Thanks for sharing that, Longboard. Reading the post, the issue seems to hinge (apart from idiocy, of course...) on two points:
- the definition of "outer clothing"
- the prescription (or lack thereof) of specific "outer clothing" that needs to be worn
Now, as "outer clothing" cannot reasonably be taken to mean "clothing worn within the body or under the skin", then it must imply (but not state- which is the nub of the problem) a hierarchy of clothing - e.g. vest, shirt, pullover, jacket, overcoat, in that order.
Assuming shoes are deemed "outer clothing" for a moment (thus making socks "inner clothing", as trousers/pants would be "outer clothing" and boxers/briefs would be "inner clothing"), then there are grounds to argue that the regulations are
intended to cover the wearing or not of shoes. However, they are so loosely written as to permit ambiguity, rendering them useless.
However, now there is the second problem: the regulations do
not say that any particular "outer clothing" be required, only that, should it be employed, that it be "clean". This is very different from requiring a) the wearing of a given example of "outer clothing" and b) its cleanliness.
In short, I am not so convinced that the regulations do not cover the use of shoes, I suggest that they do in
spirit, but fall down in fact because of careless drafting of the regulation.
However, that all said, it is a staggeringly silly interpretation of a commonsense requirement to turn up to work in a state unlikely to spark an epidemic.
Makes me think about the thoughts going through my head on the bus home earlier today, though... I was wearing my VFFs and was returning from unsuccessfully trying to wrest my new Invisible Shoes from Customs and Excise (they were closed when I got there...), and as I approached my stop I realised that my VFFs were really annoying me and I wanted to take them off.
I could easily have done so, but wussed out. Why? Social pressure I suppose, playing on my need to be "accepted by society" (whatever that means, but it'S clearly at play in a moment like this...), even though I didn't think I cared much about the opinions of anyone I was likely to meet or were likely to get comments from (at least, the negative kind).
Weird. And now off topic. Sorry