‘Singaporeans should be allowed to wear shorts and t-shirts to work’ — SG women petition to ‘normalise [office] workwear to be appropriate to our climate’

SINGAPORE: In a country where stepping outside feels like walking into a sauna, three Singaporean women have started a discussion that’s hotter than the weather itself — and it’s got nothing to do with fashion trends.

On a recent episode of The Situation Report — a bold, unapologetic video podcast streamed on the Kakee app — hosts Tanisha, Carla, and guest Qiyun Woo, an environmental activist and content creator, threw office norms into the air like a drenched blazer in June.

“In such a tropical country, how come our formal wear is [the type that makes us feel] so crazy hot?” asked Qiyun. “You’re wearing a suit… when we should be wearing like linen, batik… change the ways that we live our life so that it’s not aircond dependent.”

Carla jumped in, asking, “Why can’t we normalise workwear to be appropriate to our climate? I think that would make perfect sense!” while Tanisha, also supporting the idea, said, “I like that! I like that!” and even went a step further to offer a one-word solution: “Shorts!”

@thesituationreportkakee

petition to wear shorts and t-shirts to work pls 🙏🏽🙏🏽

♬ original sound – The Situation Report – The Situation Report

The trio’s call for cooler clothes struck a chord on TikTok. Posted by The Situation Report @thesituationreportkakee, the clip pulled in over 50K views and 2K likes, captioned, “petition to wear shorts and t-shirts to work pls 🙏🏽.”

Qiyun then went on to share a rainy-day horror story from her Tanjong Pagar former work days: “On the way to Outram MRT, it’s like a slope, right? And it was pouring rain. I was in sandals and I kept falling off, and I’m thinking, why can’t I just wear rubber shoes to work during monsoon season?”

She added, “Our climate is not suited for this kind of office wear, so it makes me think a lot about what we are doing in our lives that are just not suited to our weather and our changing weather.”

The TikTok community wasted no time chiming in with a collection of responses, such as  the ones below:

• “I will sign this petition. It’s getting warmer every year. Say no to men’s formal!”
• “We are an island. We should wear island clothes to the office.”
• “My CEO wears bermudas and t-shirts. So do we. Everything we do — it’s next level.”

But then, it wasn’t all support. One commenter cautioned, “Office attire is seen as professional. If you’re going to a meeting, and you wear casual, no one is going to take you or your company seriously.”

Another warned, “This will lead to chaos. Then uniforms will be implemented again. There is a reason why we wear standard attire.”

Still, others struck a balance: “There are many options to change the material you wear, yet still look formal. Shorts or skimpy wear are not appropriate in a formal or professional setting. Comfort doesn’t mean you lose your modesty.”

And one nostalgic suggestion was, “Yes! Wear batik, sari, qipao, kebaya, and all that for formal meetings and events! I think that we have forgotten our heritage and should bring that back.”

Whether it’s a fashion rebellion or climate realism, Singaporeans are ready for less sweat and working smart suggestions. However, wearing shorts to meetings might not be so advisable. Well, at least for now, but the conversation has begun, and like our weather, it doesn’t seem like it’s going to cool down anytime soon.

Read related: ‘SG education system should add useful life skills’ — Singaporean says ‘personal finance, workplace communication, and stress management subjects will better help students prepare for adulthood’