Summer seems to have finally arrived and once again we are gripped by the pressing question: when is it acceptable to wear shorts?

Office dress codes have been transformed greatly over the last decade. The old office uniforms (suit and tie or the female ‘smart’ equivalent) are no longer de rigueur in many workplaces: we move more freely between home and the workplace, communicate through video calls, set up camp with our laptops in the local café, and to some extent the way we dress reflects this fluidity.

So, it is scarcely surprising that, when temperatures rise, many people’s instinct is to opt for the most comfortable clothes available, and shorts are high on the list. But, even in our new relaxed work environment, shorts do pose certain problems. For many people, they are strongly associated with beach holidays, sport, lolling about in the garden – the exact opposite of a working environment. To add to the problem, shorts are worn by children (often as part of their school uniform) and for that reason they have a whiff of frivolity and juvenility, which some adults simply cannot shake off.

Clearly the shorts question needs careful thought:

Assess the Environment

The first step is to deploy your social antennae and examine your working environment. Workplaces where inventiveness, imagination and individuality are valued (media, journalism, design etc) are more liable to tolerate a completely relaxed dress code. In fact, people may choose to dress in interesting and original clothes in order to reinforce messages about their own creativity. In this sort of environment, shorts would undoubtedly be completely acceptable.

If, on the other hand, you work in one of the professions (law, medicine, banking) or in an office that offers a service for the public, you will need to think very carefully about the prevailing ambience, and you may have to accept that a much more conventional and traditional dress code is expected.

Whatever the type of workplace, it is safest to bow to the general mood and conform wherever possible. Save your most original and provocative tendencies for your private life and recognise the dividing line between your professional and private persona.

Choose Wisely

Unless you are working in an anything-goes environment, where even the shortest shorts don’t raise an eyebrow, it is important, when wearing shorts for work, that you expunge all holiday associations. That means opting for tailored shorts that end just above the knee (the more they creep up the thigh the more beach-ready they will look). For the same reason, it is best to avoid jaunty patterns, tropical prints, and bright colours. You will also need to ensure that your shorts do not look like sportwear, so avoid figure-hugging lycra at all costs.

Be careful about footwear too. Shorts can look smart when they are teamed with loafers or pristine white trainers; sandals (especially for men) are more problematic as the association with sun, sea and sand is undeniable. The more of the foot that is revealed, the less serious you will look – flip flops are a no no.

Think it Through

How important is it to you to look professional and authoritative? Of course, this will depend on your role and workplace, but there are undeniably jobs where shorts just won’t work. Nobody wants to see politicians, judges, lawyers, chief constables, headmasters and headmistresses, bank managers, doctors or consultants in shorts for the simple reason that they will undermine their authority. All these professions rely on our endorsement: we, the general public, respect these figures, acknowledge their expertise and accept that they occupy a role where they can make decisions that will impact us in profound and life-changing ways. We expect them to be serious and sober people, who have excised any visible tendencies towards frivolity and quirkiness (what they do in their leisure time is their own business).

Conventional office dress codes do serve a purpose. They set out a kind of work ‘uniform’, which acts as a visual shorthand for competence and professionalism. People whose work reputation relies on projecting these qualities should think seriously before they opt for clothes that prioritise hot-weather comfort at the risk of undermining their authority.

Top: British officers wearing shorts, 1940
British Army Officers' shorts date back to the late 19th century and were designed for officers serving in India. These loose-cut garments, in hard-wearing military drill, were worn long and wide, with knee-length socks, to maximise air circulation and to provide relief from the stifling heat and humidity of foreign postings. They became popular amongst soldiers, tea planters and colonial officers, but were discontinued in the late 1940s.