Dress for Success not Bad Advice

June 17, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Employees would do well to heed the old adage, "Dress for Success," as a new CareerBuilder.com survey shows 41% of employers say people who dress better or more professionally tend to be promoted more often than others in their organization.

Financial services is one of the industries that place the most emphasis on professional dress, as 55% of those employers state that people who dress more professionally tend to be promoted more often than others in the organization, according to a press release on the survey results. IT and manufacturing employers are two of the industries that place the least amount of emphasis on professional dress (37% and 34%, respectively).

Not only does your appearance count once on the job, but dressing professionally on an interview with potential employers is also important, the press release said. Fifty-four percent of employers surveyed give greater weight to candidates who show up to interviews wearing a business suit than those who do not.

Some employers prove they mean business about business attire by banning certain items of clothing. 64% of employers surveyed have banned flip flops; 49% have banned mini-skirts; and 28% have banned jeans. In addition, more than one-third (35%) of employers have sent someone home to change clothes because they were dressed inappropriately.

The survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder.com among 2,765 U.S. employers (employed full-time; not self-employed) ages 18 and over between February 11, and March 13, 2008.

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