I work at a smallish simulation company that just instituted are requirement to wear footwear through out the office. I usually take off my boots when I get in, sit Indian style at my desk and will occasional walk to the microwave in my socks. Just wondering if the footwear requirement think is common thing for software companies?
Footware at work
I doubt any company has explicit rules about it until someone actually starts slogging around without shoes.
While I personally would not care what you do at your own desk, when walking around in the office wear something. Perhaps something easy to get in/out of like simple sandals or slippers but wear something.
While I personally would not care what you do at your own desk, when walking around in the office wear something. Perhaps something easy to get in/out of like simple sandals or slippers but wear something.
Author
Thanks for the incite. If there is no support for sock wearers I guess I'll have to pick up some sandals.
Wearing something more than socks is generally a good idea in an office environment. For one there is the risk of stepping on things to consider. It might not be a construction site that demands steel toed boots, but stepping on a dropped staple or thumb tack, or having someone accidentally roll their chair over your little toe does not make for a great day at work.
Beyond that you also really kind of want to be wearing something that you can comfortably walk outside in, or at the very least have something you can safely slip on in seconds and exit the building, simply for safety reasons for if the fire alarm goes off. (You really don't want to be trying to file down stairs with the rest of your coworkers with untied laces flopping everywhere. You won't be thought of too kindly if you trip and fall on someone or make someone else trip. Having witnessed it in a previous job, I must say that breaking a coworker's wrist during a fire drill because you were too lazy to tie your shoes does not appear to go over all that well with coworkers and management.)
I occasionally kick off my shoes and wander around the office in socks and quite a few of the other people at work do.
However it probably is a health and safety issue. We have a fire drill every so often and I'd probably be going against the flow of traffic to get back to my desk to get my shoes.
This kind of dress code varies by company. Nobody can tell you what "every" company does (re regulating barefoot employees), because not every company acts the same. Sounds to me like your company made that rule just for you. Surely they didn't need a rule until you came along! Maybe your feet smell, or maybe they're worried about liability should you step on glass or something.
This is a thing. Even if you don't think they smell, others might. Ask a brutally honest friend/family member to evaluateMaybe your feet smell
I'd recommend picking up a cheap pair of loafers for around the office.
I work at a smallish simulation company that just instituted are requirement to wear footwear through out the office. I usually take off my boots when I get in, sit Indian style at my desk and will occasional walk to the microwave in my socks. Just wondering if the footwear requirement think is common thing for software companies?
I'm betting since it's a small company and they pulled this out of nowhere that you're the only one doing that and they added that rule specifically for you instead of simply confronting you about it.
It's not the "standard" thing to do in an office to be without shoes and while some companies may be more or less relaxed about what is allowed it's definately not Something you're expected to do normally, so very specific rule about something people don't do + someone happens to actually do it and seems annoyed by the new rule = that rule was made specifically for you in my book.
Well, a lot of people feel annoyed by people taking off their shoes in the office... and while I am not as much of a hater (like my girlfriend is for example), I can see their point. It's more often not aestethically pleasing to see people running around in their socks (I will not even mention the amount of holes some peoples socks have) or in open shoes with socks, and then there is the smell which can also be a problem.
In technology, there is a tendency of some people, especially older programmers, to take off their shoes at work, and use some kind of sandals. I guess because it is more comfy. This would most probably not go down well in the business divisions, but then there people are not turning up to work in their heavy metal shirts or pierced and tattoed like theres no tomorrow either. And if the business is client facing, there is actually a good reason for all that.
Still, there are many people that dislike the practice of wearing no shoes or just sandals even in an office of people working in technology and not being client-facing. Maybe ask your boss about the rule and what would be acceptable. Maybe they just want you to wear something over your socks when you leave your desk, no matter if its sandals, or loafers, or flip flops?
I've seen brave soles wear their socks around the office here, even into the bathrooms (yuck!)
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