ESL WORKSHEET - Fashion and Work

LESSON PLAN FOR ENGLISH TEACHERS

DRESS CODE*

LinguaHouse
Dec. 5, 2023

Level: Upper-Intermediate (B2-C1)
Type of English: Business English
Tags: Business People; Companies and Jobs; Desk Work; Fashion; People and Places; Problems at Work; Business Ethics; Clothes; Workplace and Equipment; 16-18 Years Old; 18+ Years Old; Article Based
Publication date: 12/05/2023

* This lesson has been updated.

This lesson looks at dress code and the potential problems it can create. Students will read an article on the subject and listen to an interview with two managers talking about issues that have arisen in the workplace. Exercises focus on listening and reading comprehension, related vocabulary and offer students the opportunity to discuss questions on the topic. Students will also have an optional roleplay where they can practice telling each other that the clothes they are wearing in the office are not appropriate (by Joe Wilson).

• CLICK HERE to download the student’s worksheet in American English.
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher’s lesson plan in American English.
• CLICK HERE to download the student’s worksheet in British English.
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher’s lesson plan in British English.
• CLICK HERE to download/listen to the audios (Am/Br English).

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Host: Welcome to the Business Talk. Today on the show, we’re discussing the tricky topic of dress codes. Andrew McCain has spent most of the last two decades in management positions for various companies in the publishing industry and Aisha Malik has been in management in the finance industry for the past fifteen years. Welcome to the show, both of you.
Both: Thank you.
Host: Firstly, Andrew, let me ask you: What is the dress code for your company?
Andrew: Well, as publishing is a creative industry, I would say it’s a mixture of business casual and casual. This can create a problem because we don’t really have any hard definitions of what people should and shouldn’t wear. So we get a lot of different personal definitions of what is and isn’t acceptable. Summer is a difficult time as with the heat, people get more relaxed. So, we start to see a lot more flip flops. If they’re just working at their desks, it’s less of a problem. But they often cause people to trip up, especially on stairs. Also, the sound they make as the wearer walks around the office can be very annoying for some people.
Aisha: Yes, I agree summer is worse. We also find that a lot of women will come in wearing jackets, but underneath, they are wearing sleeveless tops or sometimes shirts made out of thin fabric that is quite see-through - a lot more so than they realized when they were getting dressed. Of course, when it gets really hot, they remove the jacket and it makes a big difference!
Host: What do you do to inform staff of the dress code when they join?
Aisha: It is in the handbook that every employee receives when they join, but I usually go through it with each new employee and encourage them to ask questions. I even ask them what kind of clothes they wore at their last place of work and try to politely advise them whether or not the same thing will be appropriate at my company. I find this saves a lot of problems later, but I still have them.
Andrew: I must admit, I don’t really talk about it with new employees. But I have had to deal with a few problems, so maybe I should start doing what Aisha does.
Host: So, what problems have you had with the clothes that people wear for work?
Andrew: It can be very challenging to deal with, as sometimes what they are wearing isn’t necessarily a problem for anyone, but it is a problem for that particular person. I had an employee who wore a skin-tight shirt for work. It wasn’t so bad at the beginning but then he put on weight. So, this shirt started to reveal his stomach and sides when he sat down. As I said, it’s a creative industry so we've got a lot of younger employees thinking they are making a fashion statement. We want staff to feel relaxed, but it’s still a business, you know? When they start showing up in ragged trousers and tops, or have their tattoos showing through their clothes, it gets a bit much. I have had to ask staff to go home and change before now, which is usually met with surprise. But word gets around and it stops other people from wearing similar things.
Aisha: People in my industry are usually a little more conservative in their dress, so I don’t have as many problems with skin showing. It’s more of a style choice. I had a woman once wearing what I think she thought was a beautiful dress, but it was actually a nightie. It created the wrong impression in the office and I had to ask her not to wear it again. Customers in the bank can’t usually see staff below the waist, so in the winter, we have had situations when staff have been wearing leggings and leg warmers at the desk. Then, unexpectedly, they will have to go out to talk to customers and they forget what they are wearing, and it doesn’t look at all professional. I ask employees to always dress as though they are in full view of the customer at all times.
Host: Okay, we’re going to take a short break and then we will come back and discuss how to talk with an employee about a problem with what they are wearing.

Adapted from: https://www.linguahouse.com/esl-lesson-plans/business-english/dress-code. Accessed on December 11, 2023. © 2008–2023 LinguaHouse.com. All rights reserved.