Dress Code, Workplace

In the book of Genesis people began to wear clothes when they first become aware of their sin: since the day Adam and Eve covered themselves with fig leaves, clothing has been a blessing and a curse—a cursed blessing to be exact (Genesis 3:7). In the New Testament we are assured that God will provide us with the necessities of life, including clothing (Matthew 6:28-30), and not just any old hand-me-downs but perhaps even designer labels, as Matthew claims the lilies of the field surpass “Solomon in all his splendor.” Although we know intellectually about God’s promise to care for us, many of us still fret about what to wear when we get up each morning. Moreover, while daily work can be a blessing, it is interesting that in Genesis 3 God also declares that people will be cursed by daily toil as a result of their sin (Genesis 3:17, 19).

The Corporate Image

On a basic level a dress code may be crucial to ensure an employee’s safety (or at least to protect the company legally in case of worker injury). A dress code may also function to increase an employee’s efficiency or to provide customers with easy identification of helpful staff. On a higher level, however, a company uses uniforms or a dress code to communicate a certain image to the public—a promise to get the job done right. While a dress code may indicate a company’s lack of trust in its employees’ judgment, it is useful in that it removes any ambiguity about what an employee should wear to work. To the extent that the employees themselves perform their jobs as professionally as they are dressed, the dress code serves a purpose.

Humans: Made in God’s Image

We have all had experiences in which a professionally dressed salesperson does not give us the service promised. It is then that we realize how superficial worldly image can be. We are warned in the Bible that appearances may be deceiving: some people are merely wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15). We cannot fool God simply by putting on the right clothes (1 Samuel 16:7), for God looks straight into our hearts and knows our true character. A Christian’s daily struggle is to discern how God wants him or her to behave and to allow the inner character to shine through to the outside. As Christians, our true image comes from God (Genesis 1:27), who created us to have a relationship with him such as no other living creature does, one so loving that it led to his Son’s paying the ultimate sacrifice for our sin (John 3:16). Therefore, it is important when we report for work that we not only dress the part but do our best work, for, as the apostle Paul exhorts the Colossians, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Col. 3:23).

The Christian Image Paradox: Looking Good Matters

Christian workers have a double duty as ambassadors for both their earthly employers and their heavenly Father. In movies and television, Christians are often portrayed as prim and strait-laced with no style or adornment (except a large cross pendant), wearing either paramilitary uniforms or ill-fitting, drab-colored, mismatched garments. The contrast between the joyous good news they are supposed to be spreading and their dowdy, lackluster appearance is laughably unattractive. Although this is a media caricature, it pinpoints a paradox: Christians need to have a healthy concern for what is on the surface even though God can see straight through it. This is because judging others by the way they look is a basic human characteristic. Even in biblical times dishevelment and dirtiness were considered a sign of mental derangement or demonic possession! In terms of a Christian witness, therefore, we need to work with this tendency rather than to ignore it.

Non-Christians are already convinced that to become a Christian means to adopt a life of restriction and mindless conformity. But when Christians present an attractive image, it is not to deceive but to demonstrate a healthy self-respect and to celebrate that each person is a unique creation of God. At the same time, when Christians are confronted with an office culture in which other employees spend extraordinary sums of money to compete for the best image, the Christian may consider being countercultural without being unattractive or obnoxious.

Dress Code as Authority

The dress code is a company rule that must be obeyed. Unfortunately, humans have a natural tendency to rebel against authority of any kind (Ephes. 2:2). An obvious incentive for obeying a company dress code is to avoid being fired! But an even better reason is to show proper respect for authority when that authority is acting reasonably. Paul commands the Ephesians, “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ” (Ephes. 6:5). When our bosses are acting unreasonably, however, it might be right to rebel, such as when a dress code regulation is humiliating or discriminatory. For example, in the United States during the 1980s a female airline employee who was fired because she refused to wear makeup took her employer to court. Her grievance was that her employer valued her more for the way she looked than for the high caliber of work she performed. In the book of Acts the apostle Peter justifies disobedience to earthly authority in cases where it is clearly superseded by God’s authority (Acts 4:19-20). But ultimately we cannot go wrong if we adhere to God’s own dress code as itemized by the apostle Paul: “Put on the full armor of God, . . . the belt of truth, . . . the breastplate of righteousness, . . . the shield of faith, . . . the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit” (Ephes. 6:13-17).

» See also: Adornment

» See also: Workplace

References and Resources

“Business Etiquette: Dress,” in Merriam-Webster’s Secretarial Handbook (Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1993); J. Martin, Miss Manners’ Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior (New York: Atheneum, 1982); A. Sterk and P. Scazzero, “Self-Image,” in Christian Character (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1985); R. P. Stevens and G. Schoberg, “Work: Curse or Blessing?” in Satisfying Work: Christian Living from Nine to Five (Wheaton, Ill.: Harold Shaw, 1989).

—Kathryn E. Lockhart