{"id":540150,"date":"2026-01-24T19:42:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T19:42:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/540150\/"},"modified":"2026-01-24T19:42:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T19:42:18","slug":"griffith-city-council-decides-flannelette-shirts-are-appropriate-business-attire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/540150\/","title":{"rendered":"Griffith City Council decides flannelette shirts are appropriate business attire"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mark Dal Bon said the community he represents wouldn’t recognise him if he dressed in anything other than his black and white plaid shirt.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“That’s how they’ve always seen me \u2026 it makes me feel confident in bringing the issues of the community up there [at council meetings] as well.”<\/p>\n

But the Griffith City councillor’s choice of work attire was put under scrutiny when there were moves to change the dress code for councillors attending meetings late last year.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Mark Dal Bon is a councillor in Griffith in southern NSW, who campaigned in his flannel.\u00a0 (ABC Riverina: Nicola Ceccato\u00a0)<\/p>\n

It was proposed the standard dress code would be ‘business casual,’ and blazers would be provided for councillors to wear at meetings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One submission suggested a councillor attending in a “clean flannelette shirt and jeans” may not meet the standard.<\/p>\n

Council ultimately voted in favour of allowing flannelette shirts at meetings, but the debate has sparked broader discussion in the community about the changing nature of work wardrobes.<\/p>\n

\"Four<\/p>\n

Flannelette shirts will now be considered appropriate business attire at Griffith City Council meetings. (ABC News: Jessica Clifford\u00a0)<\/p>\n

A changing landscape<\/p>\n

Economic research released in August 2025 by employment site Indeed, shows job advertisements promoting relaxed dress standards have increased considerably in recent years.<\/p>\n

The research shows employers in the ACT and Queensland are more likely to promote casual dress policies in job advertisements, with remote work driving demand for more comfortable workplace attire.<\/p>\n

Mr Dal Bon said professionalism should be judged by cleanliness and presentation, rather than formality.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“You can’t just go up in there [council meetings] in singlets, thongs, and shorts. In my flannelette shirt, I feel comfortable, and I personally think I look neat and tidy. I haven’t gotten any complaints from the community.”<\/p>\n

\"Kim<\/p>\n

Corporate stylist Kim Crowley says work attire standards have become a ‘grey area’.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0 (Supplied)<\/p>\n

Corporate stylist Kim Crowley said people in politics are in a unique position to strike a balance between reliability and professionalism.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“For people out in rural areas, I think there is something really key about being able to reflect your people back at you.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The trouble is with old-fashioned menswear suits is that it looks very assertive but can also look too assertive in and amongst people who are outdoors all day, working on farms.”<\/p>\n

Ms Crowley pointed to research around ‘enclothed cognition,’ which suggests clothing can influence performance. \u00a0<\/p>\n

“If we dress more professionally and like we’re going to perform better, our cognitive behaviour actually increases. If you want to be able to be taken seriously and succeed in your workplace, you should dress the part,” she said.<\/p>\n

A ‘grey area’<\/p>\n

Ms Crowley said employers have broadly embraced business casual in recent years, but unclear expectations can cause confusion and even tension.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“There are always a few people in office environments where they’re not getting it right,” Ms Crowley said.<\/p>\n

“There’s a middle ground that could be more relaxed than a suit, but maybe not as relaxed as a flannelette shirt.<\/p>\n

“And the nuances, that’s what people miss,” she said.<\/p>\n

Ms Crowley said first impressions still mattered, particularly in front-facing roles, where people could be judged “in the blink of an eye”.<\/p>\n

\"Amanda<\/p>\n

Etiquette expert Amanda King said work attire standards have become too casual over the years.\u00a0 (Supplied.\u00a0)<\/p>\n

Amanda King from the Australian Finishing School said people’s work attire standards have changed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I know Australia has a reputation for being quite a casual society, but there is still a level of respect for yourself and for everyone else to put on something clean and decent for the day and put in the effort.”<\/p>\n

She believes a more formal approach to workwear can help people have more impact and influence in their positions.<\/p>\n

“If you’re dressed well and you’re dressed appropriately, people treat you better and they respect you. They trust what you’re saying a little bit more,” she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But for Mr Dal Bon, given he’s been cleared to wear his beloved flannelettes in council meetings, he won’t be changing up his gear anytime soon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“As long as people feel comfortable in what they’re wearing, I think that’s what really brings out the professionalism in them,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mark Dal Bon said the community he represents wouldn’t recognise him if he dressed in anything other than…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":540151,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4740,238480,238478,19451,6283,238475,238476,238479,50,6174,238477,9916],"class_list":{"0":"post-540150","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"tag-australia","9":"tag-australian-finishing-school","10":"tag-business-attire","11":"tag-corporate","12":"tag-council","13":"tag-flannel-shirts","14":"tag-flannelette","15":"tag-griffith-council","16":"tag-news","17":"tag-professional","18":"tag-work-attire","19":"tag-workplace"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115951786171917858","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=540150"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540150\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/540151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=540150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=540150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=540150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}