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Fashion Police Rule #18: Do not wear flip-flops at work (unless you work at the pool)


Flip Flop
The Flip Flop

Every day, you hear them.

Clippity, cloppity.  Flippity, floppity.

The sound of rubber slapping against the heel of one of your co-workers who feel that flip-flops are perfectly acceptable office wear.

“But we work in a casual office,” they exclaim.  “Joe in Accounting wears shorts every Friday,” they plead. 

Yes, Joe may wear shorts every Friday, but they’re nice shorts paired with a collared shirt and a pair of casual loafers.  He’s dressed to hang out near the beach…not on it.No matter how “fancy” the flip-flop (or “office sandle”, as some stores like to call them) can be, you can’t bedazzle the tacky out of a piece of rubber strapped to your ankle.  They sound crappy, they look awful, and they give an air of unprofessionalism to the person who chooses to wear them.   (Web Watch is nothing if not fair – men wearing sandals at the office… jesus shoes, thongs, slides, etc., are also on the wrong side of the fence here.)

And it ends up that Web Watch is not alone in our hatred of the office flip-flop wearer.  Let’s take a look at the following articles:

  • Office Flip Flop Faux Pas:  If you have to make an excuse for how you are dressed at work, you frankly chose wrong.  Also, shoes that make noise when you walk are a no-no.
  • The DOs and DON’Ts of Flip Flops: Even if there’s not a rule against flip-flops in the office, they certainly don’t provide the most professional look.  Flip flops should not be worn at restaurants with cloth napkins.
  • The Classic Debate: Are Flip Flops Appropriate for the Office:  a commenter wrote “It’s not acceptable to wear flip flops to an office regardless of how casual your office is. No office is too casual. Just like you wouldn’t wear sweat pants or shorts to an office you shouldn’t wear flip flops there.”
  • Wearing flip flops at the office can get you fired: Even though US style gurus have stated that flip-flops at the office could damage one’s career, a survey conducted by Gap and Old Navy showed that 31% of women considered flip-flops the single must-have work item for the summer
  • Nobody wants to see your toe hair: Flip flops have a tendency to smell, especially if you have sweaty feet.  And let’s face it, some folks have some pretty ugly feet.
  • I Hate Flip Flops:  people who wear flip flips and mandles are lazy, according to Janeane Garofalo
  • Some guys think flip flops are a bad fashion invention: and that most women do not look good in flip flops
  • Hate Flip Flops, Birkenstocks, and Crocs: That stupid flapping sound flip flops make with every step of each foot makes me insane like a clock ticking being the only audible sound in an otherwise quiet room. I hate the way they separate the big toe from the other four toes. Why can’t all the toes get along? Most importantly I just don’t want to see people’s naked feet and it’s always the people with hideous feet that want to show them off like an award they won
  • Some Styles Just Flop at the Office: Dress for the job you want, not the job you have