# Office Temp - Question about Proper Male Attire
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [January 3, 2013, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920 "2013-01-03T04:28:14Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Ffolliott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ffolliott)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/1 "2013-01-03T04:28:14Z")
I worked as an office temp (word processing, temp secretary, light phones) for a few years about 20 years ago.
I need some additional income, and plan to test the waters in the temp market again.
My question: What is considered proper attire for a guy seeking work as an office temp these days?
Specifically, should I wear a tie?
Thanks…
---
### Author:  [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/2 "2013-01-03T04:35:37Z")
I would wear a tie for the first day at least, after that you can dress down if needed.
---
### Author:  [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/3 "2013-01-03T04:44:40Z")
Business casual is the style these days. No one wears a tie. You you look like a keener jerk if you wear a tie.
NO ONE WEARS A TIE.
---
### Author:  [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/4 "2013-01-03T04:48:26Z")
> [@Poysyn](#):
>
> I would wear a tie for the first day at least, after that you can dress down if needed.
Yup. Tie, dress shirt, dress pants/khakis, and nice, clean shoes. After the first day, you’ll see how everyone else is dressing and you can dress accordingly - if they’re anything like office workers around here, they’ll probably be in dress shirts or polos and slacks. As a lady temp, my uniform is nice shirt, dress pants, and nice black leather shoes.
[This is very typical office dress in my city.](http://0.tqn.com/d/jobsearch/1/0/E/U/AA049821.jpg)
No ties? I haven’t worked downtown in a long time - ties aren’t worn too often in offices outside of the core, but they were worn downtown last time I worked there. I’d still say wear a tie on the first day - you might be in an office that’s a holdout on the tie front. 🙂
---
### Author:  [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/5 "2013-01-03T04:52:04Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#):
>
> [This is very typical office dress in my city.](http://0.tqn.com/d/jobsearch/1/0/E/U/AA049821.jpg)
1995 called. He wants his tie back.
---
### Author:  [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/6 "2013-01-03T04:55:51Z")
Yeah no one in our mail room wears a tie.
---
### Author:  [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/7 "2013-01-03T04:58:28Z")
About half the guys I worked with wore a tie every day.
---
### Author:  [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/8 "2013-01-03T05:03:16Z")
There’s only one person in my office who wears a tie and that’s the president of the company and only if it’s Super Official Business.
I can’t even imagine if I showed up in a tie.
---
### Author:  [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/9 "2013-01-03T05:03:17Z")
It’s been a few decades since I temped, but wear a tie and you can always take it off.
---
### Author:  [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/10 "2013-01-03T05:42:14Z")
It’s better to be dressed a little too formally than a little too casually. Wear the tie.
---
### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/11 "2013-01-03T05:47:32Z")
> [@InternetLegend](#):
>
> It’s better to be dressed a little too formally than a little too casually. Wear the tie.
This. Wear the tie until you find out what’s expected. Ties can be untied.
---
### Author:  [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/12 "2013-01-03T06:17:30Z")
Half they guys in my office wear ties, and we are an NGO.
Wear a tie the first day. You can dress down later according to the culture of your specific office.
---
### Author:  [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/13 "2013-01-03T07:29:33Z")
> [@TriPolar](#):
>
> This. Wear the tie until you find out what’s expected. Ties can be untied.
But they can’t be tied?
---
### Author:  [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/14 "2013-01-03T07:34:24Z")
I’d suggest asking the temp agency person who contacts you about the assignment what the dress code is. Otherwise, I tend to think it’s better to dress more nicely than to underdress on the first day. The regular staff are no doubt accustomed to new co-workers (temp and otherwise) not being quite sure about that place’s culture, and you don’t want to give your on-site supervisor qualms about whether you take the job seriously.
---
### Author:  [@Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fool_in_the_Rain)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/15 "2013-01-03T12:13:17Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#):
>
> Yup. Tie, dress shirt, dress pants/khakis, and nice, clean shoes. After the first day, you’ll see how everyone else is dressing and you can dress accordingly - if they’re anything like office workers around here, they’ll probably be in dress shirts or polos and slacks. As a lady temp, my uniform is nice shirt, dress pants, and nice black leather shoes.
>
> [This is very typical office dress in my city.](http://0.tqn.com/d/jobsearch/1/0/E/U/AA049821.jpg)
>
> No ties? I haven’t worked downtown in a long time - ties aren’t worn too often in offices outside of the core, but they were worn downtown last time I worked there. I’d still say wear a tie on the first day - you might be in an office that’s a holdout on the tie front. 🙂
This is the way to go on the first day. The tie can always come off if necessary. After that you can dress accordingly based on everyone else in the office.
---
### Author:  [@Ffolliott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ffolliott)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/16 "2013-01-03T13:58:05Z")
Thank you for the feedback!
What is tied can be untied seems like a good policy to me – in the office, and perhaps elsewhere 😉
---
### Author:  [@Bartman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bartman)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/17 "2013-01-03T14:21:53Z")
Ffolliott, where are you located? Business dress standards are local.
If you are in the East time zone, wear a tie. If you are in the Pacific or Mountain time zone don’t wear a tie, unless you are temping for a legal firm. For Central, bring a tie and decide based on what everyone is wearing.
---
### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/18 "2013-01-03T15:34:51Z")
> [@Leaffan](#):
>
> Business casual is the style these days. No one wears a tie. You you look like a keener jerk if you wear a tie.
>
> NO ONE WEARS A TIE.
I wear a tie. So do most of the men in my office. And I don’t look like a “keener jerk”, I look damn sharp.
I don’t think that your universal rule is all that universal.
---
### Author:  [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/19 "2013-01-03T15:39:06Z")
> [@tdn](#):
>
> I wear a tie. So do most of the men in my office. And I don’t look like a “keener jerk”, I look damn sharp.
>
> I don’t think that your universal rule is all that universal.
Yeah, this has come up before here. OK. No one wears a tie where I’ve worked for the last 15 years, in let’s see 5 places. Heck, I have visited suppliers and customers in most of these jobs too, and no one wears a tie!
I didn’t realize that some places of employment were still like this, because around here no one wears a tie!
---
### Author:  [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)
#### Post date: [January 3, 2013, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920/20 "2013-01-03T15:42:20Z")
Around here ties are worn September through May. June, July, and August are business casual no tie months. The exeption is Friday. Fridays are casual and jeans may be worn.
I say wear a tie the first day.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/office-temp-question-about-proper-male-attire/645920.md?page=2)