The dress code needs to:
- cover things like clothing, footwear, slogans on clothing, tattoos and piercings
- apply to the whole range of Vision youth services (refuges, recreation, streetwork, advocacy, working in schools, working with families)
- apply to workers with all client groups including migrant communities, Aboriginal communities, street kids, and various youth subcultures.
She asks you to jot down some random bullet points to get her started. What would you jot down?
Nothing! Why should how we dress effect the how we work with our clients????
ReplyDeleteI think the only restraints you need to put in place are ones that ensure the best interests of the young people you are working with are maintained. For example, articles of a worker's clothing that could be obviously offensive to to young person (or any other person in the community) should not be allowed.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, certain work situations might require safety concerns to be taken into account. For example, closed shoes in a work environment that can sometimes involve crisis situations.
Beyond these considerations, however, I think youth workers should be encouraged to wear the clothes that they identify with as individuals. Isn't it possible that many of the young people who are receiving services from organisations like Vision Australia already feel like there is too much regulation and institutionalisation in their lives. Why increase it by making their support workers, role models and friends wear some variation on a uniform? Particularly for teenagers, who are often struggling with their own issues of individual expression. They need to be supported in finding the courage and confidence to be the sort of person they want to be. You don't help them achieve this by suppressing the individual character of their workers and mentors. Youth workers should reflect society. As such, they should be free to where what they want so long as it doesn't impinge upon the interests of the young people they are there to support.
Some organisations seem be increasingly encouraging their staff to dress more formally than youth workers traditionally would have. I have heard of rules like "no denim", "no joggers" cropping up. I think that as organisations who seek to empower young people to take control of their own lives, we should not understimate the size of a backward step that can be taken by presenting to a young person with an inaccessible appearance - ie: over dressed, expensive clothes, overdoing the accessories etc. Perhaps there should be some statement about not over-dressing, or dressing in a way that reflects status or creates a power imbalance. I think the guidelines are also best kept to reflect concerns of safety as the previous poster has suggested: closed in shoes, piercings out when they pose a risk etc.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the above comment. As a Youth Service Manager in the ACT I won't ask my staff to wear a certain code of dress. I do encourage them to think about their dress in relation to being accesable and safe for various clients to engage with.
ReplyDeleteI will make comment if a workers clothing appears too revealing or corporate and ask them to think about how that wear may affect their clients impressions of being able to relate. Then staff have the choice to dress for effective work or not.
I agree with a lot that has already been said around OHS issues and about what a youth workers dress could communicate to the young people they are working with.
ReplyDeleteMaybe instead of bullet points about a dress code, there should be bullet points for a conversation that happens between the manager and youth worker during the recruitment stage. I think this would help in creating a healthy culture at the workplace and encourage workers to have other conversations with their managers.
As a youth worker it has taken time to figure out what clothing could communicate to the young people I’m working with and, like a lot of other issues in youth work, it isn’t always healthy to have a ‘black and white’ solution and to allow for a more flexible ‘gray scale’ approach.
And also like said before, if there is a piece of clothing that the manager doesn’t think is appropriate, a conversation can be entered into where both parties feel respected.
I've been asked in the past to sharpen up my appearance while at work (no torn jeans) and appreciate that, while I am at work, I have a responsibility to represent my organisation as a professional. While I personally don't see the more casually/ sexually dressed youthworkers as less professional, people's view of the organisation (and perhaps the profession as a whole) is affected, and this affects our service delivery. We need to be taken seriously by other agencies/ teachers/ parents/ cultural groups.
ReplyDeleteI have recently had conversations with workers who are part of the community they serve (ie small geographic or ethnic communities, likely to have contact with clients outside of work hours). They said that their 'uniform' (casual blue shirts with corporate logo) has helped clients to understand when they are not at work, and therefore shouldn't be approached in the same way. It also makes it easier to work out who the workers are in a youth centre.
Other dot points to consider:
- limits to political and religious expression?
- non sexualisation of relationships?
- engaging with subcultures- how much do we need to dress like one to be accepted by one? does our clothing put up barriers to other subcultures?
- role modelling culturally appropriate dress for court appearances, employment, contact with elders etc.
DRESS CODE
ReplyDelete• Clean and respectful
• Appropriate and approachable
• Appropriate footwear with consideration to safety.
• Considerate to the days schedule
(I wouldn’t wear a suit to meet refugees, I will wear a suit to the schools and to meet the families and I wouldn’t wear a revealing top or a short skirt with a client with sex issues)
CONSIDERATION
• No rude, vulgar, revealing, symbolic, suggestive, discriminative, religious, obsessive thoughts’ material is advertised on any garment. These come in many ways such as symbols, slogans (remarks or comments) or pictures maybe even a logo.
BE AWARE.
This is so no person has to feel inferior, threatened, scared, harassed, offended or discriminated against in anyway.
As youth workers I believe it’s so important to remain who we are... Though the holistic process of becoming a youth worker there is one thing that comes to mind time and time again.... "Be real" "keep it real".... You can make a rapport with a young person with expressions of your true self.... So I believe what we choose to wear needs to be kept on an individual basis..... We may also be mindful to each and every one of us who has grown on our own individual journey to be comfortable in who we are and what we wear... By putting restrictions on what we wear can be suppressing to a part of who we are. Making us feel uncomfortable in our appearance... I believe that as adults who are now in a role that helps young people who most often than not are just trying to find themselves though all life’s trials of darkness... That we would have the knowledge to know what is respected by young people on their own individual level. Trying to wear dress pants when you’re comfortable in jeans/skirt or vice versa, is like saying my favourite colour is pink when it’s actually purple...So I would say the dress code needs to be real. It needs to be on a realistic level that enables us as workers from whatever background, culture, gender, life experience or belief to be able to walk in to work each day being comfortable in ourselves..... So my only dot point would be....... Come as "yourself" being mindful of all the people surrounding you...
ReplyDeletePeace Out.... ;-)
As a council youth worker, council dress code requires that we present in a professional manner, being appropriate to our job and work duties. Therefore if I am spending a day out in the field or on a project with young people, jeans and a shirt or casual dress are acceptable, if I am to attend council meetings, including youth meetings, or other level of government meetings a corporate and professional dress code is expected. At all times and in any work environment, I am expected to take OH&S policies into consideration, therefore, covered appropriatley if out in the field re: exposure to the elements, covered shoes etc.
ReplyDeleteIn any work environment as a youth worker,I think we need to remember that rapport is important, but we are professionals and are young people's youth worker, not their friends or peers passé, regardless of age.
When I first started in this role 5 years ago, there was a push for me to be in standard corporate issue stuff, complete with tie and shinning shoes....
ReplyDeleteNow as a previous self employed opal miner for the past 22+ years getting around in shorts, T boots, spats and singlet.... I found this a bit ummm: “not so cool”.....
So job starts, ... a bit of office “show me the ropes” stuff and away we go… After a few weeks of being more “on the ground” with organising footy and outdoor games/workshops etc, I found it near impossible to move as freely as I wished / paint and stuff all over me if you know what I mean and also more importantly... I deflected a few remarks from young people like “you look like a copper”, "Are you from DoCS?", “You should shave ya beard off to match your big noter clothes” (THAT ONE HURT!)
I then decided to approach the GM and stated my case.
Basically I said if you wish for me to actively engage with young people I need to be approachable and, as we all know how young people make quick judgments on how we dress etc, I stated this is not going to happen. I requested to wear jeans, keep the Council logo shirt, ditch the tie and wear more casual shoes.
He mentioned maybe I should look into having back up outfit with me or go home and change etc. I stated this is a no go as I travel 156 kms round trip to work and back each day. And also very difficult to assume I will be having a “day in the office” as young people's issues are not pre-planned etc and I am trying to service an area of over 22,000 sq kms .
So he agreed… all good since then. What I did do however was design (logo designed by our young people) a casual but dressy polo, so when I know I will be in the office, outside running programs, or travelling miles, I can look sharp but still represent the Shire.
I think sensible "normal" clothing is the way to dress. I think dressing too formally distances yourself from the young people and wearing uniforms can often be a little intimidating. Inappropriate clothing eg. alcohol or obscene attire should be avoided as it sends the wrong message. By dressing casual I believe it helps youth workers connect better with young people.
ReplyDeleteThere needs to be flexibility in both worker and employer about what is workplace clothing. Casual is usually youth workers' dress code but sometimes more office type clothes for more formal meetings, management meetings etc. It also doesn't hurt young people to sometimes see their youth workers in more formal clothing if they have come from a meeting. But with anyone, youth worker or not, it needs to be your style! Youth work is also about role modelling and needs to be appropriate for the setting you're in. Plus there is nothing worse then a youth worker trying to dress like they are 15 years old...........peace out!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Katerina. Defintely need to dress to suit the activity/ environment and as long as it is not offensive or revealing. I more often than not wear casual clothes including jeans (frowned upon by councils policy)especially when meeting with young people that day, but no one has commented to me in my 4 months. As long as you are getting your job done and doing it well, it should not matter- a whole lot more important to me than what i look like!
ReplyDeleteI am able to wear what i like, however when I have an event or youth program to deliver I have a shirt I wear with council logo, just to identify who I work for, promote council and also it's just comfortable and good for any physical activities as well and doesn’t get my clothes ruined.
ReplyDeletePersonally I think it is good to promote who you work for to a degree to the community and young people. As long as clothing is appropriate as well that is also important. A balance can always be good!
What are thoughts on Bikini's at the beach? What should youth workers wear on peach/ pool excursions? whatever they want?
ReplyDelete