Kilts in the office

[KiltedCodeWarrior]

So I have become an overnight convert and now am trying to determine how to let my empoyer let me wear a kilt to the office everyday. I am sure that I could have shown my colleagues and boss how tasteful and stylish kilts are by wearing one this past Monday on National Kilt Day, but at that point I had not received either of my kilts. I don't want to wait until next year's National Kilt Day, and I don't know of any other recognized day that would provide a pretense for coming in kilted.

I did read of one person's experience and approach to getting allowed to wear a kilt to the office, but I wanted to see if anyone else had tackled this project. Specifically, I work for one of the world's largest (we're #3) financial institutions, so I expect that I will run into some resistance due to the conservative nature of banking. I am also in a management position, which may help or hinder me, I can't decide which! Could anybody provide feedback on their experiences and approach to this, and include some details regarding the size of the organization, where located (are companies in some countries more open to this?), your level in the organization, and whether your focus is strictly internal to the company or you have direct contact, face to face not phone, with external parties.

I hope this is not asking too much. I don't want/need to know which company or confidential details, but hope to gain some insight on how to approach this.

Thanks in advance!
RJI

[cavscout]

Probably the easiest way would be to utilize the casual Friday approach if your company does that. Once everyone is used to seeing it on Friday's you may be able to work it in on other days.

It never hurts though to go ahead and give your supervisor a heads up, and check with the HR department and check the Employee manual to make sure their are no clauses prohibiting men from exrtemes of dress or any other vague catch all phrases.

I've heard of some people bringing in photos of themselves or others in similar attire to what you want to wear so they can have a clear idea of what to expect.

Good luck. Kilted at work is a better day.

[KumaSan]

Psssst...Hey, look, it's Kilt Day again: http://www.kiltday.com
I have a sneaking suspiscion that it may extend and cover tomorrow as well...

[KiltedCodeWarrior]

Psssst...Hey, look, it's Kilt Day again: http://www.kiltday.com
I have a sneaking suspiscion that it may extend and cover tomorrow as well...

:confused: Now don't I look like a fool! so how many other people have been taken by the kiltday site in thinking it is for one specific day?

[Dreadbelly]

Bubba, I live in a very exclusive retirement community. They just did a 2.2 million dollar remodeling of the lobby. We have security officers that man the doors. There is a very strict dress code here. No ratty tatty clothing. No clothing with holes. Nothing with obcenities on it. No cross dressing. Nothing with the drug culture. (My dreadlocks have already been under strong suspicion) Nothing offensive. No running around in your nightgown or housecoats out in public areas like the gathering hall, lounge, laundry, beauty salon, the public kitchen, or the lobby. Or in the garden areas out back. Violations are met with eviction.

This is not some crappy hellhole public housing. I have a 1700 square foot apartment. Two bedrooms. A full sized living room. A kitchen. A long hallway. A pantry. Massive closets. A dining room. A small entry type room around the front door. There is a laundry mat in the building, and a health center with nurses and physical therapists. We will start having doctors in the health center soon. I waited a very, very long time to get in here. It is well maintained, kept very clean from all kinds of debris, (In more ways than one) and is one of the best places to retire around where I live. It's my home. And while some of the rules are a pain in the ***, it's made it a wonderful place to live.

All in all, I really shouldn't complain much.

[motorman4life]

:confused: Now don't I look like a fool! so how many other people have been taken by the kiltday site in thinking it is for one specific day?

You may have been fooled into believing there was one specific day for National Kilt Day, but please be assured, the constantly changing date at www.kiltday.com was not intended to embarrass you. It was set up to give "new guys" a weapon in their arsenal when they encounter people that can’t wrap their minds around the idea that kilts are both comfortable and acceptable for everyday wear by men.

It was not intended to “fool” you.. it was intended to “fool” your boss.. when you wear your kilt to work and he says, “Hey, what’s with the skirt?” You can do like others and first explain that it is a men’s kilt, then explain that it is Kilt Day. Send anyone that asks to KiltDay.com and they’ll believe you!

Then, maybe after they see it is not disruptive, that you can perform your job in a kilt and that you do in fact work in a professional environment where proper attire, such as a kilt, can be worn without any of the problems they may anticipate otherwise. I think employers that deny men the freedom to wear a kilt at work out of fear that it would be disruptive are clearly admitting the work environment is not professional enough and the employees are not mature or intelligent enough to deal with something that is even slightly different.

What they really need to understand is that it is NOT crossdressing, any more than women in pants are crossdressing. If women can do your job in a skirt, there is no reason you should not be allowed to do your job in a proper kilt.

If you have the courage, everyday is Kilt Day.

[KiltedCodeWarrior]

...
It was not intended to “fool” you.. it was intended to “fool” your boss.. when you wear your kilt to work and he says, “Hey, what’s with the skirt?” You can do like others and first explain that it is a men’s kilt, then explain that it is Kilt Day. Send anyone that asks to KiltDay.com and they’ll believe you!...

What they really need to understand is that it is NOT crossdressing, any more than women in pants are crossdressing. If women can do your job in a skirt, there is no reason you should not be allowed to do your job in a proper kilt.

If you have the courage, everyday is Kilt Day.

Motorman, I really meant that I had made a fool of myself, not in a bad way, by believing that there was a specific Kiltday each year. I basically came across Kiltday.com through another post and saw whatever the following day was as the "kiltday". I reviewed the site, lamented the fact that I had "missed" it this year, and went on to other sites and never looked at it again. Had I known the intent, I would probably already have forced the issue, not sure.

And everyday IS KiltDay, it is just that not every hour is right now!

Later,
RJI

[Alan H]

I work at Stanford University in the IT section of the Uni Libraries, and truth be told, I just showed up with one, one day. I got a couple of comments from various people...

"So, kilt today" from my boss. That's it. I don't think he's ever said another word about it.

"Is this the anniversary of some great Scottish victory?" From Greg the primary sys admin who's a history buff....

...and some BIG eyeballs from some of the students.

I've only had one contrary experience at work, which I related on this board. I "managed" it remarkably well for me, and it's now a non-issue, since the Director of the Libraries publically told me that he liked my kilt and "We don't see enough of that tradition around here." I wore my Stillwater Black Watch the day of the Library Advisory Board meeting (I did tech support) and received lots of compliments and was heavily flirted with by some of the *Extremely* senior (as in University hierarchy, not age) women in attendance.

so now I'm kilted at work 2 days a week on the average (today is one of them) and right now, it's a non-issue.

I know that doesn't help you a lot, but that's my story.

[davedove]

For some special days, check out this thread:

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=11627

As far as the office, when you decide to wear the kilt in, be sure to match the general level of dress. In other words, if you're supposed to wear a jacket and tie, do so with the kilt.

You might also want to ease into the office thing. If you have any casual events (picnics, etc.) wear the kilt there, so that the people get used to the idea of you in a kilt. Then just work up from there.

I work for the army as a civilian and don't interact a lot with people outside the organization. I don't wear the kilt all the time at my office. While there is no official dress code, we are expected to dress appropriately. Of course, some get pretty casual. The Director recently made a statement, "If people think you're part of the cleaning staff, you probably need to dress up a little more." When I wear my kilt, I try to look neat and presentable. It's pretty much a non-event for me now, even though I only wear the kilt maybe once every two weeks or so.

[Canuck]

One of our members (Lee) works in a financial instituition. PM him I'm sure he can give you advice.
He wears a kilt everyday. I think they drew the line on leather! Dang.....
Cheers
Robert