'It's better to involve employees in the decision so there's more buy-in,' says expert
In an effort to reinforce its well-known brand, Starbucks is updating its uniform policy.
Starting May 12, Starbucks stores across North America, including Canada, will require baristas to wear black-colour tops and khakis or denim bottoms that are either black or blue.
This is all to “deliver a more consistent coffeehouse experience” and help employees focus more on what matters most: “Crafting great beverages and fostering connections with customers, according to a statement by the Starbucks Canada Public Affairs team.
The new colour palette, the company says, is an effort to highlight the brand's iconic green apron that has been around since 1987.
However, not all employees are happy with this policy.
Starbucks Workers United argues that the dress code restricts employees. In a Twitter statement, the union stated, “Starbucks workers are racially diverse, disabled, queer, and trans. We need a dress code that allows us to show up as our full selves at work.”
The union represents more than 550 unionized stores in the U.S. They claim that before this new policy, they had been fighting for a contract to expand the original dress code.
The original dress code was less strict on colour requirements for clothing, allowing baristas to wear coloured shirts under aprons. Additionally, bottoms could be in colours, such as brown, navy, or grey.
Ryan Vogel, an associate professor in human resource management at Temple University, is not surprised by some of the employees' responses.
“People are always assessing how fairly they’re being treated,” he says.
“If [Starbucks] didn’t include employees in the change—asking, ‘What do you think about this change?’ ‘What would you want in a new uniform policy?’—people are likely to see it as unfair.”
He says that the change in uniform requirements might not be the problem so much as the way it was introduced.
Organizational justice refers to the way employees perceive workplace outcomes and procedures to be fair, says Vogel.
In a situation like this, employees who might not have any say could view this decision as unfair.
“They had autonomy. Now they don’t,” he explains.
This type of perception, he says, can lead to subtle forms of retaliation, such as Starbucks employees not performing duties the way they’re told.
“Or, perhaps, giving away drinks, —doing something that's going to cost Starbucks money,” he adds.
“There’s other ways to implement changes,” he adds.
A past research study done by Vogel and his colleagues found that when participants felt good about the way they dressed at work, it led to a boost in self-esteem and productivity.
“People felt better and performed better when they wore things they thought were attractive, conformed to norms, or reflected their uniqueness,” he says.
In another study he's currently working on, he has seen a bit of that same pattern: A positive effect of workers feeling more engaged when they have autonomy in what they wear. And when it’s taken away, there is less engagement.
However, Vogel says there is a caveat, as clothing is only one aspect of creating that autonomy or engagement.
“Autonomy works as long as people also feel included in some other way,” he says.
“People feel more apt to express themselves, and that expression of their own identity helps them feel authentic and engaged—if there are other things that the company is doing that help them feel a sense of belonging.”
While some may not like this uniform change, there are others who feel the opposite.
Vogel says some people may like the new uniform changes and feel part of a collective: “I'm sure some people are proud,” he adds.
A study done in 2022— conducted in the United Kingdom, on the relationship between employees and how uniforms impacted their work — , found that well-made and well-fitted uniforms did have positive effects, contributing to confidence and happiness. A study done in 2019 showed similar results.
Knowing the effects, why should employees be required to follow dress codes or wear uniforms? There is a business sense behind it.
Every company, Vogel notes, has some type of dress code. It might not be a mandated uniform or a formal dress code, but there are definitely informal dress codes, even for employees who work in office buildings.
“If you wear hot pants to your office on Bloor Street, or you're showing your midriff, people are going to look at you funny. And although it's not a policy that says you can't wear it, that's a way that people police themselves,” he explains.
He notes that Starbucks’ uniform and dress code updates have more to do with “standardizing the process.” “Starbucks doesn't want a situation where [people] go into one Starbucks and [employees] are wearing Hawaiian shirts or completely mismatched outfits,” Vogel adds.
Letting people wear what they want can be beneficial—but there’s a fine line, and sometimes employers need to step in, he says.
There are still risks with letting employees wear what they want.
“If somebody chooses to wear a particular piece of clothing that offends a lot of people... I wouldn't want that as Starbucks,” he says.
“They're representing your company, and if they're not representing it in the way that the employer wants, I think they should have the opportunity to say, ‘Okay, enough,’” he adds.
Along with dress codes, the coffee company will also be going back to the tradition of baristas doodling on cups with sharpies and only allowing bathroom use for paying customers.
The company has also tweaked the name to “Starbucks Coffee Company.”
All of these changes have come from CEO Brian Niccol to help revive the company, which has seen a slip in sales for four quarters.
So, how should an employer or organization go about mandating a dress code or uniform?
Vogel says it's about having workers involved from the start of the decision.
It’s about sharing with employees, "This is the objective, and this is how it’s going to benefit the company,’” he says. Then, asking their thoughts on how dress code or uniform changes should be implemented is important.”
To make sure it's inclusive, Vogel emphasizes that organizations should consult employees from different demographics. It's a balancing act, he says, because getting everyone to agree is hard, but making sure everyone at least feels represented is important.
“If people feel like their identity has been represented—whether that's by race or by, gender, or by sexual orientation, or geographic location... You will likely mitigate the negative effects of them thinking, ‘Okay, but this is unfair,’” he adds.
