'She was unwilling to listen': Consultant insists that she won't take "fashion advice" from coworker

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Sep 30, 2024 5:00 PM EDT

This consultant is adamant that she should be allowed to wear whatever she wants to work. Too bad her coworkers don't feel the same way! 

How would you react if you were told to wear jeans to your job? Most of us would probably love that. Jeans tend to be quite comfortable to walk around in or to sit in for a workday. Some workplaces have casual Fridays just for that purpose, while others want their employees to pay up if they're going to wear jeans one day per week. Still, not everyone wants to wear jeans. Some prefer to dress up in fancy attire for work each and every day to maintain a professional demeanor. This consultant seemed to have that attitude, as u/DanielCade explained in their malicious compliance story. 

The consultant wanted to wear her own clothing, but she clearly didn't understand that she was in the wrong industry for that. Commenters noted that she might not be suited to that field, but as a consultant, she may have just not understood how serious protective clothing can be in certain work environments. You can check out the full story and comments below and determine for yourself who was in the wrong here. 

Up next, read about these people who had some rough days at work, like one person who revealed they "Just lost thousands of dollars worth of product at work. Most likely getting fired."

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    Cheezburger Image 10411015424
    via Patty Zavala on Unsplash+

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    Don't you ever tell me what to wear Some years ago the organisation I work for brought in a consultant to make us more efficient and reduce waste. She was working across a number of teams including the team I worked for.
    via u/DanielCade
  • 03
    For our team most of our work is office based (about 75%) but we often work in retail environments and occasionally in industrial settings. The other teams that the consultant was working alongside all seemed to be totally office based. Some of the sites we work at can be quite dirty or smelly (butcher's are among the worst) and so we always advise people what to wear as it's easier and cheaper to clean a pair of jeans rather than a suit.
    via u/DanielCade
  • 04
    I was introduced to the consultant and was told she'd be accompanying me on a job. She seemed quite pleasant and was very smartly dressed. I talked her through the booking process and explained the work we would be doing. I suggested that she may want to wear casual clothing rather than business attire. She got extremely angry and said "don't you ever tell me what to wear" and told me that it was inappropriate to "tell" a woman what to wear. She was unwilling
    via u/DanielCade
  • 05
    to listen to my justification. A few hours later I was pulled into a meeting with my supervisor and our manager. The consultant had made a complaint to the higher ups in our organisation. Whilst my supervisor was supportive (as he normally was) our manager didn't want to rock the boat with senior staff and so agreed to tell me my behaviour was wrong. Thankfully it was agreed that no formal action would be taken and
    via u/DanielCade
  • 06
    there would be no record on my file. My manager agreed with the consultant that I shouldn't provide "fashion advice" and wasnt willing to listen to reason. Thankfully it was agreed that she wouldn't come along on the job. About a month later again I was told that the consultant would accompany me on a job, this time to an industrial site where I would be testing a piece of equipment. The site would draw steel from large coils and turn it into bar.
    via u/DanielCade
  • 07
    Whilst not the dirtiest place we go to its a long way from being clean. I felt this was the perfect opportunity for some malicious compliance. I emailed manager and asked if I could advise on appropriate clothing and he emailed back saying that both the consultant and he had made clear I was not to bring it up and to do so could lead to disciplinary action. The job I would be doing normally required a second person to record results while I
    via u/DanielCade
  • 08
    was doing the testing, it was agreed that consultant would be hands on and record the results. An important point to note is that all industrial sites we visit will have a PPE requirement, with the minimum being protective footwear. Obviously having been warned I didn't mention this. The site was about an hour from our office and I phoned as I was leaving to let them know we were on our way (thankfully in
    via u/DanielCade
  • 09
    seperate cars). They normally asked for a call so they could stop production just before we arrived to avoid downtime. As we arrived we were met by the health and safety co-ordinator for the site who did his intro. I produced my safety passport card which showed I was competent in health and safety matters. I introduced the consultant and explained she would be assisting me whilst looking at ways my work could be
    via u/DanielCade
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    delivered more efficiently. I took my overalls out of my bag and slipped them on over my clothes and swapped by shoes for my steel capped boots. The H&S coordinator asked if the consultant want privacy to get changed and she explained she wouldn't be. He gave me a bit of a look, knowing that she didn't have a clue what was going on. He then asked where her safety shoes were and she explained she didn't have any. He refused
    via u/DanielCade
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    to let her down on to the factory floor and she had to spend the job in the reception. Once away from the consultant I explained that if I had to log the results myself it would slow the process down. He offered me one of his staff to do it. I then told him the story of what had previously happened. He thought it was hilarious what I'd done and wanted to play along. He asked for the details of a senior manager and while I was testing
    via u/DanielCade
  • 12
    the equipment phoned to complain. He said it was unfair that he was supplying staff to assist me when he was paying for the job to be done. When I finished the job the consultant had already left. When I got back to the office | was pulled into a meeting with our Director, my manager and lots of other higher ups and was asked to explain myself. The Director let me fully explain and thought it was ridiculous that I
    via u/DanielCade
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    was blamed for the first incident. I also explained that I had email confirmation that I wasn't to speak to her regarding clothing. He said he was disappointed that I hadn't at least emailed regarding the need for safety shoes or raised it with a manager as a safety concern but he understood why I'd made a point. I was excused from the meeting and my manager came out a short while later looking sheepish (and never mentioned the topic
    via u/DanielCade
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    ever again). We gave the company a discount on the work for supplying an assistant so they were happy. My supervisor later explained that the consultant had upset a number of people and so her contract was cut short.
    via u/DanielCade
  • 15
    Anxiety-Aficion... Being a woman in a corporate role with a similar position as the consultant you described, I find it absolutely ridiculous that she made the initial complaint. Proper clothing and PPE is something we address with both male and females when going to a job
    via u/Anxiety-Aficionado
  • 16
    site; it's never s ualized, it's just a matter of safety and no one has ever raised a question otherwise. What a total Karen. Glad her contract was cut!
    via u/Anxiety-Aficionado
  • 17
    Kreiger81 Years ago, I was working for a temp company. Mostly data entry, some basic tech work, office stuff, you know the drill. I get told my next assignment was clerical work in the office of a local recycling plant, so I get my dress pants and shirt and tie on and head on out. I get
    via u/Kreiger81
  • 18
    there, go into the office and am immediately directed back outside where I am handed a pair of heavy duty gloves, an N95 mask and told that my job is to sort through trash and pull out recyclables for sorting. I called my temp agency and told them, and got a "oops sorry" and that was it. That was the only job I ever walked off of. There was no way I was doing that.
    via u/Kreiger81
  • 19
    [deleted] By the Gods and all of the deep dark abyss, how I hate consultants...
    via u/[deleted]
  • 20
    bttrflyr Goes to show you how effective this "consultant" work is. If their job is to teach you how to be more efficient, but they don't even have the competence to adapt to PPE requirements, how are they expected to advise on how to improve efficiency on the job itself?
    via u/bttrflyr
  • 21
    You can't give advice on how to make a job more efficient when you have no knowledge of the job itself.
    via u/bttrflyr
  • 22
    JorgeXMcKie It sounds like something my brother's wife would do. She's been a short term contractor almost her whole life because no one wants her after they've dealt with her for a bit.
    via u/JorgeXMcKie
  • 23
    Matelot67 Honestly, any 'consultant' who isn't even aware of basic PPE requirements can't be considered an expert. Her advice wasn't probably worth that much is that is any indication of the level of her knowledge or ability. Good catch OP!
    via u/Matelot67

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terrible coworkers fashion employee work stories manager malicious compliance work coworkers malicious-compliance-reddit working employees managers clothing workplace coworker malicious compliance reddit protection
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