Woman has iconic response to male colleague asking her to 'cover-up' her shoulders at workplace

Women often feel pressured by unequal treatment and societal pressure. What makes it even worse is how women go through the humiliation in silence fearing job loss, retaliation, or being labeled as "difficult" to handle. These underlying issues further negatively affect women’s confidence and professional growth. In a Reddit post from 2022, which now stands deleted, a woman shared her experience of tactfully handling a male coworker who tried to shame her for the clothes that she wore to work. Later, the post was also shared on X. 

Narrating her ordeal, she explained that she was wearing a tank top with thin straps exposing her shoulders with long pants for bottoms. The woman pointed out that she could see her coworker Brian giving her "angry looks" throughout the day. Finally, when she decided to confront him, Brian complained about her work attire and said, "he thought better of me than to dress in 'barely any clothes' to work." Interestingly, the male coworker who made the distasteful comment was wearing pretty short clothes and was barefoot. It was ironic to see Brian make such comments about a female worker when he was not dressed properly for work. 

Disheartened by the hurtful and hypocritical remark, the woman took a stand for herself against the male coworker and said that she would start covering up her shoulders when he started wearing shoes to the office. "If I have to watch his hairy toes at work, he can deal with the sight of my shoulders," she added. Surprised and perhaps shocked seeing the woman's witty reply, Brian immediately put on his headphones and avoided any interaction with the lady for the rest of the day. While her response to her male coworker saved her from probably more unusual and inappropriate remarks, the woman wanted to know if she did the right thing at her workplace. She asked her Reddit audience, "Now I'm wondering if I was wrong to say that. He is a coworker and I should strive for good work relationships, but I felt insulted so kicked back at him."

The majority of the people who commented on the post supported her for answering back to her coworker who tried to shame her for the clothes. Many people shared how showing up at the workplace without shoes is way too "unprofessional than bare shoulders." u/Pink_RubberDucky wrote, "NTA. Bare feet all summer in the office and he acts like a child about a tank top? Grow up, Brian."

"He needs to grow the f*** up. Showing shoulders isn't a big deal. If there is no dress code, dress appropriately for you. I just can't believe he would be complaining of shoulders. He's totally TA," u/mrsbluemoon commented on the woman's post. Few people were even concerned about Brian's behavior and urged the woman to talk to the company's HR and sort the issue at the earliest. u/Cold_Chipmunk5728 advised, "I’d be concerned that he’s sexualizing your shoulders and responding with anger, which is a hint at assault, and subsequently file a complaint with HR."