Ohio hospital drops rule requiring women to wear pantyhose

AKRON, Ohio – Women at an Ohio hospital system can once again skip the pantyhose while wearing dresses and skirts because a revised dress code was put in place this week.

Akron-based Summa Health system notified its 8,000 employees on Wednesday about changes to a dress code that raised the ire of some women when it was implemented nearly two years ago by the previous administration, The Akron Beacon Journal has reported (http://bit.ly/2rGRdZQ ).

Summa officials said at the time the system’s dress code was meant to boost professionalism and safety, according to the newspaper.

A new interim CEO was appointed just over two months ago. Dr. Cliff Deveny told the newspaper that he heard about the dress code from employees during meetings.

A Summa Health senior vice-president for human resources said in a memo issued Wednesday that a focus group of employees provided feedback about the changes.

“As always, the purpose of our dress code is to ensure all Summa Health employees maintain a professional appearance when interacting with our patients and the community,” the vice-president, Lorraine Washington, wrote.

There are other revisions that female employees might find favour with. They are once again allowed to wear open-toe shoes and “professional” capri pants. Small-studded nose piercings are now permitted and employees no longer must cover non-offensive tattoos.

Not everything has changed. The new rules still require “natural” hair colour and include a list of shades that don’t include purple or pink. And, just for men, facial hair must be “groomed and maintained.”

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Information from: Akron Beacon Journal, http://www.ohio.com