dress-down Friday

Wearing smart-casual clothes at work on Fridays, as opposed to formal business wear. The practice originated in the USA in the mid-1980s, partly as a response to the power dressing of the 1980s, partly due to the increase in popularity of so-called soft management techniques, and partly as a reflection of the casual dress prevalent in the booming Internet industry. Exported to Europe and other parts of the world, and firmly entrenched in corporate culture, even lawyers have adopted the policy. Dress-down Friday is not without its critics. It is claimed by some to decrease productivity, to increase customer dissatisfaction, and to give rise to stress for employees deciding what to wear.