Even in blistering heat, CEOs are basically telling employees to “eat my shorts”—and also please don’t wear them. While the pandemic introduced a taste of business casual into the office, norms that reigned supreme decades ago seem to have stuck around. The problem, in part, is that the Earth’s temperature is shifting at a faster rate than our society is, leaving workers sweating through their trousers.
A new Wall Street Journal/Ipsos poll found that shorts at work are still up for debate. Looking specifically at attitudes toward menswear, it found that a whopping 41% said it’s never appropriate for men to wear shorts in the office—no climate-change exception allowed. To be sure, 48% of respondents said it can sometimes be appropriate to wear shorts at work, and 10% said it’s always appropriate.
