Loosening the Ties: Workplace Attire Through the Decades Infographic

Over the last 70+ years, the world of work has experienced a dramatic revolution. Mindsets around who’s eligible for employment, wages and wardrobe have all changed. We conducted a survey this summer to see how Americans felt about what is and isn’t appropriate for work and wanted to show how those opinions are different from decades past.

Check out the full infographic below that covers everything from the conservative dress of the 1950s to the casual, relaxed style of today. You’ll also find interesting statistics about the number of employed men versus women, how much they were paid and what they were typically hired to do during a specific time period.

This survey was conducted via telephone within the United States by Opinion Research Corporation on behalf of Adecco from July 12 – July 16, 2012 among 1,010 American adults ages 18 and older. Survey results have a margin of error +/- 3.1% for this sample size.