She then made a comment of how she recalled one male staff and how distracting it was seeing his goods thru his shorts when he was sitting down.

This is the first time this has ever happened in my work experience. I always wear underwear, but she got me so paranoid that i won't even wear boxers to work.

This girl needs a spanking!She has been allowed to much freedom and has a big head that is showing!lol!Guess that comes from to many years of mother talking about that nasty thing between my legs.

 

[alex8.5]

I strongly believe your boss, may have broken or come very close to breaking a law. I agree, if you choose not to wear underpants while wearing shorts, make sure that nothing will pop out at the leg opening when sitting down. Personally when I worked in an office, I really was too busy to care if some guy was hanging or not. I assume your boss as been staring at your crotch to notice, or someone in the office may have complained.

There is no law on the books that says a man must wear underwear, wether he is well endowed or not. Just as there is no law for women to have on a bra or panties.

Check with your local legal aid office to make sure. But if you usually wear boxers, keep wearing them and fuck your boss.

 

[ManlyBanisters]

I really don't see a problem here - if the attire of a work colleauge or employee is inappropriate you say something to them, in private. If that person is male you get a male member of the management team to do it, if that person is female you get a female member of the management team to do it. A boss once asked me to have a word with one of the girls I supervised because she was constantly wearing thin blouses and no bra. I asked her, conversationally when we were alone, was she aware her nipples showed. She was aghast - she had no clue.

Really I think the woman the OP is referring to made a mistake - she should have just asked a male collegue to have a discreet word with the guy who was revealing too much and never made it official / public. Also, checking with a trusted collegue is a way of making sure that it is not your own skewed perception, that there is an actual issue. Sometimes people over complicate things that really do not require a big hullahbaloo.

 

[DC_DEEP]

A privately-owned corporation (as in, not a government agency) is well within its rights to set its own dress codes. If you work for that company, it's your responsibility to adhere to the dress codes.

I have worked for companies before that included underwear as part of the dress code (undershirt and undershorts for men; bra, panties, and stockings for women). That was just a part of the deal if you wanted to work there. I don't really think it would have been a harrassment issue if a manager had told any employee, "You may be wearing underwear, but the outward appearance is that you are not. Please do what you have to, to make it appear more in keeping with the dress code."

If you were a living in Iran or pakistan or somewhere similar you can bet your bottom dollar you would be told not to wear a skirt flashing your legs or to cover the the top half of your breasts or even not to wear tight or revealing clothing,

I don't think the OP was talking about working in Iran or Pakistan, so what does that have to do with corporate dress codes in the US?

 

[Draconis71]

Bah!!! So much for common sense...
If the tackle hangs out, or shorts allow the twig and cones to be exposed at a work setting (unless you're a bloody stripper), use underwear.

Yes, I HAVE seen women at jobs taken aside for camel-toe'ing, too low-cut tops.

 

[tiggerpoo]

If you value your job, take your boss' advice to heart and wear appropriate gear. She is absolutely within her rights. Obviously you were out of line as far as attire is concerned. I suspect also in your attitude.

As a boss myself I have sent both males and females home to get appropriately dressed and repremanded them for inappropriate behavour.

Unless you work in the sex industry, your job is not the place to display your sexuallity or your body. Do that after hours.

 

[B_Austin Blue]

It was two of us (at least two that i know of) who were guility of not wearing underwear under our shorts in the spring and summer - but the way she approached it was too much. She told everyone that she wants all male staff to wear underwear and then started in on her story of what she saw when a staff member was sitting across from her.

It was a couple of months ago now and i'm going to let it go. I just thought it was very strange to make a comment when she's not going to tell all female staff to wear bras etc.

 

[moranus42]

In the course of history even into the 20th century people had very few good dress clothes, and cleaning methods were very hard on fabrics. No such thing as dry cleaning. Underwear was developed as an easily washable garment for the outer wear to be protected from bodily fluids etc in a time when bodily hygene consisted of a good dousing of perfume.

As time went on the underwear became a method of actually accentuating body parts. Bustles were to help women with small butts to look more shapely and therefore more attractive in a time when the more voluptous female body was more in vogue. Brassiers were not invented for support, they are to enhance the chest and even have in many cases padding to achieve what nature has neglected. Even before bras, corsets were there to shape the waist and push up the breasts. At various times in history dresses were cut to either show the breasts completely or all but the nipples. The male codpiece was originally to provide easy access for urinating when men's lower garment consisted greatly of a pair of what we would today call tights before zippers were invented and sewing was less complicated. They eventually evolved into male enhancement devices ala HenryVIII who's actual surviving clothing shows had a very graphically made codpiece even in his suit of armor.

If a person, read MAN, choses to wear loose underwear that is his perogative. Society mandates that in most cases we cover our genitals. If there is a VPL (visible penis line) so what. It's covered. Must we resort to tight underwear and loose pants to keep wondering eyes from seeing anything?

Personally I think it is time for men's fashion to once again come around to enhancing the male parts. Humans are the only species in the universe plant or animal that actually makes an attemt to hide their sexual equipment.

I go back to what feminists oft quote while wearing body enhancing garments. Talk to my face not to my chest. Transposed to male fashion.
If you don't like what you see, don't look there.

 

[SCSea]

The problem is that corporate dress codes can no longer rely on good judgment; shorts are absolutely fine at my firm, but we're thinking more cargo/twill/walking shorts and less running/cycling shorts, unless you're in the process of going for a run or a ride. We assume that our people are smart and appropriate and will get ceaselessly mocked by colleagues for bad sartorial choices (we're a gay-owned company of geeks, mostly gay themselves).

I think we can all agree that lycra shorts, for example, would be inappropriate in most office environments, and the rules should make that clear. If shorts are appropriate (leg showing), though, it's completely out of line for someone to comment that there are visible signs of external male genitalia and they must be eradicated at all costs. As a principal in the business, I'd no sooner tell someone what kind of underwear to wear than how to take their coffee.

Visible up-shorts/skirt action is another issue entirely. When Utilikilts started to take off in Seattle, there was a need for one of my colleagues to be gently reminded (OK, teased) to cross his legs and/or arrange his pleats with some care - he's well-hung, and he hadn't worn a skirt-like garment before, and, thus, was giving a Sharon-Stone-esque show once in awhile. I don't care what's worn underneath - I just don't want to see ballsac when you settle in for a meeting.

This is a fine line - you want to please the boss to some extent, but it's not worth the insults to your dignity. Use common sense, keep the goods covered with an appropriate amount of fabric (a good rule is, "Would I wear long trousers made of this to the office), and if she says anything again, ask her to be very clear about what she is objecting to, and how that reconciles with the published standards if applicable.

E

 

[MuscleBoundMan]

Really I think the woman the OP is referring to made a mistake - she should have just asked a male collegue to have a discreet word with the guy who was revealing too much and never made it official / public. Also, checking with a trusted collegue is a way of making sure that it is not your own skewed perception, that there is an actual issue. Sometimes people over complicate things that really do not require a big hullahbaloo.

That is exactly what she should have done. If that didn't work, then she should have held the meeting and stated that there were some issues with some employee's dress. She didn't need to even point out wearing underwear, just simply state that it is unprofessional when others can see through your clothes, or the outline of bodyparts underneath.

In the US she could be charged with sexual harrassment, since she specifically stated that she had been staring at a subordinate's genitals. Especially if it was at least somewhat clear to those at the meeting to whom she was referring. No idea about Canada.

 

[EboniGoddess]

A few months ago we had a staff meeting and our boss (who is female) said that she feels it is needed to remind the male staff to wear underwear when at work, especially if wearing shorts. She then made a comment of how she recalled one male staff and how distracting it was seeing his goods thru his shorts when he was sitting down.

This is the first time this has ever happened in my work experience. I always wear underwear, but she got me so paranoid that i won't even wear boxers to work.

If its big then yes it can be distracting but for me it would be distracting in a good way:biggrin1: