London receptionist sent home without pay for refusing to wear heels

The company has really turned heel in this story.

maudgonner wrote: »

That's exactly what this woman did - she rejected the dress code by choosing to go home, and now she is lobbying to have it changed. Public pressure has caused the original company to change it, hopefully either continued public pressure or a change in the law will cause it to be changed across the board.

Change?

Change is bad.

Women with perky buttocks are good.

Je suis PwC.

maudgonner wrote: »

It has become a wedge issue, certainly.

As a receptionist, she only just got her foot in the door.

They certainly didn't go out on a limb to accommodate her.

I just looked this girl up, she is a fox so she will probably earn out of this.

crusha101 wrote: »

its a dress code get over it !, The same way men must wear ties in certain environments and the same way men cannot wear shorts but women may wear short knee length skirts in the workplace , it just looks professional, PC brigade & feminists having a field day here

Last time I checked, neckties don't cause potentially very painful bone and joint deformations.

PopePalpatine wrote: »

I could say the same of the "anti-PC brigade". What is it about high heels that makes them look more "professional"?

Sorry completely forgot about all the walking receptionists must do in an office.

I read that story yesterday, absolutely disgraceful treatment, obviously certain people haven't evolved in to the 21st century yet.

Shenshen wrote: »

crusha101;99706595

"I was expected to do a nine-hour shift on my feet escorting clients to meeting rooms"... I would not do that

completely overlooked that, i accept defeat

So she was an escort NOT a receptionist.

HensVassal wrote: »

In fairness a two inch heel isn't going to cripple her.

That's exactly what I thought. I checked a pair of my own (men's) dress shoes, and they have heels that are around 3cm; That's roughly 1 inch and a half; They're perfectly normal shoes, I never gave any thought to their height when I bought them - and by the looks, most of men's dress shoes will fall into that range of heel height. We're not talking about "disco dancer boots" here.

LizT wrote: »

They told her to go and buy some heels and return wearing them. I'd kick up a fuss about that too. As long as she was dressed appropriately and her shoes were professional looking, there should have been no issue.

alchemist33 wrote: »

And that's what makes it so silly. They've decided heels equals presentable and flat shoes are not presentable, which is just plain stupid.

Fashion and history are fairly objective in establishing what is suitable for a customer-facing professional environment and what is not in a certain age; "Presentable" is a subjective issue - for some people, a T-Shirt and tracksuit bottoms are "presentable".

It am a bit surprised about the company reps "laughing" at her questioning "do guys have to wear them?". They should have replied "no, but they can't wear comfortable footwear like slippers, trainers or walking shoes either - and they are required suit and tie regardless of weather".

If the shoes are the ones she's holding up in the pictures, sorry, they are not elegant at all and look like slippers; It's as if a guy walked in wearing a suit and flip flops, and I can see why a formal professional environment would have issues with them; There are plenty of different and more classically elegant designs that don't have very high heels and still look perfectly fine under a pants or skirt suit.

Finally, it's just impossible that shoes with essentially no sole are any comfortable - years ago I bought a pair of "walking shoes" which had a relatively thin sole (less than 1 cm) and stopped wearing them after a couple of weeks. It was almost like walking on the street barefoot, and on long walks small things like the little bumps in the red area before pedestrian crossings started to hurt like hell :P

crusha101 wrote: »

completely overlooked that, i accept defeat

osarusan wrote: »

Fair play, tis a rare thing on AH to see anybody admit to being wrong about anything.

I don't agree with crusha accepting defeat so easily.

In fact, I'm outraged.

K-9 wrote: »

With the suit and tie comparison, nobody expects her to turn up in a tracksuit though, I'm sure she had office appropriate clothes.

Really, does anybody associate high heels as office wear for women?

Shoes are an integral part of the outfit, otherwise it would be perfectly normal for both women and men to wear, say, a business suit with trainers.

For the high heels, it depends on the shoes - many of them do look like they belong in a nightclub/late bar rather than an office, there's no doubt.

But in general, looking at fashion over the decades, the same guidelines that associate English style dress shoes with a suit for men, do associate a bit of a heel with a pants/skirt suit or dress for women.

The completely flat shoes seem to be a relatively recent introduction when paired with business attire, and one that seems to be more prevalent in the UK/Ireland than anywhere else. It's really odd as I am a guy realizing there are different kinds of heels, but most people in this thread seem to be of the idea that it's either "flats" or "5 inch disco platforms".

LexieOnRale wrote: »

The photo she's holding up of the ballet pumps are actually just as bad if not worse for her feet than heels. I LIVE in pumps like those at work and my knees are in bits and I have a Physio appt every two weeks for my back.
They're the worst for your feet

Yeah, that's exactly what I was trying to convey before, although in more complicate terms - I have never worn them afterall

An ex-girlfriend of mine absolutely loved that kind of shoes, and she constantly complained about sore feet and back.

Just wondering what would happen if the young lady who says she is an actress,
was offered an acting role that required her to wear high heels?

Would she turn it down and start another petition......I doubt it very much.

Sending her home because of her footwear choice was silly though,
so long as she was smartly turned out,and able to do her job she should be allowed to wear shoes of her choice.