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Writing about cleavage in the workplace last fall, Glamour Magazine asked,
Across America, women seem to be celebrating Take Your Breasts to Work Day. With low-cut tops and push-up bras in every office ( and mall and airport and...), we have to ask: If you've got it should you flaunt it?
Just this week Wall Street Journal, attacked the issue. In that article, Gail Graham, executive vice president of marketing for Fidelity Investments is quoted as saying, " there's no greater crime" for a businesswoman, Ms. Graham adds, with just a smidgen of hyperbole, "than to show cleavage."
It's not just a matter of image; sometimes, there can be real trouble. Lisa Goldstein, an attorney and founder of consulting firm Rainmaker Trainers in Philadelphia, says that during a client dinner with spouses, a head of a law firm was propositioned by her male client and his wife.
The client "suggested that they swing together," says Ms. Goldstein, who was informally consulted on how to recover the professional-client relationship. The lawyer felt that her revealing evening dress had set the wrong tone, sending "signals that were misinterpreted," says Ms. Goldstein.
Any rational person should know better than to proposition his attorney. But the reason there are dress codes is to limit the signals that could go awry -- including ones that evoke the irrational.
The conversation continued this week at SheFinds.com with this post: Business Deals Going Sour Lately? Take Your Cleavage Off The Menu With Business Appropriate Attire.
Female CEOs and Hillary Clinton can't risk the bad press surrounding a low cut dress or a too-short skirt. "It's often women who reveal too much, leaving their clients or colleagues with indelible memories. The results can range from slight discomfort to a huge misunderstanding," says Christina Binkley.
Jonscott Turco, a psychologist and consultant with Partners In Human Resources International, says "[women] thinking it's an empowering thing that they can be sexy and professional, but guys don't see it that way. If she's dressed sexy, that's all they see." We powerful business women want to be remembered for our accomplishments – not our backless Donna Karan spandex gown.
The Fresno Bee is also covering the Cleavage issue.
...business etiquette expert Barbara Pachter sent out a note today saying employees should be careful when trying to beat the Valley heat. Short skirts, skimpy tops or otherwise inappropriate clothing don't cut it, she says.“Sexy is not a corporate look,” says Pachter, author of the "NewRules@Work: 79 Etiquette Tips, Tools, and Techniques to Get Ahead and Stay Ahead" from Prentice Hall Press. Clothing, she said, still needs to project professionalism.
She's got eight tips. Read on:
1. No cleavage—period. I am amazed that I need to tell women that cleavage is not appropriate for the office. And it’s not!
Last summer the Washington Post's resident fashionista--Robin Givhan wrote a 700 word article on Hillary Clinton's cleavage.
The cleavage, however, is an exceptional kind of flourish. After all, it's not a matter of what she's wearing but rather what's being revealed. It's tempting to say that the cleavage stirs the same kind of discomfort that might be churned up after spotting Rudy Giuliani with his shirt unbuttoned just a smidge too far. No one wants to see that. But really, it was more like catching a man with his fly unzipped. Just look away!
Which got this response from columnist Ellen Goodman
Not even Nora Ephron, who wrote a book called "I Feel Bad About My Neck," could have spent more energy deconstructing a neckline. Isn't there, somewhere, a booby prize for covering pulchritude instead of policy?[...]n the end, the question is not whether a candidate can show a hint of breast but whether you can have breasts and be president. It's not a matter of cleavage in fashion but cleavage in the voting population. Does anyone remember what Hillary was talking about on C-Span2? Education. Need I say more?
So, do you show a hint of breast at work or when you are attending an evening business related event? Do you think the pundits have it wrong that showing a little cleavage damages a woman's
